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Jake Westbrook and Ryan Ludwick were traded today in a creative three-way trade. The moving parts in this deal looked like this:

Cardinals acquire:
Jake Westbrook (From Indians)
Nick Greenwood (From Padres)
Undisclosed amount of cash (From Indians)

Padres acquire:
Ryan Ludwick (From Cardinals)
Undisclosed amount of cash (From Indians)

Indians acquire:
Corey Kluber (From Padres)

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The last we heard, the Yankees were still looking to deal and were specifically looking for an infielder who would be an upgrade on Ramiro Pena and a way to help their bullpen, even if it meant acquiring a starter so they can move Phil Hughes to the pen.

Here is the latest:

Ken Rosenthal reports that the Yankees are still calling teams to find a cheap bullpen option. They are still looking for that bench piece as well.

Rosenthal also reports that the Marlins are not going to trade outfielder Cody Ross . They are also not expected to trade infielder Wes Helms to the Yankees, as the sites can’t match up.

Buster Olney heard that the Yankees are done pursuing LHP Ted Lilly . If the price drops low enough, that could change.

Nothing so far on Cubs infielder Ryan Theriot .

The deadline is at 4:00 pm EST, keep checking back here as we will have the latest all afternoon.

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It’s amazing to me that a team that is supposedly in financial ruins continues to add players at the trade deadline.

If there is an early winner from the July 31 trade deadline it has to be the Texas Rangers. First they added Cliff Lee, then they added Jorge Cantu, and now they have added Cristian Guzman. Obviously, the latter two aren’t in the same category as Lee, but they are solid pieces that can be used to help solve the Rangers’ World Series puzzle.

The Rangers acquired Guzman from the Washington Nationals for minor leaguers Ryan Tatusko and Tanner Roark. The Nationals will also send over $2 million to the Rangers to cover Guzman’s salary.

Guzman was batting .282/.327/.361 with two home runs and four stolen abses in 346 plate appearances for the Nationals this season.

With the Rangers sending Chris Davis down to Triple-A (his Rangers days might be over), Texas will now move Cantu over to first base full-time. Acquiring Guzman fills the void left by Ian Kinsler when he went on the DL.

Guzman has played 63 games at second this year for the Nationals, posting a -1.9 UZR. He will be a decent fill-in for Kinsler while he is out and he could spell Elvis Andrus from time to time. Once Kinsler returns from the DL, Guzman will move into a utility role.

The two prospects the Rangers gave up are nothing more than fringe prospects. Tatusko is 9-2 with a 2.97 ERA in Double-A, but he is already 25-years old and his K/9 has declined three years in a row. Roark is also a pitcher in Double-A, who was 10-5 with a 4.20 ERA in 17 starts.

Not only have the Rangers added a star player in Lee, but they have added depth in Cantu and Guzman. I really like what the Rangers have done this trade deadline.

You can follow The Ghost of Moonlight Graham on Twitter @ theghostofmlg

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According to Jayson Stark of ESPN , despite rumors that Ted Lilly is going to the Dodgers, the Yankees are still in on him. They have also asked about infielder Ryan Theriot .

So, we went from a supposedly slow deadline to one where the Yankees have already added outfielder Austin Kearns and first baseman Lance Berkman .

It appears they aren’t stopping there either.

They are still looking for an upgrade over Ramiro Pena to play third base and would like to add another starter so they can move Phil Hughes to the bullpen.

Buster Olney of ESPN confirmed this when he reported last night that the Yankees weren’t done and were still searching for an upgrade for their backup third baseman.

Theriot, 30, is primarily a shortstop, but he also has experience at second and third base, although his experience at third base is limited to a handful of games back in 2006 and 2007. Because of that inexperience, the Yankees will likely look around for a better option before trying to workout a deal with the Cubs.

It seems like the Yankees would be interested in landing Lilly as an alternative to upgrading their bullpen. They have been searching for pen help, but so far the prices for reliever are ridiculous with the Blue Jays asking for either Joba Chamberlain or Jesus Montero for their reliever Scott Downs . So instead, they would add Lilly and likely move Hughes to the bullpen.

Related Stories

• July 30, 2010 — Yankees Trade Rumors: The Seach Continues for a RH Outfielder (0)
• July 26, 2010 — Yankees Trade Rumors: Considering Ted Lilly Not Roy Oswalt; Updated (0)
• July 22, 2010 — Yankees Trade Rumors: Keeping Tabs on Oswalt, Haren, and Westbrook (0)
• June 22, 2010 — Yankees Trade Rumors: Focus is on the Bench (7)

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Another year and another trade deadline dominated by the Philadelphia Phillies quest to acquire a starting pitcher. Last year the Phillies acquired Cliff Lee near the trade deadline, and this year they have acquired another front-line starter.

The Phillies acquired Roy Oswalt from the Houston Astros for JA Happ and minor leaguers Anthony Gose and Jonathan Villar. The Astros will pick up $11 million on Oswalt’s contract and the Phillies will not pick up Oswalt’s 2012 option, which was a sticking point for a while.

With the acquisition of Oswalt, the Phillies now have a one-two punch that, in my opinion, is the best in baseball. I don’t think there is a team out there that can rival Roy Halladay and Oswalt as a one-two punch.

With this trade, Ruben Amaro Jr. has finally solved something that has been an issue for the Phillies the last three years—the quest for a legit No. 2 starter. The Phillies have always had an ace for the last three seasons, but their No. 2 starters were more like No. 3s.

With Oswalt, the Phillies have One and One-A.

Oswalt had a 3.42 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, and a 8.37 K/9 rate (second highest of his career) in 20 starts for the Astros. He is consistently touching 93 on the gun with his fastball and his curve is as good as it’s ever been.

He will make his Phillies debut on Friday against the Washington Nationals.

For the Astros, they get Happ, who I’ve always liked. He finished second in the NL Rookie of the Year voting in 2009, but has suffered from an injury plagued 2010. Happ isn’t a No. 1 type starter by any means, but he should be an above-average starter for the Astros for the next several years. He is under team control until 2014.

Villar is a 19-year-old shortstop who was hitting .272 with 38 stolen bases in 100 games for Single-A Lakewood this year. He is not a power guy, but with 82 career stolen bases in three minor league seasons, it looks like he has speed to burn.

Gose, who was the third player received in the deal, was immediately shipped off to the Toronto Blue Jays for Brett Wallace. Wallace, if you remember, was in the Matt Holliday trade last season. In the past three years, Wallace has been traded three times and has been on four different organizations.

I guess it’s better to be wanted than nobody wanting you at all.

Wallace becomes the Astros first baseman of the future. He was hitting .301 with 18 home runs and had a .359 OBP in 95 games for Triple-A Las Vegas this season. He was ranked the 27th best prospect in baseball according to Baseball America prior to the season.

I think it was an okay haul for the Astros. The key to this deal will be the development of Wallace. If he can turn into an All-Star caliber first baseman for the Astros then this trade will look solid for them in the future.

You can follow The Ghost of Moonlight Graham on Twitter @ theghostofmlg

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According to Joel Sherman of the NY Post, who’s on fire today breaking two trades, the Yankees acquired outfielder Austin Kearns from the Cleveland Indians for a player to be named later.

Kearns fills the roll of an outfielder who can hit lefties. He’s not a lefty masher or anything, but his career 106 OPS+ against them is an upgrade over Colin Curtis . Sherman also reports that part of the reason the Yankees targeted Kearns is because he’s a pretty good outfielder and manager Joe Girardi has lost faith in the defensive abilities of Marcus Thames .

Kearns, 30, is a free agent after this season as he is on a one-year $0.75 million contract. He’s neither a Type-A or B free agent.

Here are his stats:

Related Stories

• July 31, 2010 — Yankees Notes: Hughes, Joba, The Boss, Berkman, Kearns (0)
• July 31, 2010 — Recapping Friday’s Trades and Who Else Is Bronx Bound? (0)

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The relatively quiet Boston Red Sox front office has talked with the Milwaukee Brewers about acquiring veteran outfielder Jim Edmonds, according to MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy.

This is perhaps the most feasible and sensible of all potential trades reportedly involving the Red Sox. The 40-year-old Edmonds is only under contract through this season at a very affordable $850,000 and is enjoying his best year since 2004 when the lefty posted a 1061 OPS for the St. Louis Cardinals.

On the Brewers’ 2010 campaign, Edmonds is hitting .289 with 8 homers and an 866 OPS. Defensively, Edmonds and his 17.1 UZR/150 rank 7th among all active outfielders with at least 350 innings this year.

If you’d like to know as soon as Peter’s Red Sox articles have posted, you can follow him on Twitter at BoSoxUpdate.

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With less than 36 hours until the end of the MLB trade deadline, teams are making huge strides to land some of the best players in baseball. Teams like the Yankees, Rays, White Sox, Angels, Nationals, and Giants are looking to add talent to help them immediately for their playoff races or to help build in the future.

There has been a lot of trade talk going on lately and some big name players have already been traded in the past month like Cliff Lee to the Rangers, Roy Oswalt to the Phillies, and Alex Gonzalez to the Braves.

During this year’s MLB trade deadline I expect to see a lot of well-known players to be traded to help out some of the better teams in the MLB. Looking at the list I have made you can see that playoff teams are the main teams interested and teams not making the playoffs are usually the sellers during this years trade deadline.

Overall, I feel as if this years trade deadline will deal the most star power that we have seen in recent years and many former/current all-stars will be on the block and be likely to be traded. Now, this is the list of the top 5 players that are most likely to be traded by the trade deadline and the teams that are going to land those players.

Ty Wiggington, IF, Baltimore Orioles

Stats: .250 AVG/16 HR/51 RBI/.767 OPS

Current Team: Baltimore Orioles

Projected Team: San Fransisco Giants

A well-known 5-tool player, Ty Wigginton, is one of the most under-the-radar players in this trade deadline. The Orioles really would like to move Wigginton to gain some young prospects in return, but with teams trying to go after power hitters like Adam Dunn, Lance Berkman, and Jose Bautista during this trade deadline, it will be tough for the Orioles to find a team that will fit his needs and make a move for him.

One team I believe will make a move for Wigginton is the San Fransisco Giants. I feel as if the Giants will strike out when it comes to landing the power hitters and will be forced to pick up a balanced hitter and a good fielder in Wigginton. If Wigginton can hit like he was earlier in the season than I think he can help the Giants push the Padres out of first place in the NL West.

Ted Lilly, SP, Chicago Cubs

Stats: 3-8/3.69 ERA/89 K/1.14 WHIP

Current Team: Chicago Cubs

Projected Team: Los Angeles Dodgers

Lilly is one of the best pitchers still left on the market. He will be an valuable asset for teams looking for another solid pitcher in the rotation. Even though his record is not so good, his ERA is pretty good and his WHIP is very good as well. It doesn’t help that he plays on one of the worst scoring teams in baseball.

With the Cubs struggling this year and looking like they will end up in the middle of their division again, I could see them looking to rebuild and get ready to land players that will help next year. One team that will try to make a big push to land Lilly is the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Dodgers are a team looking for another starting pitcher in their rotation and with valuable prospects in the minors I could see a deal in which they trade those prospects to the Cubs.

The Dodgers feel as if they are still in the NL West race and with an improved rotation by the addition of Lilly, I could see them making a run for the Wild Card and the Division lead.

Edwin Jackson, SP, Arizona Diamondbacks

Stats: 6-10/5.16 ERA/104 K/1.50 WHIP

Current Team: Chicago White Sox

Projected Team: Houston Astros

Now I know what you’re thinking. Why would the White Sox keep Edwin Jackson for just one day if they desperately need another pitcher. Well, let’s first explore the pros of Edwin Jackson. Jackson is a pitcher that can get your team the much needed strikeouts and can have good games (like his no-hitter thrown earlier in the year). He would be an improvement for the White Sox instead of Daniel Hudson.

Although Jackson has the right tools to be a great starting pitcher in the AL Central, I feel as if the White Sox won’t want to keep the guy with such a bad ERA. I think what the White Sox will try to do is ship Edwin Jackson to a team looking to replace a good pitcher, the Houston Astros, and try to pick up another good pitcher in Brett Myers from the Astros. I know that if Myers lands in Chicago, he will be a bigger improvement than Jackson and Hudson.

Adam Dunn, 1B, Washington Nationals

Stats: .277 AVG/24 HR/64 RBI/.927 OPS

Current Team: Washington Nationals

Projected Team: Tampa Bay Rays

The biggest name out of free agency will be the most looked at player in the next 20 hours. Adam Dunn, the NL home run leader, has been attracting teams attention since the start of July and has been teams No. 1 priority. Teams like the New York Yankees, Tampa Bay Rays, San Fransisco Giants, and Chicago White Sox have been deep into discussions for Dunn. Dunn, who is well known for the power he possesses has shown to be the best player on a terrible Nationals team.

The Nats will be looking to move Dunn and his contract in order to gain some of the best prospects to their already amazing farm system. One team in particular who is desperate for a bat like Dunn is the Tampa Bay Rays. With the Rays in a big head to head division leading match-up with the Yankees will be looking for power that can help them immediately and in the playoffs. With not too many power hitters on their team, the Rays will look for a big time player to get them closer to pushing the Yankees for first in the AL East.

Lance Berkman, 1B, Houston Astros

Stats: .245 AVG/13 HR/49 RBI/.808 OPS

Current Team: Houston Astros

Projected Team: New York Yankees

Lastly, one of the most experienced players on this list, Lance Berkman will finally have a new home by the end of the trade deadline. Berkman, who has been hitting poorly in the beginning of the season, started picking up and has been one of the hottest hitters in baseball during this past month. He has shown that he has some good power left and that he can hit the ball fairly well if needed.

Although the White Sox were also high on Berkman as well, I feel as if the Yankees will pull out a great deal to pick up Berkman from Houston. The Yankees, who I feel will face pressure from the Rays to pick up somebody, will look to add a bat like Berkman. I know that with Jorge Posada struggling with his health, the Yankees will look to add Berkman to secure the DH spot for them. Overall, I know that if the Yankees land a bat like Berkman, they will be arguably the strongest team in baseball.

This trade deadline will put a lot of familiar faces in some new places and with such close races going down I know that teams will be desperate to add good and solid players as soon as possible. I feel as if this trade deadline will help shape up and in the long run will decide some of the division winners and playoff teams this season.

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The Texas Rangers are going to the playoffs, and it is clear they are not going to be happy with just “being there.”

Texas’ nine-game lead in the AL West appears to be safe as the fledgling Angels search in vain for answers.

With the addition of Cliff Lee, most of baseball realizes the Rangers will be able to hang with any team in the playoffs, but Texas is clearly not interested in just “hanging.” They are out to win their first world championship.

This is what going for it looks like, Angels fans.

Not satisfied with winning the biggest pitching prize at the trade deadline, Texas has kept busy acquiring key playoff pieces like Bengie Molina—a World Series champion catcher and clutch veteran leader.

Still not done, the Rangers acquired Jorge Cantu and his 54 RBI to help out at first base.

Their All-Star second baseman Ian Kinsler goes on the disabled list, and boom! The Rangers waste no time in picking up two-time All-Star middle infielder Christian Guzman today to fill in.

So now they’re done, right?

Wrong.

Today, the Rangers offered the Florida Marlins their top three prospects for pitching ace Josh Johnson and are still reportedly in the running for Adam Dunn.

Clearly Texas is making moves they feel they need to make in order to compete with the New York Yankees—not the Angels.

Granted, these players are no Alberto Callaspo, but something tells me baseball fans in the Lone Star State are willing to live with that.

Obviously, the Dan Haren move was nice for the Angels, but once again, it is too little, too late at the trade deadline.

It’s a good thing the Angels did not make any short-term moves to try to save this season because it wouldn’t have done any good. They would have hurt themselves long-term in the process.

In fact, Angels fans should be sending thank you cards to Derreck Lee right now for saving Angels GM Tony Reagins from himself.

However, it makes one wonder what the Angels could have done if they would have traded their prospects to supplement the key pieces they already had in place a few years ago—pieces that are now scattered across the baseball landscape.

Texas is doing what most Angels fans were screaming at the top of their lungs for then-Angels GM Bill Stoneman to do.

Stoneman balked at the idea—touting virtually every Angel prospect as an un-tradeable future Hall of Famer.

So, instead of having Alex Rodriguez and possibly a few more rings, the Angels instead retained the services of their “future Hall of Famers” Brandon Wood, Howie Kendrick, Jeff Mathis, and Erick Aybar.

They also refused to trade baseball greats Casey Kotchman, Dallas McPherson, Joe Saunders and Kevin Jepsen.

When they finally did part with a few of these individuals, some acted as if they had parted with Mickey Mantle.

Ask yourself this, Angels fans. Is there any talent in that group of eight that you couldn’t acquire on any given year in free agency at a very reasonable price?

Then ask yourself, how often do you get the chance to make a trade for Babe Ruth? Because that is exactly who you passed on, Stoneman.

Texas understands that concept, despite having one of the top-ranked farm systems in baseball.

The Angels should have understood that, but they were too preoccupied falling in love with the fantasy of an impending dynasty that never materialized.

Instead, the Angels became to this decade what the Atlanta Braves were to the last—a very good team that never took the next step to greatness.

Now the Angels find themselves in a quagmire of underachieving, untradeable disappointments. They will now have to buy themselves out of this situation through free agent purchases during the offseason.

Not only have their prospects underperformed, they have managed to turn a team on the verge of greatness into nothing more than a .500 ball club.

As of now, and hopefully before the trade deadline, Reagins should consider nobody un-tradeable.

In the meantime, Angels fans will be gazing enviously toward Texas to see if their gamble pays off. If it does, Angels fans will continue to wonder about what might have been.

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