Xnay Sounds Off

Oakland GM xnay recently pulled off perhaps the trade of the year, luring 7-time All-Star Douglas Carpenter from Cincinatti for a trio of major-leaguers. Here's what he had to say about the deal:

"Well, I felt that I needed to add one more big bat to the middle of our lineup and Carpenter definitely gives us that. We gave up some solid pieces and losing Ming definitely hurts but we do have some solid young pitchers who should be ready to contribute down the stretch. Even with the trade, I still think the Rays are the team to beat in the AL (yeah, right) but at least this gives us a fighting chance."

Thus far, Carpenter has been getting days off to house-hunt and recharge for the stretch run.

Crabman On the Becker trade

"This trade finally gives this franchise the ace pitcher it severely lacked. We obviously are making a push to get into the playoffs and if we do make it, having Kordell as our #1 should help us out tremendously. Its tough to lose Felix Turner, but we feel Jamie Faulk will help lessen the blow to the offense, while being an upgrade defensively."

So far, the deal is not reaping dividends for the Birds: Becker is 0-2, 6.19 and Faulk is hitting just .200 in 65 AB's. It's a mixed review on the Rays' end: Hutton has been knocked around to the tune of a 7.53 ERA, but Turner has contributed 18 RBI in 16 games.

Inside the Big Baltimore/Tampa Bay Trade

The Orioles and Rays have pulled off the season's biggest trade, swapping a pair of highly-paid pitchers and a pair of highly-drafted 3B's.

Baltimore gets Kordell Becker, the second piece of Tampa Bay's monster Season 10 FA spending spree; Jamie Faulk, Season 5's number 1 overall pick, and SP Donn Sisler. The Rays get Felix Turner, Season 7's #4 overall, James Hutton, Baltimore's own contribution to the Season 10 "FA credit bubble," and OF Andrew Holdridge.

Driving the deal: the Rays' impending budget bomb. "With many of our players reaching arbitration and their first long-term contracts, we were going to have to trade 2 or 3 big-salary guys next season," said Tampa Bay GM blanch13. "We saw an opportunity that made sense to speed up that timetable."

From Baltimore's end, the allure of getting a staff ace outweighed the huge contract that comes with him and the loss of Turner. The Orioles have turned into a bit of a surprise contender this year, thanks largely to the contributions of some fairly low-budget FA pitchers. But that pitching has slipped lately, and the Birds seized the opportunity to grab an ace starter.

Reactions around the league were mixed. Yankees' boss overeasy bemoaned the strengthening of a division rival: "I liked the Orioles better when they didn't have any good starting pitchers." White Sox GM jnewfry commented on the long-term implications: "And i liked the Rays better when they were completely stuck salary wise." And Texas GM akgsports provided a clear analysis of the talent merits: "I like Baltimore's end of it :) Faulk is underrated and just having a down year offensively. Becker is still top notch. I don't think Turner will be a consistent 900+ OPS hitter with a BE of 53."