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Apparently, it’s a done deal. Justin Masterson, Nick Hagadone and Bryan Price will be joining the Cleveland organization, and the Red Sox will acquire 1B/C Victor Martinez. The 30-year old Martinez, a switch-hitter, brings a .284/.368/.464 line with him and the flexibility to play first base, DH and catch, which should ensure enough playing time for him. He also brings some postseason experience from 2007, which we know the Sox value.
Some of the goings on in the Red Sox farm system as we approach the trade deadline:
Alright, time to tackle the topic of the day – John Smoltz. After six starts, the future Hall-of-Famer has averaged a mere 5 innings per outing and compiled a 7.04 ERA. This is not exactly what people were expecting, so the calls for him to be moved out of the rotation are growing. What can we say about the way he’s throwing the ball now, and can we expect things to get better for the 42-year old?
In order to make room for the newly acquired Adam LaRoche, the Red Sox placed 1B/OF Mark Kotsay on waivers today. If he clears, the move allows the Sox to option Kotsay to Pawtucket. It would also qualify him to be traded after the July 31 deadline. This leaves Rocco Baldelli as the only backup outfielder on the 25-man roster; that can’t remain the case for long; the only other emergency outfielder on this roster is Kevin Youkilis.
For those of you predicting a Theo Epstein masterstroke by the trade deadline, one of our targets has been traded already. LF Matt Holliday has been reportedly shipped to the Cardinals for top 3B prospect Brett Wallace and two other prospects.
Clay Buchholz made the start last night in place of Tim Wakefield, who is battling minor back issues on the DL. In his second attempt, Buch didn’t exactly wow us, lasting only four innings against the Rangers. I’m not panicking, but you see why the Sox weren’t quite committed to go with him the whole season. A few of those short starts, and that bullpen starts getting taxed very quickly.
It looks like someone else besides Julio Lugo still believes he can play shortstop in the Major Leagues. In case you haven’t heard yet, Lugo was traded to St. Louis for 1B/OF Chris Duncan, son of Cardinals pitching coach Dave Duncan, and a PTBNL. Cards fans have a right to be dismayed, but he can’t be too happy with this deal either. Here’s my evaluation:
Leave it to Theo Epstein to wait until I publish my treatise on Hank Blalock to announce that he’s traded for Adam LaRoche of the Pirates. Pittsburgh will pony up some cash, and receive minor league SS Argenis Diaz and P Hunter Strickland in the deal. Now for the obligatory analysis:
Alright, I’ve had some time to think this through, and I think the Sox should go after Hank Blalock. Here are some of my reasons why:
Clay Buchholz turned in a pretty good outing in his first start of 2009. Despite striking out just three batters, he showcased the stuff that has all of baseball asking for him at this year’s trade deadline. He used his fastball to good effect, and that changeup was quite effective; the curve, not so much. I think it’s pretty clear he belongs up here, so I fully expect Brad Penny to be dealt at the deadline.
