http://www.cincypost.com/2004/08/02/basenotes08-02-2004.html
Winners, losers in trade-deadline deals
By Ken Davidoff
Newsday
We've become accustomed to late rallies in New York this year, and the
non-waiver trading deadline followed suit. Just when we were prepared to
write off this week as our most boring experience since the "Sex and the
City" finale, the Yankees and Red Sox delivered.
Having waited all week for these trades to happen, let's not waste any
more time. Here's our view of the week's winners and losers:
Winners
1. Red Sox. They unloaded the guy who seemed the least interested in being
there, Nomar Garciaparra, and upgraded their area of greatest concern,
their defense. Remember when Tony Clark's hard grounder went off David
Ortiz's glove in the June 30 game at Yankee Stadium? That doesn't happen
if Doug Mientkiewicz is playing first for Boston. And Orlando Cabrera,
freed from the Montreal gulag, should be thrilled to join his first pennant
race.
Lest we forget: The Yankees' failure to acquire Randy Johnson is a huge
lift for the Red Sox, who never had a chance in that derby thanks to
Johnson's dislike for Curt Schilling.
2. Diamondbacks. Kudos to them for standing up to the whiny Johnson and
telling him, "No trade for you." As much as Johnson refuses to believe it,
his team can compete next year with him as its ace. If the D-Backs can
re-sign Richie Sexson and if some of the struggling youngsters find
themselves, Arizona can reassert itself in baseball's most balanced
division. Moreover, the Diamondbacks received some promising youngsters
from the Dodgers in return for aging center fielder Steve Finley.
3. Marlins. Their underrated front office picked up catcher Paul Lo Duca
and setup man Guillermo Mota from the Dodgers, filling their two biggest
holes, as well as former Marlin Juan Encarnacion in return for pitcher Brad
Penny, first baseman Hee Seop Choi and a minor-leaguer. If they can play
nice with manager Jack McKeon, who has clashed with players this year, the
defending world champions can make another run at the postseason.
4. Yankees. Not getting Johnson is a blow to the ego of the entire
organization. But unloading Jose Contreras, who seemed to drain the energy
of everyone around him with his roller-coaster of a career, for Esteban
Loaiza is a decent fallback option. Loaiza is no Big Unit, but he'll be
steadier than Contreras.
Losers
1. Dodgers. For a team already in first place, they certainly were willing
to mix things up. This appeared to be a club greater than the sum of its
parts, and now those parts have been seriously reshuffled. LoDuca was
regarded as a team leader, and Mota served as a key piece of Los Angeles'
bullpen, its greatest strength. We wonder whether Penny, Choi, Finley and
Brent Mayne will justify general manager Paul DePodesta's effort.
2. Mets. An American League source said that in spring training, the Mets
could have dealt Jose Reyes and Scott Kazmir to Texas for Alfonso Soriano
and Mark Teixeira. That seems like a far better deal than Friday's swap of
Kazmir for Tampa Bay's Victor Zambrano. Rick Peterson is a great pitching
coach, but Zambrano will be his greatest challenge. And Kris Benson makes
us wary, as do all underachievers who suddenly find themselves in their
walk year (see: Sidney Ponson, 2003).
3. White Sox. We already can predict this one: By season's end, Chisox
manager Ozzie Guillen will be wondering why Contreras always gets crushed
by the Twins.
4. Rangers. They worked it all over, getting in on the Benson talks and
completing a trade for Larry Walker before Walker refused to waive his
no-trade clause. But now they seem ill-equipped to handle the perennially
late-surging Athletics.
Neutral
1. Cubs. We can see Garciaparra playing out of his mind, or we can see him
becoming even more bitter. And the Cubs didn't do anything to address their
unimpressive bullpen.
2. Twins. Having done nothing besides dump Mientkiewicz, they'll win their
division. However, you can't like their playoff chances at all.
Publication Date: 08-02-2004