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	Friday, August 4
	If healthy, Rivera could be a good one for Orioles By John Sickels Special to ESPN.com
	REPORT FILED: AUGUST 1 Here's a look at the prospects and relative unknowns involved in Monday's deadline trades. Braves/Orioles The Orioles send B.J. Surhoff and Gabe Molina to Atlanta for Luis Rivera, Fernando Lunar, and Trenidad Hubbard. Analysis: The Braves give up a potentially excellent pitcher in Rivera, gaining a solid veteran outfielder and a useful utility pitcher. I've always liked Molina, and frankly I think it's puzzling that the Orioles never gave him more of a chance to help the bullpen. I expect he'll do well for the Braves. Rivera has star ability, but has been plagued with injuries this year and has not been pitching well in Triple-A, to say the least (8.06 ERA). Still, he's the most physically talented player in this trade, and has the ability to be a terrific pitcher if he stays healthy. Lunar is a good defensive catcher who can't hit. Mariners/Padres The Padres send Al Martin to the Mariners for John Mabry and Tom Davey. Analysis: Martin for Mabry is a wash; two veterans with some skills but nothing you can't live without. Davey is the youngster here at 26; he throws quite hard but is still looking for consistency. If Davey develops into something useful, the Padres win this, since neither Martin nor Mabry are the long-term solutions to anything. Dodgers/Rockies The Rockies send Tom Goodwin to the Dodgers for Todd Hollandsworth, Randey Dorame, and Kevin Gibbs. Analysis: The two prospects here are Dorame and Gibbs. The latter is a speed demon outfielder who gets hurt a lot. If he's lucky, he could develop into, well, Goodwin. Dorame is a very valuable property, a polished young pitcher with a live arm who throws strikes. From Mexico, he's another product of Los Angeles' international scouting system. I've advised several people in the past few months to pick him up for their fantasy farm teams. Moving to Colorado clouds his future; I doubt that anyone can pitch consistently well there. Still, the Rockies win this trade for getting a good young arm in Dorame, without giving up anything important for their future. Cardinals/Orioles The Orioles send Will Clark to the Cardinals for Jose Leon. Analysis: This trade is evidence, of course, that the Orioles are finally committed to rebuilding. It also means they recognize that Ryan Minor is not the answer at third base, since Leon is a power-hitting third baseman. He's been doing OK in Double-A and has tremendous bat speed, but he swings at too many bad pitches ... just like Minor. On the other hand, Leon is three years younger, giving him more of a chance to develop. He's not my favorite prospect, but I'd rather have him than Clark or most other washed-up holdovers from the Reagan Administration. Devil Rays/Blue Jays Tampa Bay sends Steve Trachsel and Mark Guthrie to Toronto for Brent Abernathy. Analysis: Brent Abernathy is one of my favorite prospects, and with the D-Rays souring on Miguel Cairo, he should get a chance to play soon. Abernathy is a solid contact hitter who knows the strike zone, hits doubles, can steal a base, hustles, and plays good defense. He isn't likely to become a star, but he should be a better all-around player than Cairo. There is also a player-to-be-named later in this trade, but no word yet on who it is going to be. Padres/Cardinals The Padres send Carlos Hernandez and Nate Tebbs to the Cardinals for Heathcliff Slocumb and Ben Johnson. Analysis: This clears a spot in San Diego for Ben Davis, who I still have questions about but is a better long-term property than Hernandez. Tebbs might be OK as a utility player but there are a million guys like him around. The intrigue here is Ben Johnson, a fourth-round pick in 1999 who is showing very interesting offensive potential. He hit .330 in rookie ball last year, and is showing good power and patience in the Midwest League this year. The Padres need some outfield prospects, and while he's a couple of years away, he instantly becomes one of the most exciting prospects in their system. Cubs/Marlins The Cubs send Henry Rodriguez to Florida for Ross Gload and David Noyce. Analysis: Weird to see the Marlins grab a veteran, isn't it? Gload is OK; he has some lefty pop, but won't be pushing Mark Grace out of a job, and isn't as good of a prospect as Hee Seop Choi. He reminds me of Brant Brown, who is no great shakes. Noyce is a lefty with very mediocre numbers in the Florida State League, including an ERA in excess of 4.00 and weak K/BB numbers. He looks like roster filler to me. O-Henry had outlived his usefulness in Chicago, but I don't think the Cubs got much for him. Cubs/Expos The Expos send Rondell White to the Cubs for Scott Downs. Analysis: Downs has done well at times this year, but is still finding his way to being consistent and is not an impact player. He reminds me of a younger version of Pete Schourek. White, of course, is outstanding when his knees don't hurt. Looks like a salary dump; the Expos didn't get much considering what they gave up, but the market for White had apparently dried up. John Sickels is the author of the STATS 2000 Minor League Scouting Notebook. You can email your questions to him at JASickels@AOL.com.		ALSO SEE Down on the Farm archive Baseball Trade Central