After a few weeks of inactivity, the Rays acknowledge their need to replace injured starters by trading more of our top prospects:
Tampa agrees to deal:
Chris Archer, SP and
Alex Torres, SP
to Cleveland for
Justin Masterson, SP and
Vinnie Pestano, RP
Tampa is willing to deal two of our top 5 prospects in order to secure current major league regulars. Masterson has not been himself this year, but we are confident that he can rebound to be a solid #3/4 SP with decent control and low K numbers. Pestano is a solid reliever and his Holds potential can alleviate some of the losses from Rivera's absence.
We will be giving up two of my favorite prospects in this deal, but our pitching depth is solid enough to withstand these losses. My thanks to Cleveland for a solid round of negotiations.