Every 5 games Javier Vazquez is on the mound for the Yankees.

Every 5 games is an opportunity for me to blog that bringing him back to the Yankees was a TERRIBLE mistake... and I said so when then trade was made.

Just remember, if Javier Vazquez was truly an ace caliber pitcher and one of the elites in the game... why would he have been traded 5 times in the last 8 years?

Read that again.

In the last 8 years, he was traded away FIVE TIMES!

Each team celebrated like they stole an ace when they got him.
And each one snickered like a Used Car dealer who sold a lemon when he was shipped off.

I am guessing when 2010 ends it will be 6 traded in 9 seasons... and when he gets picked up, the media in the new city will announce "He has electric stuff... he is ONE OF THE ELITE PITCHERS IN THE GAME!"

Enjoy it, Yankee fans.

Every 5 games.

The trade deadline came and went and of course it is always one of the coolest days of the year for a baseball fan.

It's the sports equivalent of Randolph and Mortimer Duke trying to corner the frozen concentrated orange juice. And of course rumors flew, trades were analyzed, and some stunning deals took place.

Some teams decided to go for it, like the Mariners when they acquired Jack Wilson and Ian Snell.

Other teams decided to cash it in, like the Mariners who dealt Jarrod Washburn?

Confused?

So was I when I saw the Rangers had stockpiled prospects and were within striking distance of the AL West and the Wild Card...and stayed pat.

So was I when I saw the Yankees with a glaring need for a starter and a lefty reliever saying "We're fine with Jerry Hairston."

So was I when I saw the White Sox say "We don't care if he is hurt and clearly doesn't want to play for us... we NEED Jake Peavy!"

So was I when I realized the Red Sox felt they didn't have ENOUGH first basemen.

So was I when I saw Riccardi say "Nah... we think it's best to deal Roy Halladay when his value dips!"

But now EVERYONE is writing up their "Winners and losers of the trade deadline" articles. And the funny thing about every one of those write ups is they are all meaningless now.

We don't know!
Sure, it looks like the Phillies are a big winner with Cliff Lee throwing a complete game victory in his first game for the Phils. But what if he slumps? Or what if he doesn't throw well in Philadelphia?

I made fun of the Yankees picking up Jerry Hairston, but what if he gets some big hits down the stretch?

Sometimes what looks like a big time move at the deadline can look downright rotten when the season ends.

Just taking Red Sox deals as an example, in 2007 I celebrated the pick up of Eric Gagne.

There wasn't a lot of reasons to crow after the deadline.

I remember in 2002, Cliff Floyd came over to the Sox in what was supposed to be a tide turner.

And in 2003, when the Red Sox acquired Jeff Suppan and Scott Sauerbeck from the Pirates, it looked like they got the pitching depth they desperately needed.

How did those turn out?

And in 2004, who noticed the Red Sox picked up Dave Roberts? NOBODY! And now he is a beloved Red Sox icon.

We don't know how any of these trades will pan out and we won't for a few years.

When the Tigers traded for Doyle Alexander on August 12, 1987, Detroit was 1 1/2 games behind the Blue Jays.

He went 9-0 for the rest of the season for the Tigers.
Not only did he win all 9 decisions (and the Tigers clinched the division on the final day of the season, so needed every win) but he pitched remarkably in crucial games.

He beat the eventual World Champion Twins twice. He outdueled the eventual Cy Young winner Roger Clemens. He got a no decision pitching into the 11th inning of a 13 inning win against the Blue Jays on September 27th. And finally on October 2nd, he pitched 7 strong against the Blue Jays as the Tigers tied them for the Division Lead... only to clinch 3 days later.

The Tigers got all of that production and did have to sacrifice a single player from their major league roster.

And this writer calls THAT trade one of the worst of all time FOR THE TIGERS.

Of course that's because the minor leaguer the Tigers parted with was John Smoltz.

But the trade won the division... and what else can the GM do besides give the manager the horses he needs to get into October.

Writers should be banned from analyzing this years trade deadline and instead breakdown the deadline from 5 years ago.

I'd do it, but I need to go to bed.
Perhaps tomorrow.

I saw the Mets had Johan Santana dealing against Tampa Bay today and I thought to myself "Well, he's found his stuff again."

I went out to do some work today and then came back... saw Tampa Bay won.I made dinner for my kids and I saw the Phillies came from behind to take the lead against the not exactly world beaters known as the Orioles.

Hey Bochy!
You don't have Trevor Hoffman in the pen anymore.

Here's a tip. When you have the Cy Young winner throwing 8 innings of shutout ball with no walks and 13 strikeouts... let him pitch the 9th.

Let him at least start the 9th!

The nanosecond I saw that Lincecum wasn't pitching in the 9th, I knew the Giants were going to lose.

I bet my dad did too!

Remember him?

The back up outfielder who the Red Sox loved so much that they torpedoed their pitching staff in 2006 to get him?

Hey, if it was worth making a stupid trade to get him, why not sign him on the waiver wire?

Don't you remember? He has GREAT POTENTIAL!!!!
He'll be like Big Papi!

Let's give a shot to a guy who couldn't win a job ON THE NATIONALS!!!!!

You know that cliche about how sometimes the best trade you make is the one you DIDN'T make?

Boy oh boy does that ring true for the Cubs and Braves! Remember how the Padres were asking the Cubs for Félix Pié, Garrett Olsen or Jeff Samardzija in a Peavy deal?

Remember how the Braves were being tempted to part with prospects Jordan Schafer and possible ace Tommy Hanson?

Peavy isn't looking too good right now, is he?

Granted it's the WBC and not games that matter or anyone cares about. But when terms like "Mercy Rule" are employed, you had better see Walter Matthau managing the team... not with a Cy Young winner on the hill.

If the Padres stalled the trade talks they are probably kicking themselves pretty hard now.

On the bright side for Peavy, if he stays in San Diego and gets 15 wins, he'll be the all time victory leader in Padres history.

Then again, the way he's been pitching, 15 wins might be a stretch. Heck, just throw 15 innings!

I got into a lot of arguments with people on line about the Bronson Arroyo for Willy Mo Pena trade last year.

Hours after it happened I called Dibble and Kennedy on XM screaming about it. I said "I hate hate hate this trade."

And yet many people thought it was a great trade and thought I was insane for hating it.

And do you know what? Any debate about it ended when Theo dealt Willy Mo for the always important "Player to Named Later."

How badly did this trade stink?

LET'S COUNT THE WAYS!

1) Arroyo had just given the Red Sox a hometown discount for a contract extension... and immediately dealt him. That'll show other players that you are all about loyalty!

2) Arroyo was practically the only pitcher on the 2006 Red Sox without health issues. They had Beckett and his blisters, Schilling who missed most of 2005, Foulke who missed the 2005 playoffs, Clements was hurt and was nailed in the head by a line drive, and Wells who, like Ben Franklin, had gout and a huge belly. With that staff... better deal away the only starter who was young, healthy and able to pitch in Boston.

3) What happened to the 2006 Red Sox? To the surprise of NOBODY they experienced tons of injuries (Foulke, Wakefield, Clement, Lester, Papelbon and Wells all missed significant time) meanwhile Arroyo went on to have an All Star year with Cincinnati. Granted, the NL has easier lineups, but even a mediocre Arroyo would be a better alternative than the David Pauleys, Kyle Snyders, Jason Johnsons, Jermaine Van Burens , Lenny DiNardos and the 15th caller on WEEI that the Sox pitched.

4) There was no spot in the lineup for Willy Mo! They torpedoed the pitching staff for a guy who was essentially a bench player! They had Manny, Coco and Trot. And of course each of them got hurt during the year... BUT SO DID WILLY MO! They got 84 games and 11 homers out of him... only 9 more than Arroyo hit for the Reds.

5) They signed J. D. Drew in the off season! I expressed my feelings of this rancid signing on The Nosebleeds, but this also showed there was no room for the guy. So not only was he going to rot on the bench his first year... but his second year too.

6) They dumped the guy! So in the end, they would rather have him off the team for the stretch run!


So there you have it. I don't want to hear about NL lineups being easier and how young Willy Mo was and how valuable right handed power is.

If it was, than we'd get more than a player to be named later.
So the verdict is in... the trade SUCKED.

Oh well... I'll take the 5 game lead.

Bad trades?
Oh the Red Sox have made a few... a few that rewrote the history of baseball.

And I could fill up five notebooks dissecting the trades that DIDN'T cause a curse but that involved the Red Sox and Yankees in the early 1920s... but let's keep this to modern day, shall we?

It's too early to tell where Bronson Arroyo for Willy Mo Pena will end up.
And some trades have their ups and downs.

People criticize Brady Anderson and Curt Schilling for Mike Boddicker... but Boddicker helped the Red Sox to two division titles and the Schilling mistake was solved later.

And yeah, trading Reggie Smith looked dumb, but they got Rick Wise, who was solid and Bernie Carbo who had some heroics of his own.

And trading John Tudor was rough, but we got Mike Easler for him... and then dealt Easler for Don Bayor so it worked out eventually.

Here are the ten worst trades of the modern Red Sox era.


10. Trading Jim Lonborg, George Scott, Ken Brett, Billy Conigliaro and prospects to the Brewers for Lew Krausse, Tommy Harper and prospects



Yeah Lonborg was hurt, but we revived his career with the Brewers and had 17 and 18 win seasons with Philadelphia. Scott won a home run title. Brett had some good years. Meanwhile Pattin had one decent season and then was done. Harper could steal bases but couldn't hit and Krausse was cut after one season.