whew! trades get me excited, and i m glad to see NH into it again…

now, what do we give up? from the way its being reported, it sounds a complex deal, which sounds not good, unless there’s a 3rd team involved (unlikely)

if we don’t give up anyone of consequence, bixler/cruz/lerud, i m fine with it… sounds to me like lerud/diaz/jaramillo might be frontrunners if its a deal of any consequence… at the same time, it doesn’t interest me a lot, unless we expect him to become trade bait soon…

here’s another thought- its common knowledge the Rays wanted doumit at some point… could this be a multiplayer deal?

No details

be aware that there’s a poison pill in Iwamura’s contract. According to Cot’s Baseball Contracts…when Iwamura’s contract approaches expiration…there are only 2 choices…sign him to an extension…or release him (which grants him immediate free agency). That means NO arbitration.

the only places we may logically be able to help them are catching and pitching…unless Carlos Pena isn’t expected to return…and that would have to be totally injury releated. Or unless they are planning on ditching BJ Upton…in which case…they might be looking for an outfielder.

says it’s Jesse Chavez…but I haven’t seen anyone else report names.

so I’d say that if we are going to hear something tonight…it’ll be in the next few hours. Otherwise…I wouldn’t expect to hear much until after the WS ends…which means MLB has asked the teams to hold off on the announcement. Selig doesn’t like anything taking the limelight from the World Series…not that this trade would be a distraction from that.

Buster Olney also reporting it’s Chavez.

http://community.post-gazette.com/blogs/pbc/archive/2009/11/03/pirates-close-to-acquiring-iwamura.aspx

what does Kovacevic mean when he says we will “probably” get another player? and what does mlbtr mean when they say Kovacevic “believes” that?

Some source involved, I hope, seeing as its DK.

Second, when does MLBTR put its titles in green? or is that the color of the link after you visit it?

trade is official…Iwamura for Chavez…straight up…no other players or cash involved.

Iwamura is a good player, but he or LaRoche is going to have to be out the door at some point when Pedro gets to Pittsburgh. It makes the 2010 Pirates significantly better, but I have to wonder if he can still play well once this team is actually competitive.

I don’t think losing Chavez is the end of the world, though, and it’s exciting to get a recent pennant-winning, very defensively stout second baseman.

are such a crapshoot that I can’t really be upset about losing a RH pitcher who even with five years of control — I think options are more important for relievers than years of control either way — was considered a long shot for the team before the start of last year. If the scouting department feels Aki looked healthy in September, then he’s an upgrade over Freddy at a lesser cost (with the added benefit of having Alderson in the system now).

I assume he could also be dealt during the middle of the year if Pedro is ready and they want to give Andy a shot at 2B — not sure how that may affect Andy’s bat if he has to focus extra on a new position or whatever but it’s a wait and see approach there. The Pirates needed to acquire something above replacement level in the middle infield, and so this serves that purpose.

Even if you’re building for the future, it doesn’t do you much good to play subpar players who are also not a part of the future if you can avoid it. There was either gong to be a hole at 3B or 2B depending on where Andy played, so this fills the hole.

RJ Anderson at Fangraphs is a lot more positive on Chavez than several commenters here:

Chavez is a right-handed reliever with a plus-plus change and velocity that sits in the 94-96 range. Thanks to that change he has a reverse platoon split, and is exceptional versus lefties. He figures to profile as a late inning reliever with the Rays, although he’s had issues with home runs which, if fixed, could really change the dynamic of his career arc.