Pirates trade OF Xavier Nady, LHP
Damaso Marte
(Wire) - The Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday
reportedly have traded outfielder Xavier Nady and lefthander Damaso
Marte to the New York Yankees for righthander Ross Ohlendorf and three
minor leaguers - outfielder Jose Tabata, righthander George Kontos and
lefthander Phil Coke.
Nady was removed from Friday’s game against the San Diego Padres in the
second inning for undisclosed reasons and was replaced in left field by
Jason Michaels.
The deal reportedly is pending medical reports on all the players
involved.
Nady was one of the most sought-after names on the trade market due to a
career year that has him fifth in the National League with a .330
batting average to go along with 13 homers and 57 RBI. He will add a
righthanded bat to New York’s lineup, which generally features just
three other righthanded hitters.
Nady’s exit presumably opens the door for top prospect Andrew McCutchen,
who is batting .280 with nine homers and 26 stolen bases at Class AAA
Indianapolis this season and is considered Pittsburgh’s center fielder
of the future.
Marte, who has been filling in as the Pirates’ closer with Matt Capps on
the disabled list, is 4-0 with a 3.47 ERA this season and will slot
nicely into a Yankees bullpen that currently is without a lefthander. He
has held lefthanded hitters to a .198 average in his career, though that
mark is up to .255 this season.
Marte briefly was property of the Yankees in 2001 but never appeared in
a major league game for the franchise before being traded to the Pirates
in exchange for Enrique Wilson.
The jewel of the crop going back to the Pirates is Tabata, who has been
one of the Yankees’ top prospects since being signed out of Venezuela in
2005. Baseball America ranked him as the No. 3 prospect in New York’s
system entering this season due to his ability to make solid, hard
contact and his power potential.
However, Tabata’s stock has fallen this season due to his struggles both
as a hitter and a teammate as a 19-year-old at Class AA. He was pulled
from a contest in June and suspended three games in April for
disciplinary reasons.
Tabata has been sidelined since July 1 with an injury.
Ohlendorf has struggled as a rookie in the bullpen for New York this
season, going 1-1 with a 6.53 ERA. A starter in the minors, the
righthander could provide immediate help to the Pirates, either in the
bullpen or the rotation.
Kontos has struggled at Class AA Trenton this season, going 3-9 with a
3.77 ERA while issuing 43 walks in 107 1/3 innings.
Coke was pulled from his start at Trenton on Friday after one inning. He
is a combined 9-5 with a 2.76 ERA in 21 games - 20 starts - with Trenton
and Class AAA Scranton/Wilkes-Barre this year.
Both Coke and Kontos will add depth to Pittsburgh’s system, which is
short on pitching prospects.
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