I think that was  Dustin Majewski ( bad spelling i know).

Im not too impressed with this package. the ceilings of the prospects are all faily low here.

And if the Jays mount a few more seventh-inning comebacks like today, their pitchers might be worth keeping....

Ya, right. I can smell a turn around coming. Here we come playoffs.

Paul Godfrey on TSN's Off the Record tonight, failed to dismiss the "rumour" that he is considering stepping down from his position (i'm assuming seasons end). And that he "thinks" if he had to fire JP Ricciardi, he would still be around after the smoke clears. One deserves and should leave with the other. A major sweeping of the management ranks likely has to happen in order to bring someone in do the work it would take to re-construct this roster.

And if the Jays mount a few more seventh-inning comebacks like today, their pitchers might be worth keeping....

I hope you were kidding. Isn't this unfounded optimism part of the reason the Jays are such a mediocre team? (i.e. not trading anyone before July 31st thinking they are still "in it")

The season is done. On to bigger and better things in 2009 (hopefully!)

since throwing 128 pitches on june 10, these are mcgowan's logs:

now a sore shoulder

Great sell-high by the A's. They get rid of the injury prone Harden who I'm not sure will ever pitch a full healthy season for several players that can step in and make significant contributions right away. Oakland is still very much in the AL West race despite trading their best pitcher away.

As for AJ Burnett, I think this is a great sign. If they can get a return of something close to this or better, it will be fantastic. Don't focus on a position like shortstop however, take the best possible player(s) available.

There is a rumour that the Dodgers were offering up a package of Matt Kemp and a few other prospects for Sabathia. Maybe it's too crazy to suggest a Kemp for Burnett and Eckstein deal? But then again, teams can get pretty desperate to make a move come the trade deadline while seeing every other team around them do something.

Also, I am just ecstatic that AJ could possibly bring in such good players considering how bad he's been this year.

Some people seem almost gleeful at the struggles of the Jays.  I suppose it's more exciting for some people to hope that this team is "blown up" and "rebuilt" because of all the fun to be had from speculating about trades, prospects, etc.    Personally I think it's a complete myth to think that a mid-season trade will make any difference to the fate of this team.  And trading Burnett (which is likely to net a couple of mid-level prospects who might possibly pan out in 2010 or 2011) isn't going to change anything either.   My point is this:  if Marcum and McGowan are both injured, I'd rather keep Burnett around this season -- unless by some wild chance the Dodgers are offering Matt Kemp for him, but I suspect that's another unfounded myth.

Nobody scores any genius points by predicting that the Jays are unlikely to win this year.  But I'd still rather see them win games, rather than lose games, for the remainder of 2008.   And if the Jays are going to win in 2009 and 2010, it's going to be because of a return to form by Wells, Rios, Hill, Overbay and Rolen, along with the development of prospects who are already in the system, plus a free agent or two -- not because of a couple of minor prospects from trading Burnett.

I'm going to just assume you're talking about me.

No, I'm not exactly gleeful that the Jays are losing as often as they are. Obviously, I would prefer victories. However, I dealt with the fact that this team wasn't going to make the playoffs a long time ago. I didn't think they had much of a chance as soon as they released Frank Thomas and refused to sign Barry Bonds. It was a sign that they cared about their budget and their money more than actually winning. This organization accepts mediocrity, and the fans let them get away with it. Even if everyone had performed up to expectations, was it really a playoff team without a really power hitter? Certainly not. And when you're that close to being a good, and possibly great team, and you refuse to do something like signing Barry Bonds for fear of the poor media attention it will bring, it's absolutely sickening.

I've had quite enough of the Jays being 5-6 back going into the trade deadline, being minor buyers, or just sitting and not doing anything, and then finishing 10 games out of the playoffs every year. Now is finally the time to trade the players on this team that won't be around in the future (Burnett, Stairs, Zaun, Eckstein), and considering I've watched most of these guys perform poorly this year, I'm pretty happy that there's actually a market for them. At this point, Burnett is likely the top trading option left for a starting pitcher, and I think some team is going to end up paying a lot for him. It's kind of depressing that this may be the highlight of the season, but JP dug his own grave by refusing to fix this team's problems. I mean, did Shannon Stewart really need to get as many at bats as he did before Adam Lind got called up?

It's time to stop accepting mediocrity as a status quo in this organization. .500+ seasons bring false hope. Losing brings change. Change in personnel, change in management, and eventually, possibly even ownership. That's what losing can do for us this season. It can get rid of Ricciardi, and maybe, just maybe, the politician Paul Godfrey will actually leave as a result as well.

Great sell-high by the A's. They get rid of the injury prone Harden who I'm not sure will ever pitch a full healthy season for several players that can step in and make significant contributions right away

Significant contributions? Gallagher's the prize and doesn't have the upside to be more than mid-rotation starter by all accounts. Murton is a below-average corner outfielder and Patterson is a fourth outfielder/AAAA player. Donaldson's an A-ball catcher with one good season under his belt and currently struggling. I'd be underwhelmed with that for Harden, let alone throwing Gaudin in, as well.

What concerns me is that Riccardi said that he 'hasn't been approached' by anybody about Burnett.  Shouldn't he, with a flawed roster and a seventh straight mediocre year, be approaching others?

Well first of all, if he is trying to be discreet, I applaud him.  Second, saying he "hasn't  being approached" does not mean he hasn't approached others.  Third, Godfrey said last week that they have been fielding calls for some time with regard to Burnett.

Sean Gallagher projects as a #3 starter, according to Baseball America, and was the Cubs' #5 prospect.  ZiPS projected a line of 289/.360/.465 for Murton this year - hardly 4th outfielder material.  The Cubs handling of Murton has been ridiculous.

These are not the type of players that the Jays need in return, but they suit the A's well.  We need higher ceiling prospects - not solid young pros (unless SS).  Sacrifice some projectability for some ceiling.

Since the Jays are in 'Wait until next year' mode if you believe the local media, can I make a suggestion to Jays fans?

Now that Rich Harden is pitching for the Cubs, that means that 40% of their starting rotation is Canadian.  Isn't that more than enough to consider the Cubs as a team to root for?  They already have scrappy Toronto fave Reed Johnson, and who among us can say the name 'Geovany Soto' without breaking into a grin?  Come on, it's the hundredth anniversary of their last World Series win.  The script's already been written for this Hollywood tale, now the Cubs just have to find a way to screw it all up. :)

- Grrbear, Cubs fan since 1983, Jays fan since 1986

Jeff Blair is reporting that, although the team is still awaiting McGowan's MRI results, they've placed him on the 15-day DL.  Brian Wolfe has been recalled from Syracuse.

Am I the only one fearing a torn labrum?  Hell, the way this season is going, it wouldn't shock me if they reported his head fell off.

Significant contributions? Gallagher's the prize and doesn't have the upside to be more than mid-rotation starter by all accounts. Murton is a below-average corner outfielder and Patterson is a fourth outfielder/AAAA player. Donaldson's an A-ball catcher with one good season under his belt and currently struggling. I'd be underwhelmed with that for Harden, let alone throwing Gaudin in, as well.

You are underrating Gallagher, check out his numbers in AA/AAA, he can be quite good in the future. Oakland also seems to be a great place to develop pitching. Murton is a proven hitter at the major league level, but was shafted by the Cubs organization for whatever reason. They basically brought in the same player in Fukudome for significantly more money. It's also far too early to say whether Patterson is a career AAAA player.

I think you are definitely overrating Rich Harden's value here. He hasn't even thrown 100 innings since 2005, and has never once been past 200. It's a good sell-high, and I suspect Beane had been waiting to do something like this for some time.