The Braves have traded Mark Teixeira to the Angels for Casey Kotchman and minor league pitcher Stephen Marek. This move is a little surprising, since Arte Moreno is known to be adamantly opposed to trading young talent for potential two-month rentals, but giving up only Kotchman for the biggest bat on the market would have been really tough to turn down. The club also has Kendry Morales to fall back on if they cannot resign Teixeira, who could command a $200 million contract this winter. It would have been nice to upgrade at a different position, since Kotchman has arguably been the team MVP. That being said, this addition definitely makes the Angels, who already have the best record in baseball, THE World Series favorite.
Braves brass probably has mixed opinions of this trade. On the one hand they did not get the top pitching prospect they were seeking, and only got one major league ready player, but that player is a gold-glove caliber first baseman, who is under team control through 2011, and has arguably been the best of the best team in baseball.
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Doctor X -- the 'Baseball Medic' -- is an anonymous U.S. government trauma specialist with a Duke University sports medicine background and more than 20 years experience in emergency medicine. From time to time he considers MLB rumors, events and news reports as they pertain to baseball players' injuries, illnesses and various other disabilities, both on the field and off.
MLB Rumors editor Greg Fieg is a former sports news editor and award-winning writer whose bylines have appeared on the wires of the Associated Press and in numerous publications, including San Antonio Express-News, San Antonio Light, Houston Chronicle and Philadelphia Bulletin. He formerly was posted in various positions on the U.S.-Mexican border with Freedom Newspapers, and was a regular, independent contributor to United Press International.