Yanks deal Melky to Braves for ace Vazquez

The Yankees on Tuesday traded center fielder Melky Cabrera to
Atlanta for Braves right-hander Javier Vazquez.
The Braves will also receive Class AAA left-hander Michael
Dunn and a Class A pitcher. The Yankees will get left-handed
reliever Boone Logan.
Vazquez, 33, is set to earn $11.5 million next season in the
final year of his contract. It is not known whether the Braves are
including cash in the deal.
The addition of Vazquez gives the Yankees a powerhouse front
four in their starting rotation -- CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett, Andy
Pettitte and Vazquez.
Either Phil Hughes or Joba Chamberlain will be the fifth
starter. The Yankees will use one of them in the bullpen.
Vazquez went 15-10 with a 2.87 ERA for the Braves last
season. He has worked 200 or more innings in nine of the past 10
seasons. The exception was 2004, when he worked 198.
The Braves are trading him to clear money for another move --
the addition of a big hitter. Cabrera, 25, does not qualify, but
the Braves need outfielders.
Before the trade, the only outfielders on their roster were
Nate McLouth, Matt Diaz, Brandon Jones, Gregor Blanco and Jordan
Schaefer.
Cabrera, who batted .274 with 13 homers and 68 RBIs last
season, will fit somewhere into that mix. And while his salary will
jump from $1.4 million in arbitration, the Braves still would gain
significant financial flexibility by trading Vazquez.
Logan, acquired by the Braves from the White Sox in the
Vazquez trade last December, was 1-1 with a 5.19 ERA in 20 relief
appearances. He held left-handers to a .231 average and figures to
fill the hole created by the departure of Phil Coke, who was sent
to Detroit in a deal that brought New York center fielder Curtis
Granderson.
Atlanta had a surplus of starting pitching after giving Tim
Hudson a $28 million, three-year contract in November. The trade
left the Braves with a rotation that includes Hudson, Jair
Jurrjens, Tommy Hanson, Derek Lowe and Kenshin Kawakami.
The 24-year-old Dunn had a combined 99 strikeouts in 73 1/3
innings at Triple-A Scranton-Wilkes Barre and Double-A Trenton,
going 4-3 with a 3.31 ERA in 38 relief appearances. He made his
major league debut on Sept. 4 and had a 6.75 ERA in four
appearances.
Vizcaino, who is 19, was 2-4 with a 2.13 ERA at Class A
Staten Island, striking out 52 in 42 1/3 innings.
News of the deal was first reported by the New York Post. The
framework was first reported by SI.com.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this
report.
