C.C. to the Brew Crew

I guess I'm supposed to be worried, as a Cubs fan, about this C.C. Sabathia deal? For anyone who doesn't know, the Indians sent C.C. up to Milwaukee for three prospects and a player to be named later. From all accounts on espn.com and si.com, it seems that Matt LaPorta is the marquee prospect that was involved. I think it was the right move by the Indians, but I'm not completely sure that this is going to work out for the Brewers. Normally, I'd be all over a scenario that involved a collapse by my beloved Cubbies, but this time not so much. It's not that I don't believe that C.C. is good, he's excellent. His numbers are misleading, Jayson Stark pointed out in his chat today that Sabathia is 5-3 with a 2.14 era and 80+ k's since May 9. Those are dominant stats, and who can blame Sabathia for pitching poorly in April and early May in freezing Cleveland. Where I see this deal falling apart for the Brewers is in the long term.

More than anything, this deal is going to trigger another deal by the Cubs. Jim Hendry won't be outdone by Milwaukee, he was aware of the need of another pitcher at Wrigley before this happened, now there is some urgency behind it. All the rumor sites are linking the Cubbies with a move for Rich Harden, and if that happens it does a good job of negating the Milwaukee deal. I'm convinced already that the Cubs have a more potent lineup than the Brewers, and a 1-2 of Zambrano and Harden is just about even with Sheets-Sabathia. This is all assuming that Big Ben doesn't do his normal routine of hanging out on the DL for a stretch of the second half of the season. I do think the Brewers will be playing baseball in October, but winning the wild card might line them up for a set against the Phillies or Mets, and I'm not sure I like their chances there. Again, it's going to come down to Sheets staying healthy, and this lineup heating up at exactly the right time.


Now here is why I don't like this deal long term. It's no secret that Milwaukee isn't the biggest market in baseball, and it's no secret that Sabathia's and Sheets's contracts come up at the end of the season. Most experts are predicting that the team won't be able to sign EITHER of the aces, and will have to let them go. With that said, that means that this deal was intended to make the Brewers into a team that can win the World Series this season. Is there anybody who is really believing that this team is going to win the World Series? I just don't think this team was good enough before you add Sabathia, and with him they are obviously better, but I don't know about them being a Championship contender. If I'm a Brewers fan, there is a lot of weight on my shoulders for the rest of the season to make this one count, because management just told me, we're not going to be back here for a while guys. Those are my two cents on the trade, but then again what do I know? I'm the same guy who was skeptical about the Yankees trading Hughes and Kennedy for Johan during the offseason, and I think we're seeing now that I may have been off on that one.