C.C., erm, excuse me. I meant "CC" Sabathia is now a Milwaukee Brewer. The "mid-market" Cleveland Indians, who claim to have no hope to compete in the wildly expensive free agency signing party, have traded C.C., er, CC Sabathia to the money-soaked huge media market Milwaukee Brewers. [sarcasm delivered free of charge]The Associated Press story:
Brewers send 4 prospects to Indians for Sabathia
By CHRIS JENKINS – 20 hours ago
MILWAUKEE (AP) — With one XXL-sized move, the Milwaukee Brewers hope to transform themselves from scrappy underdogs to a big, bad pitching powerhouse intent on chasing down the Chicago Cubs and making the playoffs for the first time since 1982.
The Brewers obtained reigning AL Cy Young Award winner CC Sabathia in a trade with the Cleveland Indians on Monday, giving up four prospects in a gamble that favors the present over the future.
"I'd say we're going for it," Brewers general manager Doug Melvin said. "That's the way I look at it."
The deal stacks the Brewers' deck with a pair of aces, Sabathia and Ben Sheets — but only for a few months.
Barring blockbuster contract offers from a small-market team that already is stretching this year's payroll into the $90 million range, both players will become free agents after the season.
And the deal hardly assures the Brewers an easy road to the playoffs. Milwaukee began Monday a percentage point ahead of St. Louis for the second-best record in the NL, and both teams are chasing the Chicago Cubs, who are 3 1/2 games ahead in the NL Central.
"Let's face it: This is still a calculated risk," Brewers principal owner Mark Attanasio said. "The other teams in our division aren't going to sit back and look at this and say, 'Oh, now the Brewers have got CC Sabathia. Let's just roll over.'"
The football player-sized Sabathia, who went 19-7 with a 3.21 ERA last season, is the first reigning Cy Young winner to be traded since Roger Clemens was dealt to the New York Yankees after winning the award with the Toronto Blue Jays in 1998.
For Cleveland, it's a sign of surrender hardly anyone would have imagined going into the season.
Indians general manager Mark Shapiro said the team's string of injuries and disappointing performances made it hard to imagine a significant rally in the second half.
"We all headed into this season with what feel are well-founded expectations for a championship-contending season," Shapiro said. "Four core players on the DL — tough for almost any franchise to overcome — as well as disappointing performances from many components of our team, most noticeably in the bullpen, leave us at the juncture we're at. There wasn't much doubt or question in our mind that it was nearly impossible for us to become a contending club this year."
Sabathia was scheduled to arrive in Milwaukee before Monday night's game against Colorado and to pitch against the Rockies on Tuesday night. He also is expected to pitch against Cincinnati on Sunday, giving him a pair of starts for his new team at home leading into the All-Star break.
"We're trying to get four starts out of him before the break," Melvin joked. "But we'll settle for two."
Milwaukee sent Cleveland outfielder Matt LaPorta, pitchers Rob Bryson and Zach Jackson and a player to be named. Shapiro said the player to be named would be among two specified in the deal.
Melvin said the Brewers' strong farm system gave him flexibility to deal away a good
prospect.
"Matt LaPorta is going to be a good big league player, and I hope he is," Melvin said.
Attanasio said the acquisition of Sabathia will push the team's payroll around $90 million this season. Attanasio said the move might prevent the club from turning a profit this year, but it was made possible by increased fan support and sound financial decisions in recent years.
"We'd always love to go for it," Attanasio said. "But you can go for it in a stupid fashion, and Doug and his group have never done that."
Sabathia had a slow start but is 6-8 with a 3.83 ERA. Cleveland scored two runs or fewer in 11 of his 18 starts.
Milwaukee's starting pitching has been thin ever since Yovani Gallardo went on the disabled list on May 2 with a torn knee ligament that required surgery. His rehab was supposed to take four months, which gives him an outside chance of returning before the end of the season.
Sheets (10-2, 2.77 ERA) is off to the best start of his career, but the All-Star righty is in the final year of a $38.5 million, four-year contract and hasn't wanted to talk about his upcoming free agency.
Milwaukee, which hasn't been in the postseason since Robin Yount and Paul Molitor, fell two games short of the division title last year.
The Indians, who fell one win shy of the World Series last year, are in need of power-hitting corner outfielders and LaPorta is expected to fill that void. He hit .288 with 20 homers and 66 RBIs in 84 games for Double-A Huntsville.
Sabathia rejected a $72 million, four-year extension from the Indians during spring training and announced he wouldn't negotiate until after the season.
Shapiro said seven teams were interested in Sabathia, and the trade came after three to five days of intense negotiations with Milwaukee.
"C.C. made it clear that once the season started he did not want to entertain any negotiations," Shapiro said. "Our exploration of a contract was thorough enough in spring training to understand the combination of our capabilities and C.C.'s expectations didn't align."
Cleveland has seen Jim Thome, Manny Ramirez and Albert Belle leave in free agency.
Associated Press Writer Joe Milicia in Cleveland contributed to this report.
All we read about during the failed runs at World Series crowns was pitching. If only we had some pitching. So we deal away the best pitcher we had. I guess it coincides well with the Indians' offense going into the crapper this year. Sigh...
4 minor leaguers. The best of the bunch from AA. For the reigning Cy Young Award winner. This stinks.
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