Bucks GM Larry Harris got what he wished Monday when it was officially announced that the Bucks had traded Jamaal Magloire to Portland. In return, the Bucks wil get point guard Steve Blake, and centers Brian Skinner and Ha Seung Jin. The Bucks expect Blake to fight for a starting job with Mo Williams, to fill the vacated hole left by TJ Ford. One would think that Blake was brought in to start, so to not look like Harris got the wrong side of the deal. Truth is, he did. I don’t understand why you would want to trade a proven All-Star center, just because you wanted Charlie Villanueva to start at power foward, and Bogut to start at his natural position of center. It’s called depth. The Bucks weren’t even close to getting fair value, and if it were me, I would have no doubt waited until the All-Star break when teams are much desperate and willing to up the ante. Anyway, Steve Blake should in fact start at point guard and fit in really well. His assist/turnover ratio was one of the best in the league last year, and has a good stroke from beyond the arc. The former 2nd round pick out of Maryland has averaged 6.5 points per season, mostly because he started from Portland all of last year. Brian Skinner will not be a new site in Milwaukee, and the lone year he played for the Bucks (03-04) he had his best season in the NBA, averaging 10.5 points per game and 7 rebounds. Skinner figures to be slotted behind Charlie Villanueva, and will mostly work at power forward. As for Ha Seung Jin, he is 7-3 and needs alot of coaching, and with minutes rarely free for the taking, he will most likely be put on waivers.

Saturday marked the first contract 1st rounder AJ Hawk signed as a Packer, and hopefully not the last.  Hawk agreed in principle to a 6 year, $37.5 million dollar contract that will keep him in a Packer uniform until the 2012 campaign.  Hawk was the clear cut pick General Manager Ted Thompson decided on after it was announced the night before the draft that Mario Williams would be drafted #1 overall by Houston. The two-time All-American and Big Ten defensive player of the year led the Buckeye defense three years straight in tackles, racking up 121 in 2005, including 9.5 sacks. Hawk is slated to start at weak side linebacker along side incumbent Nick Barnett, and newcomer Ben Taylor, signing because of a starting chance. Hawk was the final draftee to sign, and will appear in his first practice today. Hawk will certainly be in the running for the NFC defensive player of the year, and hopefully his hard work and good credentials will help carry the Pack defense in 2006.

It’s been the day we’ve all been waiting for. Waiting to see what Doug Melvin would do with Carlos Lee. Today it finally came when Lee along with super AAA prospect Nelson Cruz were traded to Texas for slugger Kevin Mench, Laynce Nix, and Francisco Cordero. But did they get fair value? Although that’s yet to determine, I my first thoughts to the trade were: Why? The Brewers have been waiting on these young outfielders to come up, and then they deal their best one? Doesn’t make a ton of sense. That was the part that swung the deal in the Rangers favor; Nelson Cruz. We all knew Carlos would get traded or resigned, and in the end the Brewers just didn’t offer him enough money. Kevin Mench is a guy who I really like with Lee type numbers. Although he isn’t quite as offensively dominant as Lee is, he’s a guy that flashes some leather. Francisco Cordero has an interesting story along the same lines as Derrick Turnbow. He started out very successful, then earlier this year lost his closer role to Akinori Otsuka. But since May 1, Cordero has showed signs of snapping out of it, posting a mear 1.98 ERA. Laynce Nix is a guy I don’t know a ton about, and reports are that he has been sent to AAA Nashville. After the dust seemingly cleared, it kicked up once again, in another deal that will bring 3rd baseman David Bell to Milwaukee in exchange for a minor-league pitcher. After all was said and done, I think this Brewer team will have a lot of gelling to do to come together as a team, but I think it was clear that Carlos Lee and the Brewers weren’t seeing eye to eye on things and a trade was inevitable.

With an already thin infield growing thinner and thinner, the Brewers went out and shored up the position Tuesday when they traded under-performing lefty Jorge de la Rosa to the Royals for four year veteran Tony Graffanino. The 34 year-old utility man has played for both Kansas City and Boston in his brief stint in the majors, posting a .268 batting average. Graffanino’s versatility is what caught Doug Melvin’s eye, as he has the ability to play all positions in the infield. Melvin said Graffanino most reminds him of another Brewer infielder Jeff Cirillo. Graffanino will bring leadership to the clubhouse, much needed for a group young of players. As for de la Rosa, he was very inconsistent throughout his career as a Brewer, after perhaps having the most potential as anyone acquired in the Richie Sexson debacle.  De la Rosa went 2-2 with a 8.60 ERA, spending most off that time on the disabled list.  De la Rosa became expendable after Dana Eveland was recalled. With Eveland as well as Zach Jackson, the bullpen now has two dependable south-paws. The Brewers made room for Graffanino on the roster by optioning infielder Chris Barnwell to Triple-A Nashville. Updating the never-ending Carlos Lee trade talk, many teams are still expressing interest in Lee with the Texas Rangers reportedly willing to trade outfielder Kevin Mench and young pitchers in exchange.

Tony Gwynn Jr. wasn’t ready to come to the majors; at least not this soon. Gwynn was called up last Saturday that poses a barrage of questions that leaves Brewers fans and players in a whirlwind. Gwynn, who is son to Padres’ great Tony Gwynn, wasn’t expected to be called up for at least a few seasons, but was called upon to fill the spot of injured Corey Koskie, who was placed on the DL with post-concussion syndrome. Gwynn started off slow in his first few seasons in the minors, having a career average of .261. This year Gwynn has turned it around posting a .305 average with 24 stolen bases for the Triple-A Nashville squad. Gwynn will join Brady Clark and Gabe Gross to help man centerfield. The move could also be contingent with the Brewers’ continued road woes, losing their first two series since the All-Star break to the Diamondbacks and Giants. If the losing trend continues, the Brewers will fall out of contention and may have no choice but to deal Carlos Lee. In order for the Crew to be buyers and not a sellers in the trade market, they would have to at least take 2 out of 3 in the upcoming series against Cincinnati, if not sweep. And the Brewers did decide to trade Lee, it would most definitely be for pitching help whether it be in the rotation or the pen. Rumor also has it the Brewers are looking in to acquiring disgruntled Blue Jays utility man Shea Hillenbrand, who was sent down after his refusal to sit with his teammates during a game. Toronto has 10 days in which to trade or release Hillenbrand, and with other teams showing interest, a trade is imminent.

Over the next few weeks, managers Doug Melvin and Larry Harris will have to make some of the toughest decisions of their tenures. For Brewers GM Doug Melvin it is what to do with All-Star slugger Carlos Lee, whose contract is up after this year and whose stock is at an all time high. If Melvin did decide to trade him, the Brewers could probably get a solid #2 or 3 pitcher like a Greg Maddux or Cory Lidle, but fans shouldn’t expect Melvin to pull off another Richie Sexson type deal. Plus, even in the event of a trade, there will always be some dispute on whether the Brewers got fair value for Lee. In my opinion, the Brewers will trade Lee because of the value he possesses to other teams in pennet races and after all, the Brewers have some of the best outfield prospects in the minors. I think it will come down to a similar situation like the Lyle Overbay trade where you pick up a much needed arm and let the young guys get some experience (ala Prince Fielder). If the Brewers do pull off a trade, I think they will have taken a step in the right direction as they would have more money to spend on depth in the offseason. When all is said and done, the final decision will come down to how much money Lee will be looking for when he gets his pay check. Bucks GM Larry Harris is facing a similar situation will former All-Star center Jamaal Magloire. The Bucks seem to be set for the future in the frontcourt with Bogut and now Charlie Villanueva in the fold, but still lack an athlectic swing man like a Desmond Mason, who ironically they gave up to get Magloire. Some have rumored Magloire to go to Memphis for Mike Miller and Hakim Warrick or possibly even Rudy Gay, who Harris was enamored with before the draft. I think one thing is for sure: Jamaal Magloire has played his last game as a Buck. Look for the Bucks to acquire depth at the point as well as small forward, whether it be through trade or free agency.

With the first half of the season coming to a close and the Milwaukee Brewers hanging around that all important .500 mark, the Brew Crew should continue to look better and better as the year progresses. Although it is still unclear whether the Brewers will swing a mid-season trade, they will be getting starters Ben Sheets and Tomo Ohka back from injuries, two gifts that any team would welcome with open arms. Sheets and Ohka have had nagging injuries that have been bothering them for what has seemed like the entire season. In addition to the bolstered pitching rotation, the Brewers prized shortstop J.J. Hardy will also return from a sprained ankle he suffered in a homeplate collision. Hardy looks to give super utility man Bill Hall some much needed rest, as he has played every day. In the absence of third baseman Corey Koskie due to a concussion, Hall is seemingly struggling with his bat, swinging at pitches out of the zone. On top of the returning starters, the NL Central has been nothing special, and is up for grabs. The St. Louis Cardinals, who have dominated the division in past years, don’t look nearly as strong even after getting slugger Albert Pujols back from his strained oblique muscle. The Brewers look to have a shot at the top of the division if not the Wildcard for the first time in a while. If the hitting is consistent, and everyone stays healthy, I think the Brewers will in fact make a charge to dethrone the Cardinals. Hopefully, if all goes well, the Brewers will be playing in September for the first time since 1982.

Last Friday, the Milwaukee Bucks made a surprising deal that sent 3rd year point guard TJ Ford to the Toronto Raptors in exchange for their rookie phenom Charlie Villanueva. Villanueva was 2nd last year in rookie voting behind Hornets guard Chris Paul and ahead of Andrew Bogut, who finished 3rd. The former Huskie star averaged 13 points a game last season, including a 48 point outburst against the Bucks. Villanueva became expendable after the Raptors drafted forward Andrea Bargnani with the #1 overall selection in this year’s draft. TJ Ford was rumored in some deals, but more trades focused on center Jammal Magloire, whom the Bucks are still trying to unload. Ford averaged 12.2 points in two full seasons with the Bucks, hampered by injury in 2004 with a spinal cord injury. Guards Mo Williams and Charlie Bell will be given the opportunity to start, with Williams likely getting the nod. The Bucks frontcourt now looks very promising with Villanueva, who should complement 7 foot center Andrew Bogut very nicely. I think that it will take Villanueva a while to get acquainted with his new teammates, but I think he will have a very successful career in Milwaukee. The Bucks continue to infuse youth into the lineup, but with that will come some growing pains.  Look for the Bucks to grow on a 40-42 season, with a core of Redd, Bogut, Simmons, Williams, Bell, and Villanueva.