The Manny Ramirez trade has been great for the city of Los Angeles and the Dodgers. It has also been great for Nomar Garciaparra, the oft-injured former member of the Red Sox, who hit a game-winning home run Wednesday night that lifted the Dodgers past the Phillies and into first place in the NL West. The win was notable because the Dodgers were down 6-1 in the fourth inning, and now have the benefit of facing Brett Myers Thursday night.
With Tim Wakefield on the disabled list and Clay Buchholz struggling in his first full season in the majors, the Boston Red Sox added Paul Byrd to their rotation in their push for the playoffs. Byrd is the third big-name player Cleveland has moved this summer, following CC Sabathia and Casey Blake. The Indians will receive a player to be named later or cash, while the Sox add a versatile, veteran arm.
Cincinnati Reds outfielder Adam Dunn was traded to the Arizona Diamondbacks for three minor leaguers in a rare August deal, completed only after Dunn cleared waivers. Although passed over by more than a few teams, Dunn should provide the D-backs with a power hitter - something they've been lacking - in the chase for the NL West pennant.
A great outing by Ryan Dempster coupled with two St. Lous errors led the Cubs to a 6-2 victory Sunday night. While the win was noteworthy by itself, the bigger story out of the Cardinals loss (which put them seven games behind Chicago) was that Chris Carpenter had to leave early because of strained triceps. The good news for the Cardinals, at least in the short term, is that Carpenter says he plans to make his next start.
Arizona Diamondbacks P Brandon Webb continued his stellar year and notched his major league leading 17th win over the Atlanta Braves on Sunday. Webb even helped out his own cause with a 2-run double in the 4th. There is no doubt that Webb is the front runner for the Cy Young award, which he took home in 2006.
