Monday, July 31st represented Major League Baseball’s trade deadline once again this season, as well as the last chance for many teams to bolster their rosters for a final playoff push. Several big-name studs were moved as we approach the final 1/3 of the season, including Carlos Lee, Ben Broussard and Odalis Perez. In this edition of Inside the Numbers, we’ll take a look at each of the major deals that have gone down over the past couple weeks and give our take on how the transaction will affect each player’s overall fantasy value.
7/31/06
New York Mets
Acquired LHP Oliver Perez and RHP Roberto Hernandez from the Pittsburgh Pirates for OF Xavier Nady
Duaner Sanchez seperated his shoulder in car accident the night before, so the Mets had to make a last minute deal to acquire some much needed bullpen help. Hernandez will move into a late-inning reliever role, and Perez could have some nice value next season if he can iron out his mechanical problems during the off-season. Nady will likely see a lot more at-bats in Pittsburgh, so he should see a slight increase in value with the move.
Pittsburgh Pirates
Acquired RHP Brian Rogers from the Detroit Tigers in exchange for 1B Sean Casey.
The Tigers, who lead the majors with 70 wins, picked up another much needed left-handed bat in the lineup for the stretch run. Casey will be re-united with Dmitri Young, who just came off the DL. Chris Shelton has been just medicore since his sizzling start, so Detroit felt they needed to make an upgrade at the position. Shelton will be sent back down to the minors for the next month, and Casey will take over as the everyday first baseman.
Philadelphia Phillies
Traded LHP Rheal Cormier to the Cincinnati Reds in exchange for RHP Justin Germano
Germano went 8-6 with a 3.69 ERA for Triple-A Louisville this season. He could take over a spot in the starting rotation in the final couple months as Philly has started to think about next year. Cormier will serve as a valuable left-handed specialist in Cincy's pen, but isn't worth owning in any fantasy league.
Minnesota Twins
Acquired RHP Zach Ward from the Cincinnati Reds in exchange for RHP Kyle Lohse.
After struggling with a 7.07 ERA for the Twins this season, Lohse will be shipped off the Senior curcuit for minor league prospect Zach Ward. Lohse will be utilized as a spot starter/long reliever for the Reds, and is a risky fantasy option.
Los Angeles Dodgers
Acquired RHP Greg Maddux from the Cubs for infielder Cesar Izturis.
With the Cubs out of the pennant race, Maddux gets shipped off to a contender in L.A. With 327 wins, he'll see a nice boost in value hurling at a pitching-friendly ballpark. Izturis should see regular at-bats in the two middle infielder positions with the Cubs.
New York Yankees
Acquired first 1B/OF Craig Wilson from the Pirates for RHP Shawn Chacon.
The Bronx Bombers get another needed bat for the stretch run in exchange for a struggling spot starter/middle reliever. Wilson will get at-bats at first base and in the outfield, probably taking away the majority of playing time away from Andy Phillips. He'll be a platoon player so probably isn't a great addition in mixed leagues, but is a worthy pickup in deeper AL-formats.
7/30/06
New York Yankees
Acquired OF Bobby Abreu and RHP Cory Lidle from the Philadelphia Phillies for Minor League SS C.J. Henry, LHP Matt Smith, C Jesus Sanchez and RHP Carlos Monasterios.
Abreu and Lidle will step into important roles for the Yankees, as they are just 1/2 game behind the Red Sox with 1/3 of the season remaining. Abreu will take away at-bats from Andy Phillips and Bernie Williams and play regularly in right field. The career .301 hitter is a huge addition for the Bronx Bombers, and should see a nice spike in his numbers. Lidle will likely take over Jaret Wright's spot in the rotation and is a nice upgrade. His presence will also help the bullpen, as Wright has proved he's only good for five innings at most per start. Very nice move for the Yanks...
St. Louis Cardinals
Acquired 3B Ronnie Belliard from the Indians for INF Hector Luna.
Belliard will take over the Cardinals everyday second base job in St. Louis, after a few strong seasons with the tribe. He's all a sudden a terrific pick in NL-only leagues, and should see similar value in mixed formats. Luna will be a utlityman for the Tribe.
7/28/06
Los Angeles Dodgers
Acquired INF Wilson Betemit from the Atlanta Braves in exchange for RHP Danys Baez, INF Willy Aybar and cash considerations.
Betemit will take over the Dodgers regular third base job and that will be a nice upgrade from Aybar, who was hitting just .250 with three home runs in a platoon role. Cesar Izturis will move over to second base, while Jeff Kent recovers from an oblique injury. Baez will be used as Atlanta’s setup man for newly acquired Bob Wickman.
Milwaukee Brewers
Traded OF Carlos Lee and OF Nelson Cruz to Texas in exchange for RHP Francisco Cordero, OF Kevin Mench, OF Laynce Nix and Minor League LHP Julian Cordero
This has been the major blockbuster of the season up to this point. Lee turned down Milwaukee’s four-year, $40 million offer and was consequently traded the next day in a package deal with Texas. Lee, who is quietly two home runs shy of his fourth consecutive 30-home run season, will have similar value in Arlington - he has a career .349 average in Arlington (38-for-109) with 8 HR and 23 RBI in 28 games. Francisco Cordero has a golden opportunity to reclaim his former stopper role with Derrick Turnbow continuing to struggle. The former closer slammed the door 86 times the previous two seasons, and instantly becomes a nice addition in both mixed and NL-only formats. Mench could see a slight drop in production leaving the hitter friendly confines in Texas, but is still a very strong NL-only pickup. Nix will report to the minor leagues, and will likely be back up in the show as a September call-up.
Philadelphia Phillies
Acquired Minor League RHP Wilfrido Laureano from the Brewers in exchange for 3B David Bell.
Bell will replace Jeff Cirillo as Milwaukee’s everyday third baseman. With limited power and a career .257 average, the former Philly is not much of an upgrade. He continues to only be a marginal NL-only option.
San Francisco Giants
Acquired LHP Mike Stanton from the Washington Nationals in exchange for non-roster RHP Shairon Martis.
The Nationals continue to dismantle their bullpen in exchange for prospects. San Francisco is three games behind San Diego in the NL West, so Stanton, the left-handed middle reliever, will be a nice addition for the stretch run. By the sounds of it, Washington is not done dealing either.
7/26/06
Cleveland Indians
Traded 1B Ben Broussard and cash to the Seattle Mariners for OF Shin-Soo Choo and a player to be named later.
This deal made a lot of sense for both teams; Cleveland is 23 1/2 games back in the AL Central, so they decided to move Broussard to a contender in exchange for one of the best prospects in the game. Broussard, who plays DH and 1B against right-handers, is batting .321 on the season. If he had enough at-bats, he’d be ranked sixth in the American League in batting. Choo smacked a home run in his first game with the Tribe, and is expected to get regular at-bats the rest of the way against right-handers. At Triple-A Tacoma, Choo was hitting .323 (121-for-275) with 13 HR and 48 RBI in 94 games. He’s a nice pickup in all formats and is a nice keeper prospect.
Milwaukee Brewers
Acquired INF Tony Graffanino from the Royals in exchange for LHP Jorge De La Rosa.
The Royals recently started an infield that consisted of Graffanino, Grudzielanek and Mientkiewicz, but must have had too many problems spelling the lineup correctly. Graffanino will see limited at-bats at each spot in the infield and has no fantasy value, while De La Rosa will get a crack at starting in Kansas City’s rotation. The southpaw has minimal value in even AL-only leagues.
New York Yankees
Acquired C Sal Fasano from the Philadelphia Phillies for Minor League INF Hector Made; Designated C Kelly Stinnett for assignment.
The Yankees decided to change their vagabond, backup catchers from Stinnett to Fasano. No fantasy implications here…
7/25/06
Kansas City Royals
Acquired LHP Odalis Perez, nonroster RHP’s Blake Johnson and Julio Pimentel and cash considerations for RHP Elmer Dessens.
After a reasonably successful tenure in Los Angeles, Perez lost both his job in the starting rotation and the respect of his coaches in the past couple months. Leaving the pitch friendly Dodger Stadium and going to the cellar dwelling Royals will not exactly help his overall value, but he will get a chance to rejoin the starting rotation once again. The 29-year-old southpaw will need to rebuild his pitching endurance over the next couple weeks, but could have some decent value again next year with an assured start every five days.
7/24/06
Chicago White Sox
Acquired RHP Mike MacDougal from the Kansas City Royals in exchange for nonroster LHP Tyler Lumsden and nonroster RHP Daniel Cortes
Injuries robbed MacDougal of the majority of his 2004 season, as well as the first half of 2006. He’s proved he can close at this level in the past, highlighted by a 27 and 21-save seasons in ’03 and ’05, but will likely just be used as a setup man in Chi-town. In six appearances this season, he’s yet to allow a walk or a run this year, so it does look like he’s finally over his shoulder woes. Nice long-term move for the White Sox.
7/23/06
Chicago White Sox
Acquired C Sandy Alomar Jr. from the Dodgers in exchange for RHP B.J. LaMura
Alomar was added to Chicago’s roster for his leadership and wisdom behind the plate. The 40-year old is hitting .323 on the season, but did that damage in very limited playing time. He’s got just two long balls over the past three seasons, and hasn’t truly had fantasy value since 1997 with the Indians. This will be the 16-year vet’s third go-around with the Sox.
7/22/06
Chicago Cubs
Traded RHP Scott Williamson to the Padres in exchange for LHP Fabian Jimenez Angulo and RHP Joel Santo.
Williamson will be a nice right-handed middle reliever for the Padres bullpen in the final couple months. They are currently 1 1/2 games ahead of Arizona in the NL West, with all five division-teams separated by only six games. He’s not worth adding to any fantasy squad.
7/21/06
San Francisco Giants
Acquired INF Shea Hillenbrand and RHP Vinnie Chulk from Toronto for RHP Jeremy Accardo.
Hillenbrand was upset with how the Blue Jays treated him and made it known (through the media). That upset Toronto’s brass to all ends and they immediately designated him for assignment to remove the negativity from the clubhouse. San Francisco landed him, along with reliever Chulk, in exchange for up-and-coming flamethrower Jeremy Accardo. The Giants forecasted him as a possible closer down the road – he’ll probably be utilized in middle relief the rest of the 2006 campaign. Hillenbrand, who is 5-for-28 in his first six games as a Giant, is hitting .291 on the season with 12 long balls.
7/21/06
Atlanta Braves
Acquired pitcher Bob Wickman from the Cleveland Indians for catcher Max Ramirez.
After trying Chris Reitsma, Ken Ray and Jorge Sosa as the team’s closer this year, Atlanta finally added a true stopper to take over the ninth inning role. Wickman, who totaled 45 saves last year, remains a quality option in all leagues. He’s notched a save in six of his past seven appearances, including two in a Braves’ uniform.