Frank Wren finally made his move, and it looks to be a fantastic one. The Atlanta Braves acquired CF Michael Bourn, perhaps the speediest leadoff man in the National League, from the Houston Astros for CF Jordan Schafer, RH Juan Abreu, RH Paul Clemens and LH Brett Oberholtzer. Oh, and the Braves get some cash out of the deal.
I'll let my more baseball-literate brethren weigh in on the nuts and bolts of the trade, but the move is being very well-received. Atlanta didn't have to let go of any of its top pitchers or either of its top pitching prospects, and the need to keep Schafer around would've pretty much been canceled out by Bourn's addition anyway. Hard to see the downside here.
Braves fans are ecstatic, while Al Yellon of Baseball Nation calls the move a "big win for Atlanta." Martin Gandy of Talking Chop says the players given up were essentially "spare parts." Friends of the program David Lee and Ben Duronio are pleased, with the latter calling it a "f------ awesome trade." Our own Scott Coleman is likewise taken to expletives in praise of Wren. I could link to every Braves fan who's f------ geeked about the deal, but we haven't all g------ day.
(Pssst! According to one metric, which of course involves cursing, Bourn might be baseball's best young center fielder.)
More to come on the trade, but it looks like the Braves have won the trade deadline.
For discussion, head to Talking Chop.