[Syd Thrift]

October / November 1973

And we're off to the races! Oh boy, it's been a little while since I moved through an offseason...

October 2 (retroactive): The Brewers traded minor league RP Dave Wolfe (6-3, 3.61 in AA Shreveport) to the Cardinals for cash. The Cards do need some relief pitching of any kind and the Brewers have no place to put Wolfe, who has to be on a 40 man roster in 1974.

October 11 (retroactive): The Twins traded P Manley Carter (3-1, 7.50) and minor league LF Pat Lombas (.266, 10, 39 at AAA Tacoma) to the Indians for minor league P Pedro Torres (12-12, 2.59 at AA San Antonio) and minor league P Danny Leland (6-17, 3.19 at AA San Antonio). None of these guys are prospects at all; the "jewel" of this deal is the 26 year old Carter, who gave up 18 walks in 18 innings in the major leagues last season.

October 14 (retroactive): The Twins acquired OF Carl Weathers (.153, 1, 2) from the White Sox for cash considerations. Weathers, a starter for the 1972 Giants, is now off to his 3rd team in 2 years. He failed to hit in either the majors or AAA and even though he's only 25 the Twinkies might be his last shot.

October 18 (retroactive): The Phillies traded P Billy Ording (10-8, 4.02) to the Pirates for SS Henry Villar (.268, 2, 36). The Pirates aren't contending any time soon and I mean you can never have too much pitching, right? This opens up shortstop for prospect Huey Lewis (.283, 15, 41 at AA Sherbrooke). The Phillies move on from Ording but get a guy who can play some great shortstop and allow Tony Shannon (.280, 8, 61) to move to second, which should be a better fit for him.

October 20: It's as good a time as any to hand out awards, right?

AL MVP
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1. Alvin Romero, CF Detroit Tigers (.300, 5, 54). It was a controversial choice... in my brain, but even though Yankees DH Ernesto Garcia (.254, 55, 134) led the league in 2 of the 3 triple crown categories, Romero led the league in runs scored with 116 and set a new MLB record with 80 steals (passing his own personal record of 72). How often do leadoff hitters do this well? Also, I don't generally look at this but he did lead the AL in WAR.
2. Ernesto Garcia, DH New York Yankees (.254, 55, 134)
3. Alice Cooper, 1B Chicago White Sox (.289, 40, 95). Cooper missed the final 2 weeks of the season and the Chisox cratered during that time.

NL MVP
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1. Alberto Juantorena, LF Philadelphia Phillies (.311, 29, 113). Once again, the algorithm says this should go to slugger Jaden Weaver but no, just no. Juantorena was like 3rd or 4th best at pretty much everything and played some good LF defense too.
2. Jaden Weaver, RF CIN (.256, 38, 117)
3. George Foreman, CF HOU (.310, 23, 94)

AL Cy Young
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1. Jimmy Goddard, Detroit (24-4, 2.07). When you do the Roger Clemens record, you win the Cy Young. That's my rule.
2. Robbie Coltrane, CLE/TEX (23-10, 2.83)
3. Chris Benavides, Detroit (20-7, 2.87)

NL Cy Young
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1. Darius Parchman, San Diego (4-5, 0.80, 30 Sv). Should a reliever win the Cy Young? Maybe not but if ever there was a year, it was this one.
2. Richard Starkey, Philadelphia Phillies (23-12, 2.44)
3. Don Henley, San Diego (20-7, 2.36)

AL Rolaids Relief Award
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1. Malcolm Post, Chicago White Sox (8-2, 2.21, 35 Sv)
2. Willis Chavez, Oakland (9-11, 2.90, 23 Sv)
3. Jim Marceau, Detroit (7-7, 2.42, 21 Sv)

NL Rolaids Relief Award
------------------
1. Darius Parchman
2. Paz Lemus, Pittsburgh (12-5. 2.02, 25 Sv)
3. Brian Yates, Cincinnati (9-8, 1.71, 26 Sv)

AL Rookie of the Year
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1. Geoffrey Rush, 2B Texas (.317, 10, 54). I swear I'm gonna stop looking at WAR but Rush was by faaaaaaar the best rookie by that metric.
2. Aitor de la Rosa, 1B NYY (.286, 21, 69). Not sure if I should count a 32 year old Mexican League veteran but de la Rosa was technically a rookie and since he didn't win, mehhh it's a fun little trivia note.
3. Kurt Russell, 2B CAL/BAL (.279, 4, 41). At this point it was between Russell, who was really good if not in an eye-popping way, or the Twins' Ergot Newman, who technically had the highest WAR among rookie pitchers with 3.7 but finished 7-16.

NL Rookie of the Year
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1. Phil McGraw, CF San Diego (.323, 5, 54). Like Rush, there was one and only one clear choice for this award.
2. Rowan Atkinson, SP Hopuston (14-7, 3.38). Stat nerds will say that Sting had a better rookie year but Sting was only 10-12 and every little thing he did was NOT magic.
3. Jerry Sherk, LF Pittsburgh (.277, 22, 89). It's not every day that a rookie just walks in and belts 20 HRs and nears 90 RBIs in spite of not even playing the full year with his big league club.

AL Gold Gloves
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P - Michael Pesco, Boston (2)
C - Josh Lewis, Oakland (3)
1B - Alex Canales, Oakland (5)
2B - Geoffrey Rush, Texas (1)
3B - Brian Maccioli, Chicago (1) - This was a really bad yaer for defensive 3rd basemen in the AL. By the numbers, Joe Theismann should have won it but he only started 97 games so no I'm not going with that. Maccioli was the best guy who a. isn't a 35 yaer old winning his first GG ever (hi Tommy Weiss) and b. started at least 120 games at the position.
SS - Oniji Handa, Boston (9) - This was Handa's biggest fight for the award, as Brian Wilcox actually wound up with a higher ZR than him. Both were amaaaazing though (well over +20) and Handa is the king of the Americans whereas Wilcox was king of the Nationals.
OF - Alvin Romero, Detroit (2)
OF - Norm Hodge, Texas (9) - This, frankly, was a legacy award.
OF - Brandon Anderson, Cleveland (1)

AL Silver Sluggers
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C - Josh Lewis, Oakland (.290, 10, 52)
1B - Alice Cooper
2B - Joey Ramone (.310, 11, 97) - California's Rodrigo Juarez (.282, 23, 88) had a good case too but the Tigers won the WS, man.
3B - Bobby Ramirez, CAL/TEX (.324, 12, 61) - Tommy Weiss got screwed out of two awards, as he was the best hitting 3rd baseman by raw numbers. A lot of his prowess is walks and he's 35. Sorry!
SS - John Johnson, Chicago White Sox (.315, 5, 61)
LF - Tony Danza, Kansas City (.318, 11. 83, 51 doubles)
CF - Alvin Romero
RF - Dave Corona, Kansas City (.295, 14, 53, 105 walks, 118 R)
DH - Ernesto Garcia, New York - you might as well call this the Ernesto Garcia Award.


NL Gold Gloves
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Lots and lots of first and second timers out here in the NL... in fact, there's only 2 guys who won more than 2 on the list and one of them is in the AL now.

P - DJ Cheeves, Pittsburgh (2)
C - Nikolai Volkoff, Philadelphia (1)
1B - Willie Morales, Montreal (2)
2B - Paul McCartney, San Diego (2) - it was neck and neck between McCartney and LA's Danny Fager. I gave it to Paul on the basis of he won last yaer (Fager did win in 70 and 71) and the Dodgers were terrible and deserve nothing.
3B - Sean Gabel, CHC/OAK (6) - Yeah, he did finish the year in Oakland but he was pretty easily the best fielding 3B in the NL.
SS - Dusty McCully, Cincinnati (1) - A few guys could have won this but McCully played a bit more than Henry Villar and Pedro Almodovar and that has to count for something, right? John Timonen is also on the list even with only 42 starts, which shows how amazing he is with the glove (and how bad of a hitter he is).
OF - Bryant Tarala, Philadelphia (3)
OF - Phil McGraw, San Diego (1)
OF - Paul Kahl, Montreal (2)

NL Silver Sluggers
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P - Don Henley, San Diego (.247, 0, 11)
C - Jason Bushon, NY Mets (.292, 7, 70)
1B - Justin Stone, Los Angeles (.298, 30, 75)
2B - Paul McCartney, San Diego (.301, 19. 85)
3B - George Harrison, San Francisco (.315, 17, 84)
SS - Jeremy Taylor, Chicago (.245, 16, 56) - Even an injury-plagued year from Jeremy Taylor is enough to win this award.
LF - Alberto Juantorena
CF - George Foreman
RF - Jaden Weaver

October 22: The Angels traded P David Camacho (6-10, 5.24), CF Josh Pierce (.296, 8, 39), C Shaun Dennehy (.213, 1, 17), and P Andy Ring (17-11, 3.23) to the Brewers for CF Fernando Ceballos (.231, 2, 28), OF Bob Keith (.253, 1, 13), P Marius Gaddi (6-19, 4.33), C Sam Rahn (.228, 3, 30), and P Ignacio Visco (9-15, 4.04). It's a big trade involving a lot of disgruntled players. The two best guys in this move are both Angels though; is this a sign that they're throwing in the towel?

October 23: The Astros purchased 2B Victor Rodriguez (.296, 2, 10) from the Cardinals. Houston seems to love second basemen who can't field the position so Rodriguez is a great fit. Also, the scouts are not a fan of Masanori Hattori (.236, 5, 37), their putative incumbent.

October 23: The Red Sox trade OF Robert "Sgt Slaughter" Remus (.247, 1, 8) to the Tigers for OF Alejandro Cortes (.196, 8, 18). Cortes had a pretty lousy season and may not have enough left but he does provide veteran leadership and for the Red Sox Remus is the 5th or 6th outfielder at best.

October 23: The Astros traded IF Masanori Hattori (.236, 5, 37) to the White Sox for minor league P Jordan Musquiz (1-3, 4.12 in AAA Iowa). I mentioned Hattori above; he'll move to Chicago and launch a new career as a utility man. Musquiz had a cup of coffee with the Yankees in 1971 and ever since then has been on the 40 man roster; the Astros will probably try to sneak him through waivers.

October 24: Kansas City sent minor league P Jon Gutierrez (1=1, 11.88 with the big league club) to the Twins for cash. This is about as minor as these deals come; Gutierrez was all right in AA and AAA last year after suuuuuuuuucking in the major leagues, and the Twins need pitching / guys who have a shot at being someone someday.

October 24: The Red Sox traded P Alex Izquierdo (5-0, 2.88) to the Royals for CL Jake Duckett (4-5, 2.41, 16 Sv). Izquierdo has been riding the shuttle between AAA Louisville and Boston since he arrived there but Kansas City thinks he's worth more; in turn, Duckett is a luxury to have on a team that's still figuring itself out like the Royals are while the Red Sox want to shore up that bullpen.

October 25: The Padres purchased OF Jesse Lockhart (.239, 3, 22) from the Cardinals. Lockhart hasn't done much in recent years but once upon a time hit .325 in this league. The Pads do have some space available for a right-handed pinch-hitter and backup outfielder.

October 25: The Padres traded P / top prospect Joannes Eidesgaard (9-15, 3.06 in AAA Hawaii) to the Giants for CF Mads Vindig (.298, 7, 40) and minor league OF/PH Erik Estrada (.284, 0, 9). Eidesgaard is the Padres' top prospect and the #16 prospect overall according to BNN but sometimes you have to give up to get and the Padres are receiving an outfielder who just came off of a very good rookie year in Vindig. He'll probably play one of the corner positions. Estrada is already getting slotted in as a minor league pinch-hitter, which probably doesn't bode well for his future.

October 25: The Cubs traded P Mike Larsen (13-13, 2.89) to the Rangers for OF Curtis Hope (.204, 1, 16) and OF Tom Petty (.252, 3, 15). Larsen returns to the American League after a single year in Chicago, while the Cubs bring back a reclamation project in Hope, who was a 2-time All Star with the Mets at one point in his career, and Petty, who was named the top prospect in all of baseball at the beginning of last season.

October 26: The Cardinals traded IF Barry Bailey (.246, 3, 12) to the Rangers for RP Eric Godard (0-1, 2.70). Godard has had some issues staying healthy recently - he missed half of last year with biceps tendinitis and all of 1972 with a shoulder injury - but when he does pitch he's still as effective as he was when he was a closer for Cleveland in 1971. He's moving on to St. Louis in exchange for Barry Bailey, who theoretically could play shortstop for Texas if he could cut down on the errors.

October 26: The Dodgers traded CF JD Heil (.195, 3, 6) and minor league OF Christovan Paulos (.329, 1, 19 in AAA Albuquerque) to the Twins for OF Chris Wilkes (.182, 0, 1) and minor league PH/1B Jesse Schepp (.280, 0, 5). This is mostly about minor league depth and guys who are eligible for Rule V. Wilkes used to be a starter in Cincinnati but seems close to being done and Heil is a 28 year old who has zero offensive ability.

October 26: The White Sox traded P Jerry Blackwell (0-0, 12.27) to the Cardinals for P Dan Schoner (0-0, 2.84). This is half a move of "hey, take this guy off our hands so when you release him it's not us doing it" for both teams. Blackwell, who I have listed at 465 pounds (lol he's a wrestler) doesn't look like he's going to work out and Schoner is a veteran reliever who can't stay healthy.

October 26: The Red Sox traded RF Tom Brown (.285, 16, 72) and P Manny Venegas (2-3, 4.96 in AAA Louisville) to the Cardinals for RF Matt Williams (.294, 13, 39) and P Yuri Kovalchuk (9-15, 2.91 in AAA Tulsa). Matt Williams gets to see if he can stay healthy as a DH now and while Tom Brown might be getting along in years, they say that availability is the best ability and he's always available.

October 27: The Dodgers purchased SS Guido Temudo (.190, 1, 6) from the Brewers. Temudo's a good-field, no-hit shortstop who the Brewers no longer have a use for. He'll compete for a job in LA, I guess.

October 31: The Astros traded 1B/PH Nick Miller (.242, 5, 27) to the Pirates for OF Chris Tyree (.255, 0, 21). This move was originally to send Jerry Reuss to the Pirates IRL but even I have my limits - you can never have too much pitching but Pittsburgh tests this. Miller was an OK pinch-hitter but fills a gaping hole in the Pittsburgh lineup; the cost for him is Tyree, who is a part-time corner OFer with a little speed and zero power.

November 3: Cleveland traded P Bae-hee Kim (6-7, 4.14) to the Astros for P Jason Gilmer (4-9, 4.58). It's one disgruntled reliever coming off of a bad season for another. Gilmer was a pretty solid starter who the Astros traded for in 1971 in what might be the worst trade in Astros history (they sent back Don Henley and Steven Tyler, the 1-2 punch in the current Padres rotation). Kim is simply a 27 year old organizational guy for the Tribe who was overmatched in his first major league innings.

November 3: The Cubs traded ST Jesse Kelly (7-9, 3.36, 22 Sv) to the A's for P Doug Ellis (3-3, 3.91). Kelly's great and all but he's getting up there in years. The IRL inspiration for this trade was Bob Locker, who was similarly good for the Cubs and then just disappeared after this deal - he got hurt I guess?

November 7: The Cubs traded OF Tom Petty (.252, 3, 15) and OF Terry Pratchett (.209, 0, 4) to the Padres for RF Ed O'Neill (.253, 6, 43). I swear I'm not collecting rock stars on the Padres on purpose! Ed O'Neill has a hitting profile better suited to center and the defensive skills to match but was increasingly out of place with the Pads' trade for Mads Vindig. Petty could slide in as a starting LF as early as next season.

November 7: The Brewers traded P Victor Marin (3-1, 4.26) to the Phillies for CL Tom Grohs (3-10, 3.04, 27 Sv). Grohs... saved a lot of games (I almost said he had a good season but he did have 10 losses in relief) but his K rate has been dipping down. Grohs insists it's a choice but is it? Victor Marin was once a Cubs starter and now can finish out his career as an NL East reliever.

November 9: The Reds traded OF Dan Issel (.206, 17, 36 at AAA Indianapolis) to the Padres for 3B Kevin Landry (.272, 4, 34). Issel has been awwwwwful in the high minors and in his taste in the majors and needs a taste of scenery. And yeah, going into the season electing to start a 41 year old at 3rd base isn't the greatest idea but the Reds are out of options.

November 18: Hall of Fame voting begins! I have 4 guys on my ballot:

Fernando Rocha (1st year): Rocha was the early superstar of the league. He missed at least 2 years from the war but still finished with 2,916 hits and 410 HRs, a .309 career BA, 14 trips to the AS game, and 3 MVPs. If this guy doesn't go in on his first ballot, I'll eat my hat. I'm not wearing one but I'll put it on and eat it.

P Francisco Galtan: Galtan (3rd, 43.9%). Galtan had a promising career derailed by injury. He finished with meh career numbers: 148-99, 2.83 ERA, 2,087 Ks - but his peaks were very peaky with 3 Cy Youngs and 2 22-win seasons. He won just 18 games from age 30 onwards.

P Jose Luquin (3rd, 69.9%). It looks like Luquin got very very close to getting in last year so let's get him over the hump. He was 204-133, 3.04 over a career that also saw him win 2 Cy Youngs and 5 World Series trophies for Team Evil, the New York Yankees. I don't have to like greatness, I just have to respect it.

Aaron "Pickles" Trotta (1st): The counting stats are sliiiiiiigthly lowish although still in the ballpark of great: 2.158 hits, a .306 average, 983 runs scored, 3 steals titles in the 50s when nobody was stealing. The true mark of his talent though is that Trotta was the NL's Gold Glove right fielder throughout the late 50s and early 60s, winning 8 times in all, and this is before the author started stepping in and handing out "legacy" awards, too, so you know this guy deserved it.

November 28: In real life there were 13 players picked up via Rule V so I'll follow that.

1. MIL: Andy Lagunas (3-4, 4.68) from KC. Yeah, not sure how or why Lagunas was left unprotected, as he's a former 21 game winner. He hasn't been very good recently. That's probably why.
2. LAD: Austin Fifield (.281, 30, 66) from DET.
3. MON (skipped)
4. BAL: Ben Aldridge (.218, 5, 11) from CLE. Another guy with MLB experience this year. He's not very good but, like, guys who are good don't tend to show up in this.
5. MIN (skipped)
6. SF: Luis Cardenas (.186, 1, 1 at AAA Tulsa). A defense-first utility infielder who barely played last year. I'm taking scouts' recommendations here so I guess they see something...
7. KC: C Johnny Becton (.275, 6, 19 at AAA Toledo) from DET. He looks like he just started hitting and plays poor defense, but the Royals catching situation is so, so bad. I've penciled him in as their starter immediately.
8. NYM: Bobby Turner (.164, 2, 8) from CLE. Turner was actually not so bad in AAA as a pinch-hitter/OF (.259, 11, 26 in 143 at-bats).
9. CLE (skip)
10. OAK: Zachary Taylor (.223, 14, 48 at AAA OKC) from CLE. I guess the Rule V pickings are getting slim... he does have decent middle infielder pop and is a solid defender. He might break with the team, who knows.
11. CHC: Jonathan Sanchez (7-12, 3.34) from MON. Wow, Montreal's good enough to leave a guy like this off their 40-man roster.
12. CIN: Bailey Swezey (.333, 1, 8 at AA El Paso) from CAL. Now this, THIS is the kind of Rule V draft pick I'm talking about. Cincy is currently projecting to start 41 year old Kevin Landry at third base. Swezey barely played last year and seemed destined to be a backup in the Cal system at best but he's a great defender and hey, new team, new chance.
13. CAL (skip)
14. HOU: Terry Pavey (.225, 7, 17 at AA White Haven) from NYY. I know the scouts reeeeeeeally do not like LF Jason Workman so this guy at least might push him... a little before he's offered back to the Yankees.
15. ATL: Wendell Poston (.203, 5, 14 at AAA Louisville) from BOS. When searching for a shortstop you can do worse than going after a guy who's blocked by Oniji Handa. Poston hit .305 at AA last year and while being overwhelmed by AAA pitching isn't a great sign, this is the season of joy and hope.
16. BOS: Harvey Perrin (.240, 6, 21 at AAA Eugene) from PHI. Kristian Schneider really took a turn for the worse as a hitter last year (.234, 7, 58) and the Red Sox were caught without a viable replacement. I'm not sure Perrin counts but he's a good fielder at least.

December 3: The Tigers traded minor league P Joe Scott (3-2, 1.71, 7 Sv at AA Montgomery) and cash to the Astros, receiving P Adam Eastin (5-7, 3.09, 15 Sv) and C Jose Medina (.191, 0, 13) in return. Scott pitched in the majors in 1971 so being in AA shows how far he's fallen. Eastin's raw numbers look fine but he also blew 7 saves and allowed 39% of all inherited runners to score. Change of scenery though, right? The Tigers are weak at catcher.

December 3: Cleveland traded 3B Travis Corley (.213, 9, 43 at AAA OKC) to the Cardinals for P Jerry Blackwell (0-1, 5.02 at AAA Iowa). This is already the 2nd stop this offseason for Blackwell, who is freaking huge. Travis Corley was somehow an All-Star in 1971 but barely stayed on the roster in AAA last year. He looks like he'd be a disaster at shortstop but it's not like the Cards are anything like set there.

December 3: The Tigers traded a 24 year old shortstop to be named later (.298, 10, 59) to the Cardinals for a 19 year old catcher to be named later (.293, 7, 25 at R Richmond Heights). It's prospect for prospect, with the guy the Cards are getting back much closer to being MLB ready.

December 3: The Braves traded P Felix Carranza (11-14, 4.03) to the Phillies for P Omar Sanchez (4-3, 4.04, 6 Sv) and RF Billy Ocean (.333, 4, 27 at AAA Reading). The Phillies are loaded at starting pitcher but you can never have too much of it in this league. The Braves bring back a reliever in Sanchez who also had a rough year and a guy in Billy Ocean who was blocked by multiple guys in the outfield corners. Rumor has it that a logjam will be clearing up in Atlanta soon...

December 4: The Braves traded IF William Jefferson Clinton (.182, 1, 7) to the Phillies for minor league OF/1B Paul McCarty (.252, 9, 40 in AAA Eugene). Clinton will be a guy the Phillies try out at 3rd although I don't expect much. McCarty is Temu Paul McCartney.

December 4: The Royals traded minor league 1B not named yet (.343, 7, 34 in AAA Omaha), 2B Ian Coleman (.211, 1, 10), and OF Terrence Hicks (.301, 3, 31) to the Pirates for P Jeremy Battaglia (15-13, 2.36) and 3B Horst Stormer (.241, 3, 18 in AAA Charleston). That's right, the Pirates are parting ways with one of their main starting pitchers! Battaglia will go somewhere where maybe he gets some run support now. In return Hicks could jump right into a starting role, Coleman was the Royals' starter before James Ellroy came to fore, and the PTBNL, as you can see, hit for a nice average in AAA last year.

December 4: The White Sox traded P Jon Teague (1-0, 7.20) to the Astros for 2B Nolan Ryan (.254, 1, 7). It's retooling time for the Astros, I guess? Ryan was looking to be in the mix for the second base job in Houston but instead he'll play his trade in Chicago. Houston adds more pitching; Teague lacked control last year but he did reasonably well in a swingman role in AAA (4-1, 3.42, 3 Sv).

December 4: The Orioles traded CF Frank Beard (.272, 21, 71), a 22 year old catcher to be named later (.276, 12, 40 at A Lodi), and a 21 year old 3B to be named later (.299, 2, 12 at A Miami) to the Reds for P Graham Panarello (11-5, 3.21) and an 18 year old 1B to be named later (.381, 1, 5 at SA Seattle). Beard was horrible in center last year and really needs to be moved to a corner slot; instead, he'll likely ply his trade one more year in Cincy. They didn't give up all that much to get him considering Beard's offensive prowess, just a mid-rotation starter and a very far away prospect.

December 5: The Tigers purchased P Viktor Yanukyovich (2-5, 4.29) from the Pirates.

December 5: The Dodgers traded 1B Justin Stone (.298, 30, 75) to the Expos for P Kenny Loggins (6-6, 2.08, 25 Sv). BOOM BLOCKBUSTER TRADE! The Dodgers suuuucked last year and so they'll get around a decade younger with DANGER ZONE manning the bullpen and Justin Stone leaving for Montreal. The Expos get some of that good old veteran leadership and a monster bat in the middle of their lineup.

December 5: Cleveland traded P Gerardo Herrera (0-0, 7.27) to the Rangers for P Gabe Slaughter (0-1, 6.23). Neither player played much or particularly well in 1972. Slaughter's excuse was bone chips discovered in his arm in May. Herrera... is a AAA pitcher who's main claim to fame is that he's left-handed.

December 5: The Phillies traded a 23 year old minor league C to be named later (.327, 3, 12 at AA Reading) to the Pirates for P Carlos Ramirez (1-0, 0.00). Ramirez mostly played in AAA last year. The Phillies have completely retooled their bullpen and Ramirez will presumably bring a veteran presence, assuming he makes the roster. The Pirates are set at catcher, yes, but this guy could be a pinch-hitter type.

December 5: The Dodgers traded P Alec Cosby (7-10, 4.50, 7 Sv) to the Cardinals for CF Micah MacMillan (.270, 10, 30). Cosby lost the closer job during the season and now that Kenny Loggins is in the house he was completely without a role. Meanwhile, the Cardinals flipped MacMillan just a couple months after picking him up in a waiver trade with the Yankees. Hey, any value is value, right?

December 6: Hoo boy, this is definitely the real-life winter meetings!

Deember 6: The Rangers purchased OF Jamal Jenkins (.208, 3, 8) from the Orioles. Jenkins mostly sat on the end of the O's bench last year and wasn't that good when he did play. Still, the scouts insist there's something there.

December 6: The Yankees purchased IF Christopher Hitchens (.282, 6, 47 in AAA Spokane) from the Rangers. Hitchens has the label of talented but injury-prone and that might have hurt his development. He was pretty good in AAA and the Yankees have roster shoes to fill in both middle infield positions.

December 6: The Cubs traded SS Charles Bradley (.180, 2, 13) to the Twins for 3B Matt Highfield (.304, 3, 48). The Twins are in full-on "trade people right before they start costing a fortune" mode. Bradley failed to hit well enough to allow Jeremy Taylor to move to another position but he'll probably out play the 34 year old Justin Ramey, who hit a career-low .200 last year. Highfield is what it says on the tin: a good high-average hitter who will fill right into the spot vacated by Sean Gabel.

December 6: The Angels traded 3B Bobby Kraljevic (.234, 4, 38), P Will Wright (0-0, 7.50) and minor league OF Andrew Powell (.310, 0, 12) to the Phillies for OF John Belushi (.307, 1, 10). Belushi got himself hurt last year and then lost his job; he'll get to do... something in the Angels' outfield. Bobby K and his attitude problems got him pushed to Cal, where he was really bad, and now Philly, who will stick him in a rare hole in their lineup.

December 6: The Tigers traded P Juan Merino (3-1, 3.91) to the Brewers for P Dave Zapata (1-2, 2.25). Merino's the guy who went 13-1 for the Tigers down the stretch in 1972; he spent most of last year in AAA or the bullpen. He should get his big chance in Milwaukee. They send back, um, toolsy left-hander Dave Zapata. I don't know how else to explain how a guy with a 20/19 K/W ratio can have a 2.25 ERA.

December 6: The Angels traded C Sam Rahn (.228, 3, 30) to the Cardinals for P Syed Kirwani (12-7, 2.78 in AAA Syracuse). Oh man, after I crafted that narrative of current Cards backup C Ramiro Gonzalez too! Oh well. Rahn is a longtime vet and former starter who will compete for that job. Kirwani had a nice season in AAA but isn't a super huge prospect.

December 6: The Astros traded 1B Joshua Waltenbery (.274, 22, 74) to the Dodgers for P Andres Castillo (10-9, 3.28) and a 24 year old P who may or may not be named later (1-0, 2.55 at AAA Albuquerque). Look, when the Dodgers want something, they get it, and they want a first baseman. Castillo was effective although he's getting on in years.

December 7: The Brewers purchased 1B Willie Morales (.237, 21, 64) from the Expos. Morales suddenly didn't have a position with the Expos' trade for Justin Stone, and the Brew Crew have nothing if not holes in the lineup.

December 7: The Red Sox purchased P Mike Stuckey (12-11, 3.96). Finally, Stuckey gets liberated from no runs SF. Will he still have anything left?

December 7: The Yankees purchased CF Norm Hodge (.247, 7, 43) from the Rangers. Apparently we are at the "large market teams just buy players from small market teams". Well, Milwaukee isn't exactly large market... and Dallas/Fort Worth isn't exactly small market. Still. STILL. Norm Hodge is still an excellent fielder.

December 7: The Rangers purchased OF Nelson Vargas (.317, 2, 16) from the Phillies. Vargas along with John Belushi was one of the guys who were solid starting talent level players blocked in the Philadelphia outfield. Now both have moved on... maybe the Phils could have gotten more than cash for this man but hey, everyone's got to pay rent.

December 7: The Phillies purchased P Michael Williams (0-2, 2.70, 8 Sv) from the Orioles. The Phillies' continued revamp of their bullpen continues, using the money they got back from Nelson Vargas to pick up Williams, who missed the last 2 months of the season with a torn labrum but he was really effective before missing time.

December 7: Cleveland trades a 19 year old PTBNL (7-6, 2.36 in rookie ball) to the Pirates for P Danny Perez (4-7, 3.29). The Pirates' sell-off is in full swing. The guy they got back might turn into something some day but he is a teenager.

December 7: The Red Sox traded P Brian Osborne (18-8, 3.21), P Tom Brumfield (5-4, 3.19, 10 Sv), and minor league P Morten Olsen (8-9, 2.95 at AAA Louisville) to the Cardinals for P Raul Mendoza (17=12, 3.14), P Travis Livingston (8-5, 1.80, 24 Sv), and P Ted Nugent (1-2, 5.73). The Cards are breaking up the Dominican Three! Too bad! They trade off one of the pre-eminent strikeout artists in the National League, receiving a decent finesse guy in Osborne in return. They're also moving off of their ace closer in Travis "Doctor" Livingston because... sell high? Morten Olsen to be fair is the Red Sox' top pitching prospect, at least outside of Yury Kovalchuk, whom the Cardinals just traded to Boston.

December 7: The Royals traded OF/DH Edwin Manchego (.223, 21, 82) and P Juan Correa (12-14, 4.50) to the Yankees for P Steve Tidwell (12-9, 4.25). Manchego was just a big ol' disappointment for the Royals last year so he needed to find a new home. I'm not sure where he'll play in New York but the Yankees love guys who can hit the ball far. The Royals add on Correa, who mostly started all year because somebody had to, and the Yankees sent out Tidwell, who is a cagey vet.

December 8: The Brewers traded 3B Pat Jones (.303, 8, 44) to the Cardinals for P Tom Waits (5-4, 4.35). Boy howdy the Cardinals have been involved in a lot of trades this offseason. Here they send away Waits, who's still young but was kind of bad in August and September, and get back Pat Jones, a vet whose career was revitalized in Milwaukee and who should be a good lefty pinch-hitting option for them.

December 9: The Astros traded OF Bobby Beaulieu (.234, 9, 28 at AAA Denver) to the Cardinals for P Vincent Schiavelli (11-11, 4.25). This is about moving on from the sad-faced actor as much as anything else for the Cardinals. Beaulieu is a good defensive player who's bounced up and down between AAA and the majors all his career.

December 10: The Twins claimed SP Al Gore (4-6, 4.25) off waivers from the Phillies. Philadelphia tried to hide him but the former #4 prospect in baseball is a little too large to hide. Now he's a Twin.

December 10: The Royals purchased MI Kevin Jones (.232, 8, 30 at AAA Louisville) from the Red Sox. Jones was a former 1st round pick but oh boy it has not worked out for him. He'll be middle infield depth in KC.

December 10: The Tigers traded 1B Tim Suman (.232, 2, 8) to the Twins for 3B Darrel Bump (.234, 5, 19). It's depth for depth.

December 11: The Cubs traded 2B Juan Perez (.295, 13, 37) to the White Sox for P Ismail Petra (5-2, 2.09, 11 Sv at AAA Iowa), P Mick Fleetwood (12-12, 3.64), a minor league C TBNL (.195, 0, 3 at A Appleton), and P Bob Yankee (1-2, 7.40). Now it's the Cubs dismantling, or at least trading off the mid-30s hometown hero. He even stays in the heroic hometown. Chicago (N) gets a bunch of pitching back, including the established starter Mick Fleetwood.

December 12: The Reds traded P Amadou Tomani Toure (1-4, 7.36) to Cleveland for 1B Phil Stevens (.170, 2, 7). Tomani Toure was a decent prospect at one point in time but otherwise this is minor league fodder / camp cutdown prospects being traded around.

December 12: Cleveland traded minor league 3B Damian Arnett (.270, 8, 46 in AA San Antonio) to the Padres for IF Armando Troncoso (.255, 1, 23 at AAA Hawaii). The fact that Arnett isn't a celebrity and hasn't played in the major leagues says all you really need to know about him, but hey, depth is depth.

December 15: The Phillies traded minor league OF Paul Hirata (.281, 4, 24 at AAA Eugene) to the Padres for minor league IF Shane Hooke (.285, 6, 39 at AAA Hawaii). Hirati is technically still 24 but he'll turn 25 in April and I'm just gonna say he's not going to break into the big leagues by then.

December 20: The Expos traded P Jeff Graton (2-13, 4.11) to the Rangers for OF Travis Whitney (.222, 1, 2). Jeff Graton was the STAR of the 1969 Pilots and will always have a special place in my heart. He might not survive to Marinersdom though... for now he's still got some value as a relief pitcher at least.

December 20: The Mets traded P John Ratzenberger (2-4, 4.50) to the Padres for P David Bowie (0-0, 3.86). One roughed-up former prospect for another. Bowie's got more experience but also went 2-12 in AA last year and is 26 so... he might be done or close to it.