Welcome back to your favorite DBL writer, Graham Wexler who returns from his league mandated suspension—er, vacation and is well rested. Congratulations to the Kansas City Royals on yet another championship and to the Toronto Blue Jays on their historic season. Stay tuned for some hard hitting analysis as we look towards the offseason.
The Florida Marlins can spin it any way they want, but the standings do not lie. On July 31, they were 65-43, sitting atop the division and tied for the best record in the Federal League. Two months later, they are looking up at Cincinnati and wondering how a season that once felt inevitable suddenly became a street fight. The easiest answer is the one fans reached for the moment the deal was announced: Roger Clemens. How do you trade an ace in...
In a sudden and significant development, multiple sources have confirmed that Stephen Ginter has been removed from his role overseeing the Seattle Pilots franchise following direct communication from the Commissioner’s Office. While the league has yet to release an official statement, the timing of the move raises immediate questions. Ginter’s tenure was defined by a turbulent spring and early summer period in which the Pilots’ roster was...
**St. Louis Cardinals send 1997 St. Louis Cardinals 5th round pick and CF Alex Diaz to the Seattle Pilots for RP Derek Lilliquist. Ah, the pre-deadline madness. St. Louis has once again gone dumpster diving for cheap pitching, and this week’s haul is Derek Lilliquist. Signed through next season, Lilliquist’s career reads like a rollercoaster: several solid years as a starter, followed by the slow erosion of his stuff. This season hasn’t...
Florida Marlins trade SP Roger Clemens to the Los Angeles Dodgers for SP Aaron Sele, SP Ugueth Urbina, and 3B David Bell. Holy hell. Let’s unpack this. Los Angeles: All-In on the Arms Race The Dodgers, already controlling the UL West, decided that offense is overrated and pitching wins series. Enter Roger Clemens. Ranked as the 8th best pitcher in the league, he goes from being the #2 behind Mark Appier in Florida to #2 behind Greg Maddux in...
St. Louis sends: 1998 STL 3rd round pick and SP Marty Bystrom to the San Diego Padres for RP Gil Heredia At first glance, the Cards are hoping Heredia is more “rotation depth” than “rotational nightmare.” San Diego: Smart, Savvy, and Smiling Let’s start with the obvious: San Diego just turned a goner into gold. Gil Heredia. 8.68 ERA. Finger injury that keeps him out 2–3 months. And yet somehow, the Padres walk away with a 3rd round...
The Florida Marlins trade LF Alex Cole and $35,000 to the San Diego Padres for SS Hanley Frias. This is one of those trades that looks minor on the surface but gets a lot more interesting once you look at why it happened. And the answer, most likely, is money. Specifically, the kind of money that tends to get shuffled around right after you acquire someone like Travis Fryman. Florida: Accounting Disguised as a Trade Coming immediately after the...
The Florida Marlins send a 1999 3rd-round pick, a 1998 4th-round pick (via Orlando), RP Brad Cornett, 2B Carter Haney, and 3B Dave Hansen to the New York Yankees for RP Doug Simons and 3B Travis Fryman. At this point, the Yankees’ rebuilding strategy has become so consistent you could practically set your watch to it. Step one: sign a veteran to a large contract.Step two: let him play well enough to attract contenders.Step three: eat some...
The Arizona Diamondbacks trade OF Mike Greenwell to the Washington Senators for INF Freddy Garcia. The Diamondbacks took one look at the approaching trade deadline and decided the appropriate response was total veteran liquidation. Channeling their inner Chicago Cubs, Arizona essentially walked into the deadline room, flipped the table over, and announced: “Not today, Satan.” The latest veteran casualty? Mike Greenwell — who,...
Graham Wexler Post-Deadline Rumors Column What a trade deadline that was. For most of the day it looked like we were headed for the baseball equivalent of a wet firecracker. A few sparks, a lot of waiting around, and plenty of front offices insisting they were “working the phones.” Then the final 80 minutes happened and suddenly the whole league remembered how trades work. Some moves were expected, others came completely out of left field,...