One of the Best Catches I Have Ever Seen

I know he isn't an Indian, but I couldn't resist. You have to think of the situation and how difficult this play is. Chris Heisey, I salute you. This is incredible.
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Indians Trade Kerry Wood

Multiple sources, including Jayson Stark of ESPN, report that the Indians have traded Closer Kerry Wood to the Yankees for either cash or a player to be named later. Indians are paying about half of Wood's salary for the rest of the year. More details when they surface.

UPDATE: ESPN is reporting that it would be $500,000 if the deal is finished by accepting cash apposed to a player to be named later.

Jake Westbrook Traded

Many sources, including Tom Krasovic of Fan House, reported on the deal. It sends Jake Westbrook to the Cardinals, Ryan Ludwick and Nick Greenwood to the Padres, and Corey Kluber to the Indians. Kluber leads the Texas League in strikeouts and has given up a little less than a hit an inning. The only real complication during this deal was that Westbrook has to reduce his $2M trade bonus, thus needing Union approval.

Austin Kearns Traded to the Yankees

According to Ken Rosenthal on Twitter, the Yankees have acquired Austin Kearns from the Indians. Joel Sherman reports that it is for a player to be named later. When I learn more info on that play, I will post and give my thoughts.

Indians Trade Jhonny Peralta

Anthony Castrovince reports the Indians have just traded Jhonny Peralta to the Tigers. I am very excited about this move. I stated earlier that the Indians needed to trade him as soon as possible. Peralta just held up a spot on the roster and hindered the progression of the young guys on the roster. In return, the Tribe gets pitcher Giovanni Soto. The 19 year old lefty pitched well in A ball this year with a 2.61 ERA and 8.3 K/9. Although years away from the big leagues, he looks pretty promising. To get rid of Jhonny's contract and get a promising young arm was probably the best the Tribe could do.

On a less fun note, Castrovince also reports Luis Valbuena is taking Peralta's roster spot. There has got to be someone else who we can call up. Also, more time for Andy Marte to play, hooray...

Attended Game Notes 7/26/2010

I got a chance to see the World Champions last night. Although the Tribe got the loss, they looked good. Jake Westbrook may have pitched his last game as a Cleveland Indian. If this is the case, it was a good one to go out on. Westbrook shut down the best offense in the game; one bad pitch lost it for us unfortunately. The Yankees did not look good; Jeter, Teixeira, Rodriguez, and Cano all went hitless on the night. If Westbrook wants to be traded, he really helped his cause. My player of the game has to Curtis Granderson. Even though he was thrown out at second on a fantastic throw by Shin-Soo Choo, he still hit the game winning homer.

HGH Testing in the Minors

Good news everyone! Announced today was the plan to randomly test minor league players effective immediately. Some say the test is a little unreliable and the MLBPA wants to wait for a 100% reliable test before it agrees to allow testing. While not a perfect solution, it is a start in turning this great game clean again. Read the full story here.