The Milwaukee Brewers have acquired 36-year old switch hitting 2B Ray Durham from the Giants for pitcher Steve Hammond and outfielder Darren Ford. This was a high price to pay for the Brewers if they are going to use Durham off the bench. I have a feeling that the Brewers are starting to lose patience with the very highly overrated Rickie Weeks at 2B. Durham played in 87 games for the Giants this season and he was 77 for 263 (.293 avg, .799 OPS) with 43 runs scored, 3 homers, 32 RBIs and 8 stolen bases. Durham has had a successful major league career to date and the Brewers’ expect him to give them a boost on offense. Durham has now played in 1,934 games in his major league career and he is 2,024 for 7,301 (.277 avg, .787 OPS) with 1,228 runs scored, 189 homers, 862 RBIs and 271 stolen bases. The Brewers didn’t get Durham cheap as Hammond (#23) and Darren Ford (#21) were two highly ranked players in the Brewers’ farm system coming into the 2008 season according to Baseball America. Still, the Brewers are going for it now and they did make the major league team better by adding Ray Durham.

Russell Branyan and Bill Hall are just holding the 3B spot for the Brewers until Mat Gamel is ready for action and it won’t be long. The 22-year old lefty swinging Gamel has played in 92 games in AA-Ball this season and he is 143 for 381 (.375 avg, 1.045 OPS) with 77 runs scored, 15 homers, 81 RBIs and 5 stolen bases. A lot of teams were asking for Gamel in trade but the Brewers’ smartly resisted as he looks like he will be a very good player for them in the very near future.

The Indians really wanted 21-year old righty swinging shortstop Alcides Escobar from the Brewers in the Sabathia trade but they said no and it was a smart thing to say. Escobar was the #3 prospect in the Brewers’ entire minor league system coming into this season according to Baseball America’s Prospect Handbook. Escobar has played in 89 games in AA ball this season and he is 125 for 382 (.327 avg, .797 OPS) with 64 runs scored, 7 homers, 55 RBIs and 22 stolen bases. He is the shortstop of the future for the Brewers and they were darn smart to keep him.

The Brewers have placed righty starting pitcher Jeff Suppan on the 15-day disabled list with joint irritation in his right elbow. Suppan has started 18 games for the Brewers this season and he is 5-6 with a 4.71 ERA and a 1.60 WHIP. Suppan has not pitched too well this season for the Brewers but they will likely miss him despite adding C.C. Sabathia yesterday.

The Milwaukee Brewers made a bold move to try to win the National League Central Division as they have acquired defending American League Cy Young Award winner C.C. Sabathia from the Cleveland Indians. 27-year old lefty starting pitcher C.C. Sabathia has started 18 games for the Indians this season and he was 6-8 with a 3.83 ERA and a 1.23 WHIP. He has also whiffed 123 batters in 122.1 innings pitched this season which shows that his stuff is still very strong. Sabathia has now pitched in 237 games (all starts) in his major league career and he is 106-71 with a 3.83 ERA and a 1.26 WHIP. Sabathia is going to be a free agent at the end of the season but the Brewers are worried about the here and now and this is a great move. He didn’t come cheap however as the Brewers traded outfielder Matt LaPorta, lefty starter/reliever Zach Jackson, righty reliever Rob Bryson and a player to be named later. LaPorta is the #1 prospect in the Brewers minor league system according to the Baseball America Prospect Handbook. He has played in 84 games in AA ball this season and he is 87 for 302 (.288 avg, .978 OPS) with 56 runs scored, 20 homers and 66 RBIs. 25-year old lefty Zach Jackson was pretty awful in AAA ball for the Brewers this season as he pitched in 22 games (6 starts) and he was 1-5 with a 7.85 ERA and a 1.73 WHIP. Rob Bryson was the #11 rated prospect in the Brewers’ minor league system coming into this season according to Baseball America. He has pitched in 22 games (5 starts) in A-ball this season and he was 3-2 with 5 saves, a 4.25 ERA and a 1.15 WHIP. He has allowed only 43 hits while whiffing 73 batters in only 55 innings pitched. The player to be named later is likely either 3B Taylor Green or OF Michael Brantley. This was a good trade for the Brewers who are well stocked in the minor league system so they felt comfortable in giving up the players they did for Sabathia.