Hudson nearly no-hits Hitmen

Rookie Daniel Hudson on Sunday came within two outs of what would have been the third no-hitter in the DMBL this season. It would've been the second by a rookie, and the second for Las Vegas, this season. Hillsborough's Billy Butler singled down the left-field line with one out in the 9th, the second time he reached base in the 4-0 win for Last Vegas.

Hudson, acquired from New Jersey earlier this year, finished with five strikeouts and two walks. Butler led off the 7th reaching on an error before getting wiped out by a double play. Hudson walked Placido Polanco in the 3rd and Aubrey Huff leading off the 8th before plunking Polanco later in the 8th.

The top overall pick in this year's draft, Hudson was dealt to Las Vegas, along with Carlos Marmol, in exchange for five draft picks: a 3rd-rounder and a 5th-rounder in 2012, and 1st-, 5th- and 6th-round picks in 2013. Hudson improved to 13-9 on the season, 6-3 in 10 starts with a 1.93 ERA for the Rat Pack (he was 7-6 with a 4.17 ERA with New Jersey). It was his first shutout with Las Vegas; he had one with New Jersey as well.

Hudson's Rat Pack teammate, Brett Myers, no-hit New Jersey, 1-0, last month while fellow rookie Stephen Strasburg of Carolina no-hit Philly, 5-0, in May.

Prospects get red tagged

The trading deadline can be a sad day for prospects -- often it's when teams in the pennant race decide they have to dump that once beloved ineligible prospect in order to sign a veteran bat or an extra arm in the bullpen. Former prospect Jack Cust took a break from his duties with the Sardine City Straphangers to recap which prospects survived -- and which ones will be in next year's draft. Check it out in an all new Prospecting With Jack Cust!

Pettitte matches Mussina

Andy Pettitte, the DMBL's active leader in career losses, added another one Friday night, matching Mike Mussina for fourth all-time with 139.

Pettitte, who will retire after this season, potentially could finish his career second all-time in losses to Tom Glavine (172). He stands just a few more Ls away from David Wells (141) and Greg Maddux (142). In 24 starts this season, Pettitte is 5-9 with a 6.79 ERA. If he can stay healthy, you figure he could make as many as nine more starts in 2011.

Pettitte still boasts a better than .500 record (145-139 / .511) and barring some kind of complete collapse, should finish his career above .500. He's currently 10th all-time in wins, 9th in innings pitched (2,382), and 5th in starts (412) -- the active leader in all those categories -- as well as 11th all-time in strikeouts (1,658).

The lefthander from Louisiana will be eligible for the DMBL Hall of Fame starting in 2016.

Prince stops Halladay streaks

If not for Prince Fielder, Roy Halladay might still have his streaks intact.

After four innings of one-hit ball Saturday night, the Philadelphia ace yielded a double to Carolina's Hideki Matsui to lead off the 5th, before giving up a home run to Prince Fielder, snapping a scoreless stretch of 28 consecutive innings. Fielder later walked in the 7th inning, the first base on balls by Halladay in 27 1/3 innings.

Halladay gave up just one other hit after the Fielder bomb, cruising to his eight complete game of the season, the 60th of his career, a mark matched by only five other pitchers in league history. Phillly handled Carolina 6-2 as Halladay improved to 12-6.

Brother Against Brother

The Carolina Mudcats and Philadelphia Endzone Animals played an epic 16-inning game on Sunday that will go down as one of the most memorable contests in their long rivalry.

With young guns Travis Wood and Yovani Gallardo for Philly and Carolina, respectively, it looked like it would be a pitcher's battle. And for awhile, it certainly was. Wood retired the first six batters he faced -- four by strikeout. But the hometown Mudcats finally broke through in the bottom of the 3rd when Michael Young doubled home Alex Gonzalez for the first run of the game. Carolina's lead was short lived, however, as Nelson Cruz led off the top of the 4th with a home run to tie the score. In the bottom of the 5th, Philly reliever Kyle McClellan -- who entered the game the previous inning after Wood was injured -- gave up a solo shot to Troy Tulowitzki to put the Mudcats ahead again. But once more, the lead wouldn't last long as David Murphy knocked in Albert Pujols with a single in the top of the 6th.

The bullpens would trade zeroes for the next five innings, until the top of the 12th, when the newly acquired David Wright led off the inning with a home run to put the Endzone Animals on top. But Carolina answered in the bottom of the inning with a one-out home run from Young. After an uneventful 13th, the Endzone Animals looked to put it away in the top of the 14th when Ryan Raburn -- another new addition -- slammed a two-run home run off Evan Meek to make it 5-3. But the Mudcats once again refused to go gentle into that good night. With two outs in the bottom of the 14th, Tulowitzki crushed a Ramon Ramirez slider deep into the night, a two-run blast that again tied the score, now at 5 apiece. Carolina's Dan Wheeler then held the Animals scoreless for the next two innings.

In the bottom of the 16th, the Mudcats finally started a rally. Lance Berkman, who entered the game way back in the 12th as a pinch hitter, drew a five-pitch walk. Young then followed it up with a single -- his third hit of the game -- to put runners on first and second. Philly pitcher Sean Marshall -- the sixth reliever of the game (remember, Wood left in the 4th with an injury) and the last man in the Animals' bullpen -- was clearly gassed, but manager Steve "Bye Bye" Balboni had no one else to turn to. Marshall walked Tulowitzki on four pitches to load the bases.

Balboni told Jered Weaver -- the following day's scheduled starter -- to start warming up. But Marshall bore down and struck out Hideki Matsui and Chris B. Young. Now it all came down to Yorvit Torrealba. Marshall got ahead 1-2, and Torrealba appeared to swing and miss at strike three in the dirt -- but the home plate umpire ruled the pitch had been foul tipped. Marshall and the infielders were already walking off the field and were incredulous at the call. Animals catcher Ramon Hernandez had be restrained as he argued with the ump, to no avail. Replays were inconclusive. After a delay of several minutes -- which included the ejection of Balboni -- the game resumed. A visibly upset Marshall then threw the next three pitches well outside the strike zone, walking in the winning run.

Carolina's controversial win left the two teams tied in the standings at 10 games over .500 as they battle a wildcard spot.

The doctor is in

The next time Roy "Doc" Halladay takes the mound, he'll do so as one of the top 10 pitchers in DMBL history -- not that there was all that much of a debate. A brilliant five-hit shutout in his last outing vaulted Halladay into the top 10 of the league's all-time pitching categories.

Halladay's last start, his 22nd of the season, was No. 341 for his career, breaking a tie with John Smoltz for 10th in league history. He's chasing Andy Pettitte for 10th in innings pitched (though with his next inning pitched, Pettitte will pass Kevin Brown into 9th place), as well as 10th in wins, with 143, two behind the New Jersey lefty. Halladay's newest teammate, Johan Santana, is the active leader in strikeouts (1,700, good for 9th all-time), but Halladay trails the lefthander by some 35 Ks.

Last week's shutout was the seventh complete game this year for Halladay, again breaking a tie with Smoltz, for 6th in league history, with his 59th career complete game. The shutout was his second on the year, moving into a tie for 7th all-time with 16 (and breaking a tie with Randy Johnson and Smoltz).

Halladay also has a 24-inning scoreless streak going, along with 21 consecutive innings without walking a batter.

Thome the third into 500-club

Jim Thome smacked the 500th home run of his career last week in a 4-2 win at home over Sardine City, becoming the third player in league history to reach 500. The historic bomb came off of Phil Hughes, leading off the second inning. With Monday's home runs, he now has 502.

Thome joins the all-time home run leader, Barry Bonds, and Alex Rodriguez as the only members of the 500-home run club. Bond is first with 689 homers, followed by A-Rod, who enters Thursday's games with 551 dingers.

The exclusive club could get another member before the seasons is over, as Marietta's Manny Ramirez enters Thursday's action third all-time with 493 home runs. He also is among the league's all-time leaders in RBI, runs scored, strikeouts, walks, on-base percentage, slugging percentage and games played.

A first basemen who's seen time exclusively at designated hitter with Arkansas this year, Thome adds to his Hall of Fame resume. Thome's best DMBL years were spent with the juggernaut Sugar Bears, his lone Mitchell Award coming in 2003, interrupting what could have been a four-year streak of Mitchell Awards for Bonds.

Thome has enjoyed a resurgence this year, now with 25 home runs, his most since he hit 37 in 2008 with Las Vegas. He spent parts of the past three seasons in Las Vegas, Newark and Arkansas. He came up with Newark in 1996, hitting 21 home runs, before reeling off 11 straight seasons of at least 32 home runs (well, almost -- the streak was interrupted when he missed the entire 2006 season due to injury), including 65 in his Mitchell Award season of 2003, to go with a career-high 154 RBIs.

Ohh, Ahh! A big July 4th trade!

While the rest of America was chilling and grilling this Independence Day weekend, the Arkansas Golden Falcons and Philadelphia Endzone Animals pulled off one of the biggest deals of the season. Let's break it down.

Philadelphia Endzone Animals -- Traded Mike Leake and Ryan Franklin, pitchers, Pablo Sandoval, third baseman, and their 1st and 2nd round picks in 2012, to the Arkansas Golden Falcons for David Wright, third baseman, Johan Santana and Joakim Soria, pitchers, Ryan Raburn, outfielder, and their 3rd round pick in 2012.

Mike Leake was drafted in the first round of the Supplemental Draft (#221 overall) by Vancouver, but released in Spring Training. Philly signed him as a free agent in April, released him two weeks later, and then signed him again two weeks after that. It's no surprise that the 23-year-old right-hander has had an up-and-down season in MLB, with a 6.94 ERA and 1.97 WHIP in May, but a 2.63 ERA and 0.98 WHIP in June. At the moment he looks like a keeper, with a 4.03 ERA and 1.19 WHIP. The Reds drafted Leake with the #8 overall pick in the 2009 draft and immediately promoted him to the majors, the first starting pitcher to make that jump since Jim Abbott in 1989, so he definitely has some potential. Leake is eligible for this season in DMBL, but has yet to make his debut.

Ryan Franklin was having a bad year for the Animals, posting a 4.68 ERA and 1.60 WHIP. Acquired from the Amityville Ant Slayers during the off-season with Nelson Cruz and a 10th Round pick in 2011 for Andre Ethier, a 6th Round pick in 2011 and a 3rd Round pick in 2012, Franklin has had a long career as a journeyman reliever, starting in 2003 with Tijuana; he's also pitched for Las Vegas, Carolina, Hillsborough, Philadelphia,
Amityville, Philadelphia again, and now Arkansas. His best year was probably 2008, when he posted a 3.64 ERA and 1.17 WHIP in middle relief with the Mudcats. At age 38 and having a brutal season in MLB (8.46 ERA, 1.84 WHIP), it appears Franklin has no keeper value. It's unclear why the rebuilding Golden Falcons would even want him on their roster; in his first appearance with his new team, he took the loss after giving up a walk and a home run.

Pablo Sandoval might be the heart of the deal for the Golden Falcons. "Kung Fu Panda" was drafted in the second round (#26 overall) as an ineligible prospect by the Blue Ridge Bombers in 2009. He made his debut the following year, hitting .272/.330/.445 with 42 2B, 17 HR and 73 RBI.
Blue Ridge traded him to Philadelphia in the first deal of the 2011 off-season, sending him to Philly along with a 6th Round pick for Victor Martinez. But Sandoval had a big-time sophomore slump this year, hitting just .256/.298/.383 in 277 AB, forcing Philly to look for an upgrade. But the Golden Falcons can afford to be patient with the 24-year-old switch-hitting third baseman, who is hitting .302/.343/.509 for next season.

So that's who the Endzone Animals gave up... who did the Golden Falcons send them in exchange?

Johan Santana was drafted with the #3 overall pick in the 2003 draft by the Endzone Animals, and would remain there for the next seven seasons. He had monster years in '05 (17-3, 3.02 ERA, 1.06 WHIP) and '07 (20-2, 3.45 ERA, 1.09 WHIP), and overall went 83-53 for Philly. During the 2009 off season, Santana was traded straight up to Arkansas for Alex Rodriguez. But Santana couldn't recapture his previously form and had two brutal years for the Golden Falcons, going 8-16 with a 5.70 ERA, 1.59 WHIP in '09, and 8-9 with a 5.82 ERA and 1.61 WHIP in '10. But this season, Santana was finally having another big season -- 12-5, 3.24 ERA, 1.26 WHIP and an All-Star selection -- and now he's back with the Animals. For next season, though, Santana is 32 years old and still isn't eligible for 2012 as he rehabs from a shoulder injury. If he comes back in mid-August as expected, he just might get the 10 starts he needs, but it will be close.

David Wright is the surprise player in the deal. The Golden Falcons made a huge deal to trade up to the #1 pick in order to land him in the 2005 draft, and he's spent his entire career with Arkansas. A career .289/.347/.496 hitter, Wright was regarded as the "face of the franchise" by many in the organization. But the emergence of minor league sensation Mike Moustakas apparently made Wright expendable. Wright was having a fine season for the Golden Falcons, hitting .276 with 24 HR and 69 RBI. However, just like Santana, Wright isn't eligible for the 2012 season at the moment, needing 78 more plate appearances. The 28-year-old third baseman is currently rehabbing a stress fracture in his lower back. If he can get back to the majors by early September, he'll likely qualify for 2012. A bigger question may be if he'll be usable -- when he got hurt, he was hitting just .226/.337/.404. But given his age and past performance, it seems likely that Wright will be on someone's protected list next season.

Another career Golden Falcon, Joakim Soria, also was taken in the first round (#7 overall in 2008) by Arkansas. He's had three outstanding seasons for Arkansas, going 10-8 with 41 saves with a 3.27 ERA and 1.08 WHIP in 272.1 innings. This season represented his first bump in the road, posting a 4.17 ERA and 1.37 WHIP, with 14 saves but 8 blown saves -- just one less blown save than he'd had in his entire career! Soria's outlook for next season isn't rosey -- 4.37 ERA, 1.29 WHIP -- and the Golden Falcons already have their next closer lined up with youngster Drew Storen.

With three former first round picks heading to Philadelphia, the final player in the deal from Arkansas's side is easy to overlook: Ryan Raburn. Drafted in the 8th Round (#105 overall) in 2010,
Raburn hit .250/.297/.495 last year and just .220/.323/.358 this year. Unless he has a Hall of Fame second half, the 30-year-old corner outfielder is likely not a keeper in 2012 (.207/.242/.344). Like Franklin, the inclusion of Raburn in the deal left many scratching their heads. Any guesses? A source inside the Arkansas organization said that Raburn and Santana share a "special relationship" and left it at that.

Arkansas also received two draft picks in the deal, Philly's 1st Round pick in 2012 and 2nd Round pick in 2012. But Arkansas also sent back its 3rd Round pick in 2012. Considering their current placement in the standings, Philly's 2nd is likely to be at the end of the 2nd and Arkansas's 3rd is likely to be at the top, so it might be a jump of only five or six places.

So who won the trade? At the moment, this deal clearly favors the Endzone Animals, who are chasing the Vancouver Iron Fist for the Morris Division lead and the Hoboken Cutters for the top wildcard slot. They already had one of the best rotations in baseball with Adam Wainwright (10-8, 2.16 ERA, 1.07 WHIP), Travis Wood (5-1, 2.59, 1.22), Roy Halladay (11-6, 2.94, 1.17) and Jered Weaver (7-9, 3.37, 1.09); now they add Santana (12-5, 3.24, 1.26). They upgrade their offense and defense at the hot corner by turning Sandoval into Wright. And even in an off year, Soria is a huge improvement over Franklin. Even if all three turn out to be non-keepers -- a distinct possibility at this point -- they have dramatically improved their team for this season.

However, Arkansas clearly made this deal with an eye toward the future. They gave up four players who, at the moment, are either ineligible or not worth keeping in 2012 (although Wright will probably be protected no matter what). But even if those players had little or no value to a rebuilding Golden Falcons team, they did have value as trade bait. Did the Golden Falcons get enough for Santana, Wright, and Soria? (Let's ignore Raburn.) Sandoval is four years younger than Wright and so far is having a much better year. Leake is a young starting pitcher who has had a roller coaster season, but could be a good pitcher for years to come. The two picks (or one and a half, from the bottom of the 2nd to the top of the 3rd) are nice, but if Sandoval and Leake don't turn out to be long-term keepers, Arkansas fans may not remember this deal fondly in years to come.