Ray Durham a Brewer, Dillon to AAA

[tristarscoop]

Announced by Brian and Bill on the postgame show. Said they got the info via text message.

 

edit: ESPN.com article

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3497321

 

Says for Steve Hammond and Darren Ford

 

EDIT: Fixed Link, updated title. -PF

[sgtcluels]

I don't like it at all..

 

Thanks for playing the first half Joe Dillon, good luck in Nashville.

[Weirdos19]

We all knew we needed a LH stick off the bench.

 

Not only did we get that, we got a switch hitter. We also got a guy that played outfield for a while.

 

I like the deal because we didn't give up much. And, we have a guy that can take a pitch or two.

 

Don't understand why people think that this isn't a good deal.

[lithium75]

We got a veteran left handed bat with a .385 on base avg for two players who would have in all likelihood never played for the Brewers. they have made worse trades before...

[LouisEly]

As I mentioned in the trade rumors forum, Ford is unlikely to ever see a major league field and Hammond is interchangeable with Narron, Welch, Miller, and Wright. Durham is a contingency plan who has shown fairly consistently that he can get on base against righties at a much better clip than Weeks. I'm not willing to bank this year on the "if" that Weeks reverts back to his potential (I think it was Casey Stengel who once said that, "'Potential' is a French word that means you're not worth a damn yet.") They upgraded the bench, added a switch-hitting bat, has a specific role (possibly platoon vs righties with Weeks), and got him for basically nothing. Not the most glamorous move, but if he can have an OBP that is at least .050 greater than Weeks versus righties than it is a good move.

 

Thanks Joe Dillon - see you September 1st.

[owbc]

We could have used a bullpen arm.

 

However, despite Weeks' supposed high ceiling, Durham is an upgrade at 2B. I think he should start at least 1 game per series to start out and be quickly moved to the starting job if he performs.

[Brewer Fever]

Starting pitcher - check

 

LH bat - check

 

Relief pitcher - fingers crossed

[GB12]

At best he keeps up his average and OBP and is a good leadoff hitter for us. At worst he's a left handed bat off the bench. What's not to like?

[Tisko]

We also got a guy that played outfield for a while.

According to baseball-reference.com he has played 1 game in CF in his career. Not that he is not capable, but I do not expect to see him in the OF anytime soon.

 

[splitterpfj]

I don't see a downside here. This player's skills fit a need on the team, and the cost was nothing of consequence - what not try it?

 

Welcome aboard Ray, may you turn a bucket of solo homers into a constant stream of two-run shots.

[kramnoj]

Based on the broadcast crew, it doesn't sound like it will be a platoon. We'll see how it plays out. If Durham just starts once or twice a week, and is PH off the bench, that's OK. If he's insurance against Weeks not regressing to the mean that's okay too.

[Mike Felder]

I like this deal. It's nice to have another option at 2B and we didn't really give up much at all. Plus he's a lefty with good OBP. If nothing else, maybe this will give Rickie a kick in the tail and jumpstart him a bit now that he knows there's a legit chance his job could be taken. (I like Dillon, but I don't think anyone realistically thought about starting him every day at 2B.)

 

Now if we can just add someone in the bullpen...

[RU Rah Rah]

Solid, if unspectacular, move. (When Durham gets hot, he can really rake. I'm not entirely sure how much "hot" he has left, of course.)

 

Now, about that bullpen help....

[Weirdos19]

A few stats that I cherry picked:

 

Durham OPS vs Cubs: 1.129

vs Cardinals .924

 

Close and Late OPS: .917

 

Also, The Cubs and Cards have a total of one left handed starter in their rotations now. Having Durham may help big time.

[ELCABALLO45]

So its nice to know that Brian and Bill have more say in "offical" word over Buster Onley.

 

Anyways good pick up, anything that can get weeks out of the line up more is a good thing IMO

[MickeyDavis]

Last year it took a trip to Nashville to light a fire under Weeks. Hopefully this will do the same.

[DougJones43]

If Durham can continue to keep his OBP far above Weeks, I'd prefer to see him get the majority of the starts.

[olsonnet]

Gotta love the "fans" on the JS blog who are upset we gave away 2 guys who they had never heard of, let alone actually seen play until today.

[LouisEly]

We could have used a bullpen arm.

 

It ain't July 31st yet.

 

Also, The Cubs and Cards have a total of one left handed starter in their rotations now. Having Durham may help big time.

 

A very astute observation. I like this deal even more now.

[Weirdos19]

We also got a guy that played outfield for a while.

According to baseball-reference.com he has played 1 game in CF in his career. Not that he is not capable, but I do not expect to see him in the OF anytime soon.

 

Sorry, got him mixed up with Willie Harris, who replaced Durham in a White Sox uniform. The Sox had traded Durham, then moved his supposed replacement to centerfield for a while.

 

[homer]

If the JS blog is up in arms over this deal, it's probably a good trade.

[dvoiss]

I think it definitely helps to get another LH bat in the lineup. However Durham's lack of range at a vital defensive position needs to be taken into account when doling out playing time.

 

I think it will be interesting to see how this works. Will they go with a strict L/R platton or will they use them depending on the situation? Will this move Weeks to try harder to live up to his potential? Will the veteran Durham have a positive influence in the clubhouse?

 

This is a move that can certainly help this team if it plays out right and I don't really see the downside. Good move.

[brewmann04]

I have to say this is a nice solid move to get the lefty bat w/o costing alot.

Now hopefullt the price of Marte or Street will come down.

[HappyYoungster]

Any word regarding whether or not SF will be on the hook for any of Durham's remaining contract? While it's clear that the Brewers have the prospects to add a RP still, there's gotta be a point where Mark A draws the line with the payroll....isn't there? Hopefully there's enough left in the war chest for one more move.

[BrewCrewForever]

This is a great move. Gives us a switch hitter who carries a high OBP and is batting close to .300. I'm not totally giving up on Weeks yet but they better make this at least a straight platoon with Durham starting against RHP and Weeks against LHP.