MOABS NOT RESTING ON LAURELS

MOABS NOT RESTING ON LAURELS

The Brooklyn Moabs, currently leading all of BARB with a 40-26 mark, are not resting on their laurels. In the middle of a swing of games with Eastern Division rivals, the Mother Of All Ballclubs (what did you think Moab stood for?) unleased a series of roster moves, free agent explorations and (gasp) even a trade in their quest for another post-season bid!

MADTOWN DEALS ROLLINS!

In a (for BARB) remarkably straight-up deal, the Moabs have acquired veteran SS Jimmy Rollins (and his salary, over $7 million) from the Madtown Murlocs. In return, the Moabs sent a valuable left-handed reliever, Jose Mijares.

Said Murlocs GM Jeff Braga," Jimmy has been a great player for years, however the need for left handed pitching is so great it was time to move him. We have (Jhonny) Peralta and (rookie Alcides) Escobar to step in. Jimmy will be missed but he wasn't worth the value of his salary and its time to bolster the bullpen with a young left hander."

As for Brooklyn, it was clear what GM Eric Caskey's priorities were. "Jimmy Rollins will be entered into the lineup, immediately upon arrival to Brooklyn," Caskey emailed reporters. "Rollins will fill in for the injured Troy Tulowitzki and serve as an insurance policy if Tulo struggles to recover from a fractured wrist."

From Madtown's point of view, the move was a direct consequence of the ineffectiveness of LHP Zach Duke (3-1, 6.75) in a setup role. The Murlocs released Duke, eating his contract, and used this sacrifice to nail down the rental cost of veteran free agent Vicente Padilla, who will be immediately recalled and placed into the tail end of the club's rotation.

(Editor's Note: At press time, a rumored trade between Madtown and another club had not been confirmed, but trust us---GM Jeff Braga has been busy of late)


MY MY: MORE MOABS MOVES

The CALLUP: Not finished by a long shot, GM Eric Caskey also announced that he was not only taking on the Rollins contract, but purchasing the contract of minor-league reliever J.J. Putz and adding his deal (and arm) to the roster to replace the traded Mijares. The former Darwin setup man will be called up immediately, and his salary will be added to Brooklyn's payroll.

The CUT: Frustrated by injuries and inconsistency, the Moabs confirmed that they were cutting utilityman Mark Teahen and eating over $1 million in salary. Observers speculated that they were happy with the play of minor-league free agent Brandon Inge and had other options in their system should Inge go down for any length of time.

THE HIRED GUN: Taking advantage of league rules that allow owners who cut an established player to pursue a free agent in mid-season, the Moabs have signed OF Corey Hart to a guaranteed contract and will immediately assign Hart to their major-league roster, with the idea of adding power to an OF that has, so far, been inconsistent on offense. If Hart can add a charge to the Moabs lineup, this will address the club's biggest issue other than infield depth.

It's worth perusing, however, what these moves might mean. Hart, like any free agent added at this time, is essentially a mercenary for the second half who will automatically go into next year's draft. As with Los Angeles's recent signing of Mike Pelfrey and Tom Gorzelanny, such players are gambles available to clubs that have enough payroll to eat the contract of an established player with the understanding that there is no guarantee they will be able to float the player through next year's bidding circus. In other words, Hart is unlikely to stick with the Moabs beyond 2010 if he posts great second-half numbers.

Also, both Rollins and Hart are former starters for the Frostbite Falls Flying Squirrels, arguably Brooklyn's biggest rival over the years for post-season glory. Frostbite Falls has won four titles to Brooklyn's one, but last year's late run forcing a one-game playoff between the Moabs and the Squirrels shows the tide may have turned in Caskey's favor. The Squirrels have been tinkering with their bullpen since losing Joe Nathan in the off-season, and with Carlos Beltran still a few weeks away from a return to active duty and Victor Martinez inconsistent, they have been looking up for much of this season, an unfamiliar role for the 2008 champs.

YUMA CUTS CORDERO!

In a sudden-but-not-completely shocking move, the Yuma Firebirds have released Francisco Cordero, the closer on their 2009 world championship club but an inconsistent mess (4 losses, 7.04 ERA, only five saves) who had apparently burned his bridges with owner Chris Melkonian.

"We've gotten tired of Cordero's act," said a clearly-disgusted Melkonian. "Time and time again, too many runners have reached base and came around to score on Cordero. We just can't trust him anymore. I'd rather throw away six million dollars then watch another lead get blown. When we call on our pen, we expect them to stop the bleeding, not to increase it."

To fill the team's gaping bullpen need, the club has promoted valuable setup man Rafael Soriano (36 K in 25.2 IP) to the closer role, though insiders speculate that underrated Matt Thornton (45 K in 35 IP) may also get a chance to show what he can do in the ninth inning. In addition to eating Cordero's $6 million contract, Yuma has used his release to add minor-league free agent Tyler Clippard, who will be added to the parent club to fill a mop-up role. "Tyler is a good young talent with strikeout stuff. He is young, cheap, and affordable; he can do just as good as Francisco at a fraction of the price," said GM Billy Beane.

Yuma also confirmed that they are calling up rookie Drew Storen from AAA to serve in a setup role, and that he and Rafael Betancourt will hold down the fort somewhat until the injured Ryan Madson comes off the DL.

ARIZONA INKS VETERAN VERNON WELLS

The Thunder, fresh off the unpleasantness of giving veteran starter Joe Blanton his walking papers, have confirmed that they are using the loss to pickup another veteran, CF Vernon Wells. It was initially unclear as to whether Wells would start full-time, or whether or not he would play a bench or platoon role, especially once Manny Ramirez comes off his second DL stint of the year. More will no doubt be made clear if, as expected, the Thunder manage to shed a little bit more payroll to play the open market again.

MCKEON: "HIS CONTRACT AIN'T HEAVY, AND HE ISN"T MY BROTHER"

Contankerous special assistant to the GM, 'Trader Jack' McKeon, was getting lots of flak from St. Francis's fan base (both of them), over the abrupt trade of 1B Adam LaRoche to Yuma for veteran C A.J. Pyrzinski and some spare parts. No one was more critical than the other LaRoche in St. Francis's roster, 3B Andy LaRoche, who has been backing up the corner IF slots and hitting off the bench. The strong first half of Casey Blake had made LaRoche less and less appealing to McKeon, and the sullen attitude of the bench player even less so. McKeon, after briefly shopping around the younger LaRoche, simply chucked him away like a partially-chewed stogie: the infielder was unceremoniously released just minutes ago.

"He's making the league minimum, and we needed to find a roster spot to promote a prospect," said McKeon, "so no big loss. We'll take the sacrifice, and use it to take a flyer on DH/1B Aubrey Huff. He's a veteran hitter who'll be playing somewhere with a big free agent contract next season, and in the meantime he's left-handed, has some pop and can play the infield corners or the outfield in a pinch."