The Cubs traded reserve outfielder Reed Johnson and starting pitcher Paul Maholm to Atlanta for two minor league pitchers, one of whom is on the DL recovering from elbow surgery. I wasn't surprised to see Johnson go. He is a solid enough platoon player who can help a contender. He seems to play well only for the Cubs these days, but, although he was an important cog in the Cubs outfield platoons and a good pinch hitter, his value to a team like the Cubs was pretty limited. Maholm was a little more of a surprise, as he has settled in to become, arguably, their most consistent pitcher of late and he is a pretty cheap middle of the rotation kind of guy.
In return the Cubs got a AAA reliever in Jaye Chapman who throws pretty hard but walks a lot of people and a guy who was one of the Braves top pitching prospects until he had Tommy John surgery this spring. This is Arodys Vizcaino, who is the key to the deal. He is said to be rehabbing well and is expected to be on schedule to be healthy by spring training next year.
All in all, a risky business, but the Cubs brass must be pretty high on him to pull the trigger for this sort of deal.
The Cubs also dealt their everyday catcher Geovanny Soto to Texas for a fringe minor league relief pitcher, Jacob Brigham. I'd have expected to get more in return for Soto, but he is having another bad year, so this just looks like a salary dump. Actually, all three players will take $9 or $10 million off the books for next year and maybe a third of that for the remainder of the season. Perhaps the front office is considering plowing this cash back into a subsidy to anyone who will take Soriano or Dempster. Soriano reportedly nixed a deal to the Giants.
More later.
I'm sure this is not the last deal that is in the works.
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