One More August 31 Deal Worth Mentioning

The Dodgers obtained 2Bman Ronnie Belliard from the Nationals for minor league pitchers Victor Garate and Luis Garcia.  The deal is only worth mentioning because the Dodgers apparently gave up more talent than you would expect for one month of Ronnie Belliard.

Garate is a 24 year old (he turns 25 on September 25) left-handed reliever having a fine year at AA Chattanooga.  In 47 games pitched, he has a 2.04 ERA with 36 hits and 23 walks allowed and 56 Ks in 53 IP.

I don’t know whether Chattanooga is a good place to hit, but I expect that it would be, since the summer weather is hot and the city sits 680 feet above sea level.

Luis Garcia is 22 this year, and he’s only just been promoted to A+ ball since being acquired by the Nationals.  However, he appears to have a live arm and some idea how to pitch, at least based on his minor league numbers for the last two seasons.

I’d rate both Garate and Garcia as B-grade prospects, but getting them both for Ronnie Belliard is certainly a move in the right direction for the Nationals.