its a joke, what a waste of a trade

I am very disappointed in this trade. No disrespect to Johnson, but he does not appear to be as good a prospect as a Tillman, Arrieta, or Bergensen. I am disappointed with their AA 3B prospect. We should have tried to get someone who was closer to major league ready. We already have Brandon Waring who should be in AA. He has put up better power numbers than Fields. I am very disappointed in this trade. They pick up a prospect who will now block our better prospect. Makes no sense to me.

Who is this Brandon Waring guy? How come no one really talks about him? He has put up 20+ HR's in each of his past 3 seasons. The kid is a beast. Why would the O's trade an All Star closer for a couple AA prospects? Waring is a better prospect than Josh Bell (not Fields). Only time will tell what the results are, but I don't see how we are better off in the long run with this trade. VERY DISAPPOINTED..

Personally, I like this deal. We get a third base candidate for the future who can hit for power, plus a big pitcher who has put up decent stats. Let's face facts, this allowed the O's to put more pieces in for the future as well as free up a bullpen spot for Mickolio. I liked it.

we continue to reap benefits from the Bedard trade, it was that trade that made this trade possible. Two more young players with potential for our minor league system. I like this trade. MacPhail got the best of this deal.

To be honest i don't like the trade at all. I would have thought we would have gotten somebody a little closer to be major league ready. You can't forget that george is a 2 time all star and i think we just gave hime away.

I think this is a terrible trade. We're likely to compete for the division next year and to lose a top closer we had under contract for 2 more years is ridiculous. If we'd gotten a major league ready corner infielder that'd be one thing but two not hot AA guys?

This just doesn't make sense.

This is a TERRRIBLE trade. Why do the Orioles always cling to the past? The only reason they took Johnson is because he's Dave's son. And both of them are below average players. What a joke.

Wow...I thought McFail had better ideas than this.
A number one closer on the market in trade for two future scrubs...
brillant.
I was surprised it wasn't another trade for "future unnamed prospects" like every trade last year.

get rid of huff and wiggington.
Keep zaun on the bench who can work with weiters (also learn from weiters...yeh this is how you block the plate zaun).
Huff has got an attitude and never wanted to play here anyway.

Wiggington can't hit and needs to go to weight training and reduction classes.

here is another idea trembley...flip the batting order...no seriously... flip it over...more RBIs. we can get men on but no one in the bottom can get them home.

not sure why we got rid of salazar...he was decent...probably could have turned him into a decent 3rd baseman...remember mora was not at 3rd originally.

oh well...another losing season.
man...i wish i could get paid 8 mill to play for a crap team.scratch that....1/2 mill to pinch run...

Who are these scouts that have Waring as a better prospect than Josh Bell. Any legitimate baseball publication would strongly disagree. The fact is we need hitters at both corner infield spots and will probably need a DH as well. No one is blocking anyone. As to Johnson the kid can flat out pitch and we are very fortunate to have acquired him.

i agree with louie n canton on this one . Mcphail does it again , reppin off the bedard trade. i was a big fan of Sherill n sad to see him go , but this helps the future , we got 2 of their top 15 prospects for sherrill. Bell is now the future 3rd baseman with pop in his bat. i say bring him up asap n bench mora .lol . AND we get righty steve johnson who is 21 and a strike out pitcher.
hey dean do you know what pitches johnson throws? and the velocity of them? is he a bull - pen guy or starter long term ? thanks

I'll forward your question to Dean, Greg. Thanks -- Mike, sports editor

It seems to me that Mr. MacPhail could have received better quality prospects, for George Sherrill, than what the Dodgers offered. I hope I'm wrong but I think both prospects will not be much more than career minor leaguers.

The Father-Son part of the deal was a gift to Dave Johnson, which would be all well and good if we could afford it. I was moved by Dave's tears of joy at seeing his son come home, but I would have been more moved if he were any good.

Bell, the third base prospect, will still be in the minors fifty years from now. (Although, to be fair, Mora will still be on third base).

This was MacPhail's first total misstep. The Dodgers will probably try to flip Sherrill to the Blue Jays as part of a Halladay swap. And we pay for it with one of the better closers in all of baseball. I have no idea what Andy could have been thinking. This trade just flat-out stunk.

Everyone is entitled to a very occasional "Get out of jail free" card. Well, Andy MacPhail just used his.

DUMB! DUMB! DUMB! now i thought the only way the os were gona trade sherill is to be overwhelmed?!? this is not over whelming at all. WHY DIDNT WE TRADE HIM TO THE ANGELS FOR A PROVEN PLAYER! like BRANDON WOOD?. come on now, this is silly. lets here your take pete

as a SP alum, i'm happy to have a crusie in the organization, but shaky D at the hot corner is not acceptable.

Brandon Waring career stats through 287 minor league games (3rd season currently):

1. AB's 1072
2. Run 178
3. Hits 300
4. 2B 67
4. 3B 6
5. HR 57
6. RBI's 197
7. AVG .280

http://www.thebaseballcube.com/players/W/brandon-waring.shtml

The kid is only 23 years old. He signed early when drafted in the 7th round in '07. He hit 27 HR's the year he was drafted out of college. He put up big numbers right out of college hitting 20 HR's in Rookie Ball with the Reds. Followed it up with another 20 HR and currently stands at 17 HR's.

Would've been fine with this if they would've been able to get elbert or dewitt along with these two.

As it is I don't think they got enough for a pitcher as good as Sherrill has been.

We should have traded him last year when he was an all star and gotten a little more for him but these two aren't bad i guess.

Johnson seems to have really improved a lot during 2009, his numbers this year are very good. Hopefully he's a useful piece.

Josh Bell is probbly now the best hitter prospect in the Orioles minor league system, and whether he ends up at 3B, 1B or DH, he's improved the team. Obviously, it's much better if he can stick at 3B.

To put things in perspective for people who hate this trade, I'll ask 2 questions:

Where was George Sherrill when he was these guys' age (22 & 21)?

and

Why are there so many Dodger fans who are upset that they gave away these guys for someone who is going to be their set-up guy?

Best of luck, Flat Breezy!

THIS WILL TURN INTO A GREAT TRADE, MCPHAIL KNOWS WHAT HE IS DOING, IT'S THESE FOLKS THAT ARE MAKING THE NEGATIVE COMMENTS WHO DON'T KNOW THE FIRST THING ABOUT BASEBALL. TIME WILL TELL.

wow.... can't believe some people's reaction here. Sherrill's value isn't going to net a AAA stud ready for action.

Time will only tell!

I like the trade. We finally get someone to full the 3b for the FUTURE. Why do I see someone complaining about getting rid of salazar? HE IS 31 yrs old, he's not the future, and neither was Sherrill. Why have a closer, when you are a last place team? Steve Johnson is a great addition to our farm system. I don't see him being in the rotation, but I see him being a good set up man, or perrenial closer. Josh Bell has the power we needed from one of our young players. We have the nucleas to dominate for years to come. We got our outfielders set up with Reimold, Jones, and Markakis. We have a Corner fielder for the future finally, no more old scrubs like mora and huff. All we need is a Shortstop.
Roberts
Markakis
Jones
Weiters
Bell
Reimold

Just need to fill the bottom out!

wow, people are really negative about this. I trust Andy. So should everyone else. After the Bedard trade, he deserves some trust. I don't know any more about Bell than the next guy, but unless anyone here has watched his games, they shouldn't speak. Trades shouldn't be judged on the day they happen. They should be judged seveal years after. A long time ago, the Boddicker trade seemed bad, however we got some solid major leaguers from it.
Trust in Andy, and don't assume it's bad because it's the O's.

i was fine with the trade until i heard about the defensive liability of Bell. maybe with his size he can play first instead. If pitching and defense is the mantra of Andy, why did we send a real good reliever away for a marginal defensive 3rd baseman? if he doesn't improve at 3rd or can't play 1st base, then it wasn't a well thought out trade.

TERRIBLE!

A lot of people are clinging to the idea of Sherrill as the 'All Star closer' a little too seriously.

First, let's be real here, he only made the All Star game because we HAD to send someone. Past that, yes, he's a good reliever, but he's not a top of the line closer by any means. And Jim Johnson very well could be, so this is a good time to see if he's up to the job, or else start grooming Mickolio or Erbe for the role.

Sherill's value is overblown because of his saves numbers, and that would have cost us in arbitration. Better to deal him with prospects.

Bell is a very good prospect. The Dodgers considered him to be their 3rd baseman of the future. He's probably going to be our Opening Day starter in 2011 if he works out the problems he's having with his glove, which I believe he can. Our minor league staff worked well with Snyder in improving his defense, and I think we can do the same with Bell. He was the 8th best prospect in the Dodgers system. That's solid value for a lefty reliever. Let's not kid ourselves into thinking Sherill warranted a blue chip prospect.

Waring shouldn't be a deterrent from dealing for a prospect like Bell. Waring has power, but he strikes out a ton and doesn't really get on base. There's a reason Cincinnati was willing to give him up in a deal for a mediocre player like Ramon Hernandez.

As for Johnson, it's laughable that the knock against him is that he 'does not appear to be as good a prospect as a Tillman, Arrieta, or Bergensen.' Really? You expected to get a pitching prospect on part with Tillman [Top 10 prospect in all of the minors in June], or Arrieta [Top 40]? As for Bergesen, he wasn't considered a great pitching prospect, and is actually comparable to Johnson in some ways. Most scouts believe Johnson is a control-pitcher who has decent enough stuff to be a back-end starter in the majors, which was Bergesen's prognosis to a T. I think he'll be a solid bullpen arm for us in the future.

Some people can continue to whine about Andy 'McFail,' but let's look at the bigger picture and realize that with the Sherrill trade now complete, McPhail's haul for Erik Bedard stands as this: Adam Jones, Chris Tillman, Kam Mickolio, Josh Bell, Steve Johnson, and Tony Butler. Jones is an All Star and Tillman is considered a future ace. Mickolio looks like he'll be a great bullpen guy for us and maybe even our future closer, and Johnson will probably make a good bullpen guy as well. Butler is the only guy that won't really contribute. All for a guy who has spent pretty much half of his time in Seattle on the DL. Yup. HUGE fail by Andy, right?

I echo the thoughts of the disappointed fans. We should have gotton more but instead we get a 3rd base prospect who appears to be a defensive liablity, and I not sure what to make of the the pitcher. Overall I feel like this was not a good deal for the O's.

I like the trade.
First, I don't think Sherrill will continue to pitch the next couple of years like he has. So his trade value might be at its higher point.
Second, I believe the closer is an important piece but an easier to get than a corner infielder with pop.
Third, every time the orioles make a move, I see a piece of the puzzle falling into place. Now we have Bell, Waring and Moore trying to be the next 3b...
If Snyder gets to the bigs sometime next year, we'll have a nice group of position players to go with a nice group of pitchers. It's just a matter of time...
The holes thruogh the organization are being filled...
SS is the weaker position...
Nice trade.
We'll be in a pretty good shape for 2011's opening day.
Go O's!!!!!!

Not crazy about the trade. Trading Sherrill leaves a hole in the bullpen. Bell's defensive problems was the reason the Dodgers parted with him. Johnson may be 21 but with 5 years of minor league experience with an average record. To me this is a lop sided trade with the Dodgers getting the better end of the deal. I thought the Orioles were supposed to be high on Brandon Waring. What happened here Dean? It just doesn't sound right to me. Seems they are giving up on Waring by trading for another 3B who is in AA ball and not even close to being ready for the big leagues. Another DH type player perhaps.

Disappointed - thought the price was a major league ready corner guy!

LUDICROUS!

You guys need some perspective in a hurry. Salazar isn't half the athlete Mora is. He is a good bat, but would never be the overall player Mora turned into. As for Wiggington, what's the difference? The guy is an inexpensive role player. If we trade him, fine, but what's with all the venom and as for Huff, the guy was a total stud last year. His numbers are down a bit, but again, so what. As for the Sherrill deal, none of you actually has a clue what value we got and neither do I. I do know that Bell was the Dodger's #8 prospect heading into the season and has improved his standing with a strong season. Waring's in A ball and by no means a sure thing. We need depth and potential at the infield corners and Bell provides that. I also know that Johnson averages better than a k per inning, has a winning record at every level he's been and since his promotion to AA has an ERA under 2. We traded a relief pitcher...a RELIEF pitcher for two legit prospects. We traded a relief pitcher, with 1 all star bid, not 2 by the way for a hometown starting pitching prospect and a potential replacement for Mora. I like Sherrill and am sorry to see him go, but how important are his saves at a time when we aren't competing for anything? These guys may or may not pan out, but right now...today, you have to like this deal!

I just hope that this infield prospect Bell proves better than the last infield prospect the Oriole got from the Dodgers, Juan Bell, a total bust!

Unbelieveable. An All Star closer for people who cannot dominate AA baseball. Is there something we are missing here?

I liked the idea of trading Sherrill, but I think the O's should have gotten more in return. If trading for prospects, since George was an All-Star, shouldn't they have gotten prospects who were at the Triple A level and could be called up this year?

Just my humble opinion, and I hope I'm totally wrong and this turns out to be the best trade ever.

I'm not sure I like this trade either. 2 AA players for Gearge Sherrill?... who ESPN said was the most coveted releif pitcher out there. It just doesn't seem like a very good return. I thought they would get at least one player who was big league ready. Oh well, nothing we can do about it but hope Andy knows what he's doing.

You commenters are idiots.

These guys are two of the Dodgers' top 15 prospects according to both Baseball America and Baseball Prospectus. Bell fills an organizational need as both a hitter and a 3B/1B. Johnson is a good pitching prospect and you can never have too many of those.

What more do you want for an above-average reliever?

Great trade. The O's got exactly what they were looking for, a very good third base prospect who is tearing up AA ball. He has 30 doubles and 11 homers and 50 walks in less than 100 games and is hitting right around .300

Another great trade Mchphail, keep it up!

The odds are fairly long on Johnson becoming a major league pitcher but, who knows. If he has the heart and head of his Dad, he just might make it. Nor am I overwhelmed by Bell. That said, the scouts must see an upside. Sorry to lose George but I wish him well and am glad he will get a shot at a ring. Short term: advantage LA; future, maybe a win-win deal. Crystal balls remain in short supply.

I like it. Dave is one happy dad tonight.

Isn't it funny how many posters wanted to run Sherril out of town earlier this year and now he's called a top flight closer?

I think that McPhail has spoiled us. He comes in and trades Tejeda for 5 players and then Bedard for 5 players. Then he "only" gets 2 players in a trade. Every trade he makes can not be for other teams top prospects.

Remember when the Bedard/Jones trade happened and Sherrill not wanting to come here? Here is what ESPN wrote when we got Sherrill,"They get Sherrill to potentially replace the injured Chris Ray as closer, though Sherrill has been a one- or two-batter specialist and hasn't closed since 2005, at Triple-A."

Look, Sherrill was great here for the Orioles. He is exactly what we needed at the time with our closer Chris Ray getting hurt. The Orioles plan on contending in the next year or two and Sherrill is not a contending teams closer. And he will go back to being what he was in Seattle, a lefty specialist.

Just like the Ravens with Ozzie in McPhail I trust. So far since he has been here he has traded:

Bedard,Sherrill,Tejada,Penn,Olson,Williamson,Hernandez,Salazar and a player to be named later.

And for those players he got in return:

Tillman
Jones
Sherrill
Micklio
Butler
Scott
Albers
Patton
Sarfate
Costanzo
Freel
Turner
Waring
Andino
Hill
Merideth
Bell
Johnson

So he has traded away 9 and in return has gotten 18 players. I would say we all agree that the only one we are even semi sad to see go is Sherrill who came here in a trade. And before everyone starts back on the salazar wagon its time to jump off cause he is batting .091 since being traded.

To me it seems like McPhail has done enough to earn some trust that we havent had in a GM in a long time so lets just see how everything unfolds.

McPhail got snookered on this one. This is the type of deal that could have been done in the off-season as Sherrill was going to lose value due to lack of usage the next 2 months. His peak value was now: 4 year minor leauger and an a A ball pitcher are very poor value. McPhail must have taken advice from the fire sale GM of the Pirates for this one.
Boo Hiss!!!

the orioles have the worst gm in the history of major leagure baseball...why would you trade one of the top closers in the leagues and one of their best players for a guy(johnson) who hasnt broke a 4.0 era in his MINOR league career? the orioles are a shame to maryland and the mlb

This trade will go down as a colossal stinker. Both of these guys are marginal prospects. I think we should have gotten at least one good prospect out of this.

I'm surprised to see all of the opposition to the trade. Sherrill was a great guy and a fan favorite, but more than likely over-performing. I was upset that we didn't deal him last year and I'm glad to see us reap even more benefits from the Bedard deal. If you look at it from a higher level, Sherill could have helped this team for another 2 years, but I think with the pitching prospects that we've assembled, the young outstanding outfield and Wieters behind the plate, this team is set up to be perennial contenders for much more than a 1 or 2 year window. These kids might not pan out, but I thought the same thing about Luke Scott and George Sherill after those trades. I think McPhail and his crew have earned at least a little bit of our trust and support at this point.

I liked the trade. We're dealing Sherrill at peak value; remember how he fell off last September?

If Bell can't hack it at third, I'm sure they'll move him to first. This kid can hit, and with 50 W and 70 K, and a good OBP, he shows that he isn't a wild swinger. He's young, and his power will develop.

I thought they mite have gotten a more highly-rated prospect than Johnson-or a third prospect. But the kid has some good numbers. II'll give MacPhail the benefit of the doubt. Most of his trades have been phenomenal so far.

I am a little surprised that they let Sherril go for these two guys. Seems like the O's got the short end of the deal. I think I would have liked to have seen a little more major league ready players that what we got back. I have faith in McPhail though. He obviously has reasons for trading for these guys and so far has not made any bad decisions from what I can see. Sherrill is a guy that the Orioles got and ended up being a lot more than we all expected. So lets give him a break for now and see what happens.

I like the trade. Sherrill is a 32 year-old all-star closer, who, prior to coming here, was a lefty-specialist only. The point is, he's good, but he's replaceable. Most closers are recycled and reborn: Eckersley was a starter first for years, Rivera was a set-up man for Wettland first.

Most importantly, Sherrill's trade value was not going to get any higher, ever. He was just going to get older and closer to leaving as a free-agent.

In the context of getting better long-term, these AA prospects help more than keeping Sherrill would. It's pitching depth, it's corner-infield power depth (3B OR 1B), and it's youth. Bell doesn't have to be the "the answer" at third. If we can get our highly-touted pitchers to form the 1-2-3 core of a future rotation, free agents will want to come here, and we're going to spend money on the bats.

Developing players is a numbers game. You need a lot of really good minor leaguers to find the few who will be stars in the majors. With this trade, we just increased our prospects.

You are all crazy, this is a great trade. Bell is the perfect player to have targeted in a trade and getting Johnson is an added bonus. We now have a legit power hitting 3rd baseman.

Sherrill was one of the few "sure things" on this team. We will miss him- this second half is looking bleeker and bleeker.
Hope these guys set the world on fire, but I doubt it.
Raven's opening game is when?

Real nice deal - a relief pitcher for 2 solid prospects. I love George, but let's face it - he really's not in the Orioles long term plans. McPhail has once again strengthened the foundation of the organization without having to weaken it's stucture.

Hey guys,

Check out the blogs for Dodger fans. Who says they are upset with this trade...certainly not the fans in Dodgerland. They are joking that they gave away relatively little to get a proven left handed arm...with closer ability. With this said, I wish Johnson and Bell nothing but the best...but I am really questioning if this was indeed the best deal available (and if so, would we not be better off just keeping our closer for the next season and a half?).

I like Sherrill, but lets face it, he's a 32-year old pitcher who died after too much use last year and was shaky at the beginning of this year. Do you really think he will be the guy you want closing games when this team is ready to win in 2011? Relief pitchers not named Mariano Rivera are generally overvalued. Just look what happened with BJ Ryan. To get a highly regarded hitting prospect (not really sure he can play third, but he can definitely hit) in Bell and good young pitcher like Johnson is a steal. Now, let's see if Andy can get anything for Baez, Hendrickson, Mora or Scott.

To all those who think we should have gotten more for Sherrill.

WAKE UP!!!!

Nobody will ever give up much for a reliever. If Sherrill was on a division leading team at best he would have been a 8th inning setup man. Not a closer.
Check out ESPN or SI on both sites the feeling is the Dodgers overpaid. We got max value for a good player.

Just some more confrimation of the fact that the Sherrill trade made sense.....

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/blog/index?entryID=4367409&name=fantasy_baseball

Time will tell whether this is a good trade or not. Perhaps I was overly optimistic to hope we would compete in 2010. While the jury is out on the long term quality of the trade, clearly Andy MacPhail has tipped his hand regarding when he thinks we can compete ... and it's not next year. This trade clearly makes us weaker in 2010.

Those people who think Bell is a marginal prospect don't have a clue. Look at his numbers. At age 22, he has probably the 3rd or 4th best hitting statistics in his league. He has 11 HRs and 30 doubles, so he definitely drives the ball. He looks more like a firstbaseman than a thirdbaseman, but he definitely has shown that he can hit.

like the trade.

got younger.

opened position for Johnson to be closer...and that guy is frickin' awesome. best arm in bigs for the O's.

So many short memories. In April you were screaming for Scott Moore, in May you were screaming for Lou, June it was Oscar. Now Andy trades Sherill for a 3rd baseman and a rh pitcher. BFD if it is Daves kid. He has talent. However, the trade allows Andy more freedom. Is B. Snyder for real? Will Mike Costanzo pull his head out and someday understand that he has legitimate talent and can play in the "bigs"? Andy can package Josh Bell,Miquel Abreau and a reliever to Colorado for Garrett Atkins ,Scott Munter, and Franklin Morales. Fire Power

Gee - an all-star closer on a losing team. Who cares about Sherril. This team needs so much more than an all-star closer and 60 wins year in / year out.

These people who think Sherrill was a "Top Closer" are just stupid. He is an adequate closer on a losing team and would not be a closer on a contender. I am not knocking the man, but lets be realistic here. He is a 32 year old relief pitcher who is not getting any younger and we just added a top 3rd base and pitching prospect...pretty good if you ask me. Trust the plan, it is working.

I love this trade, even if Bell doesn't work out at 3B, which I really hope he does, he could probably slide across to first base. He just needs to work on his plate discipline a little more, and I read that his errors mostly stem from poor throws, so he probably would not be as much of a liability at first. Hopefully he can put it together and be our opening day third baseman in 2011.

Bell is better than Waring. We can't pay all of our attention to numbers. There's a difference with a guy who lofts flyball HRs that carry out, vs. a guy who is really a linedrive hitter who will run into frequent HRs.

Both Johnson and Bell have a legit chance of being above-average majorleaguers. Bergesen was probably given the same or worse chance at being a majorleaguer by scouts as they give Steve Johnson. The Os have shown they have a pretty good ability of picking sleepers. Maybe these guys don't become All-Stars or Hall of Famers, but if they're hard working quality players, they'll be a huge asset.

We got attached to Sherrill, but we have to understand that he was 32.

If Bell can be a reliable everyday major league player, this is a good trade.

Sherrill is a useful guy to have around. But closers are the most overrated asset in MLB. Think about the convulsions people went through when Toronto signed BJ Ryan away from us. The Blues Jays dumped money on a guy that gave them maybe one good year. In the meantime, we solid years out of Chris Ray and George Sherrill for probably a third of Ryan's cost.

The team can replace Sherrill -- maybe Jim Johnson is just as good... maybe Chris Ray gets his act together... maybe Koj closes games (he did in Japan)... maybe Mickolio... maybe one of our other young pitchers washes out as a starter but works out as a closer (a la Jason Isringhausen).

The point is, If Bell can step in for Huff or Mora in the next couple years, then this works out.

Wow, I can't believe those on here who don't LOVE this trade. This was possibly McPhail's best move to date. For those of you who need to be reminded, McPhail's philosophy is build the arms buy the bats. He is loading our system with prospects and hoping that we land another "BB" meanwhile we open up a roster spot for another "ready to go" youngster to step in and now we have the ability to move prospects to get that COVETED power hitter we have been looking for. Since McPhail has come on the scene he has shaped the future. A future rotation including Tillman, Arrieta, BB, Hernandez and Erbe looks pretty good to me. Throw a Matt Wieters, a developing Brandon Snyder, Brandon Waring, among others, and a core of roberts, markakis, reimold, jones, and scott and I say we have nothing to fear for the future. In Andy I trust.

Sounds like most of the chatter from SoCal is that Dodger fans hate the trade, so that's plenty of reason for us to like it.

If Brimmy were 27 years old I'd be furious. As it is, I like the deal on paper and hope it works out great for the O's.

I lived the first 20 years of my life in New Mexico (where the Dodgers' AAA team is), and lived here for the last 10. So I certainly root for the O's, but the Dodgers will always be my first love.

I think the O's did just fine in this deal. As a Dodger fan, we gave up our leading 3B prospect (Casy Blake isn't any young than Mora) and a 21-year-old pitcher who is two years away for a lefty specialist.

I think a lot of the detractors are forgetting that about Sherrill. Nobody else (not the Dodgers, Cubs or Phillies) viewed him as a closer and were willing to pay closer value for him. All of the potential suitors viewed GS as a lefty-specialist, who will throw 10-15 innings the rest of the season. Go look at his last two years in Seattle, and that's what the Dodgers are trading for. A guy who averages 2/3 of an inning per appearance. So what were they really going to part with for 10 IP?

As for what the O's got, we need to put some perspective on Johnson's numbers. At age 21, in high-A ball, his K/BB was 2.43 and his K/9 was 9.54 this spring. Last year, at age 22 (a year older), Jake Arrieta was 2.35 and 9.55 in high-A Frederick. So earlier this spring, when we were listing our top pitching prospects in order as Tillman, Matusz, Arrieta, Bergesen, Hernandez, we probably would have put Johnson below Arrieta but right there with Bergesen and Hernandez. That's pretty solid. And remember, of those pitchers I listed, only Chris Tillman is younger than Johnson. Yes, this is his 5th professional season, but more important is that he has been able to drink for less than one year.

As for Bell, Baseball America says, "Bell has a refined approach at the plate, looking for his pitch to hit and swinging mostly at strikes. He uses his large legs to create leverage with his swing, and had the best raw power in the Dodgers' organization before the season." In April, we would have said the same thing about Nolan Reimold.

And lastly, let's remember that while Sherrill has been good this year, he's been no better than Jaime Walker was for Detroit in 2006. After that '06 season, the O's paid Walker $4mil per year for the next three seasons, which is about what we would have to pay Sherrill in arbitration the next two years. Given the volatility for relievers, I suspect the O's saved a good deal of money and frustration by unloading a veteran relief pitcher.

I really think the O's got a good deal here. I have to believe that MacPhail and Joe Jordan thought it was the best package on the table.

I am shocked to see so many posts that indicate very little knowledge of Baseball in general, and in Mcphails plan specifically.

Sherrill was certainly expendable. We got more than a fair deal.

For everyone who has something negative to say, why do you want to keep Sherrill??!!

The team was losing with him. The team is going to lose without him the rest of 2009 and probably in 2010. Why not try to improve long term?

The positive about Bell is that he can rake and now he doesn't have to be a good 3B to get ABs if he makes it to the bigs.

My hunch is they would not have gone after Bell if they didn't think he could be here late 2010 or in 2011 with the imminent departure of Melvin Mora after this season.

Kudos to the front office for selling somewhat high on Sherrill. The Bedard trade continues to reap benefits.

I say good work as I believe prospects are what the O's need. Playing at AA, Bell has better avg, obp and slg than Waring who is still playing at A. I don't think you can annoint, or dismiss, either. I hope the competition pushes both to improve. Johnson is a legitimate prospect. Thrown two games at AA -- one he looked brilliant and one he looked pedestrian. Only time will tell.

Terrible trade, I doubt either one of those guys will make it.

Two reasons I like this trade -




1) As a 32 yr old reliever, Sherrill did not fit into the O's long term plans. He's cheap this season and is under control for a couple more so his value was never higher.



2) Bell is a legitimate power hitting 3B prospect. The kid is a switch hitter, already 235 lbs and a lot of those 30 doubles will likely turn into HR's in the future. Young minor leaguers are a crap shoot when it comes to making it in the majors, but now we have several CI prospects in Waring, Moore, and Bell to give us strength in numbers.



I agree with many of the sentiments from other posters - Sherrill was strictly viewed as a setup man for the contending teams that were in the mix, thus his value was not as high as we would have liked.



Personally, I think we may be spoiled by the returns on the Bedard trade, but we came away OK on this one too.

I understand trading Sherrill.
The current lousy team doesn't need a closer. So, it makes sense if the O's traded for some legitimate young prospects. However, these two guys are mediocre career minor leaguers.