It was the most significant trade of the offseason. It was supposed to make the Braves a much better club; Gary Sheffield would give them what they needed, a masher hitting behind Chipper Jones. It wasn't supposed to help the Dodgers as much; Brian Jordan, a good hitter, would not produce like Sheffield. As for Odalis Perez, well, he possibly would make the rotation.

The trade hasn't gone like it was supposed to. The Braves are 16-18 while the Dodgers are 20-13 in the ultra-competitive National League West and Sheffield has hit just one home run since joining Frank Robinson and Jimmy Wynn as the only players in history to homer in the first three games with their new team. Jordan is hitting .267 with five homers. And Perez? Well, he's been the most effective player in that trade.

This is another reason why baseball is so great. The Braves balked at including Kevin Millwood in the deal, so L.A. got Perez instead. After beating the Braves on Wednesday night, Perez is 4-1 with a 1.66 ERA. He's allowed 30 hits in 54 1/3 innings and has a staggering strikeout-to-walk total of 35-to-6. He has been the best pitcher on a formidable staff, but only slightly better than Kazuhisa Ishii, the first rookie pitcher to win his first six major-league starts since 1969, and Eric Gagne, who labored as a starting pitcher last season, was made the closer this spring and has 11 saves and a 1.00 ERA.

The Dodgers are 20-13, 1½ games out of first place, despite having only one win from ace Kevin Brown, who was on the disabled list earlier this year for the 11th time in his career. Since being swept at home by the Giants in the first series of the year -- the 12-0 loss on April 3 was the most lopsided road shutout in the 112-year history of the Dodgers-Giants rivalry -- the Dodgers have gone 20-10, and have allowed only 80 runs, a remarkable average of 2.66 runs per game.

Leading the way has been Perez, 23, who was 11-15 with a 5.38 ERA in parts of three seasons with the Braves. With a deceptive motion, a good breaking ball and an excellent changeup, Perez has dazzled hitters across the league. On April 26 in Chicago, he pitched a one-hit shuout -- an infield single by Corey Patterson in the seventh inning was the Cubs' only baserunner.

"Believe it or not, he reminds me a lot of the Atlanta Braves pitchers," said Dodgers pitching coach Jim Colborn. "He's so easy going, so relaxed. He's only 23, but he pitches like a pro. I have to constantly remind myself that he's still learning. He teases you into thinking that he's 33, not 23. He throws all three of his pitches with different looks and different speeds. He throws strikes. He's a product of superior coaching ... by the Atlanta Braves."

Meanwhile, Atlanta's pitching has labored. Through Wednesday, the Braves have issued the second-most walks (143) of any team in the major leagues. They had made the most pitching changes, a sign that the starting pitchers aren't going long enough, and the bullpen hasn't been at its best. Greg Maddux even allowed 10 runs in a game on April 25 against the Diamondbacks. Until his last start, he had as many walks as strikeouts (12-12).

The Braves knew their pitching was in a bit of a transition period, which is one reason why they acquired Sheffield. They wanted to be less reliant on their starting pitching, especially in the playoffs. Sheffield was supposed to give them their best middle of the order during their remarkable 11-year run. But soon after Sheffield had homered in his first three games, he was hit on the wrist by a pitch.

Anytime you mess with a hitter's hands or wrists, there's not much chance that he'll be the same hitter until most of the pain goes away. It hasn't for Sheffield. Through Wednesday, he's hitting .227 with four homers (as many as Omar Vizquel) and 11 RBI. During one stretch, he went 0-for-29, the worst in-season slump (not a carry over from one season to the next) of his career.

There's no doubt that Sheffield will soon start to hit with great power. Jordan will produce a little more, as well. But it's hard to believe that Perez can get any better. Although it's only six weeks into the season, it's hard to believe he's been the best player in that trade.

That's baseball, though.

Tim Kurkjian is a senior writer for ESPN The Magazine and a regular contributor to Baseball Tonight. E-mail tim.kurkjian@espnmag.com.