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AP
PHILADELPHIA - Cliff Lee’s new teammates were so excited to get him, they gave the man responsible for the trade a clubhouse curtain call.
Looking for an ace to bolster their so-so rotation, the Philadelphia Phillies acquired Lee on Wednesday from Cleveland, marking the second straight year the Indians traded the reigning AL Cy Young Award winner.
When general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. walked through the locker room hours before the defending World Series champions played in Arizona, many Phillies greeted him with applause.
“One of our goals has been to add someone to our rotation that can be a difference-maker,” Amaro said in a conference call. “It’s important to show our guys on the field that we’re making the best effort to put the best team out there.”
The NL East-leading Phillies gave Cleveland four minor league prospects for Lee and outfielder Ben Francisco. The left-handed Lee is 7-9 with a 3.14 ERA in 22 starts this season after going 22-3 with a 2.54 ERA last year.
“I’m going to miss all these guys here, but it’s an opportunity for me to help a team that’s in first place,” Lee said after the Indians lost to the Los Angeles Angels 9-3 in Anaheim, Calif.
“They’re the defending world champions. So as far as that goes, I’m excited. But right now I’ve got to figure out how to get there and meet up with them and get acclimated to their team,” Lee said.
The Phillies sent Triple-A pitcher Carlos Carrasco, infielder Jason Donald and catcher Lou Marson along with Single-A pitcher Jason Knapp to Cleveland.
Last year, the Indians dealt CC Sabathia, then the reigning Cy Young winner and in the final year of his contract, to the Milwaukee Brewers. Sabathia helped the Brewers into the postseason before signing a $161 million, seven-year contract with the New York Yankees.
Lee turns 31 next month and his contract includes a $9 million club option for next season.
“At the root of this deal was balancing the conviction of our ability to compete in 2010 with the opportunity to impact the team’s construction for years to come,” Indians general manager Mark Shapiro said in a statement.
The Phillies pursued Blue Jays ace Roy Halladay, but shifted their attention to Lee because Toronto’s asking price for the six-time All-Star is high. Philadelphia balked at trading top pitching prospect Kyle Drabek, who was the 18th overall pick in the 2006 amateur draft.
Amaro acquired Lee without giving up Drabek, rookie left-hander J.A. Happ, who was 7-1 going into his start at Arizona, or highly touted minor league outfielders Michael Taylor and Dominic Brown.
“Watching him go through last year and this year, it’s not like it’s far off of Halladay at all,” Phillies closer Brad Lidge said of Lee. “He’s that kind of pitcher. And not having to give up Happ to get him, that’s pretty impressive.”
Lee gives the Phillies another top starter to join Cole Hamels. The MVP of the World Series and NLCS last fall has been inconsistent this season — Hamels was 7-5 with a 4.42 ERA, though he pitched well in a victory at Arizona on Tuesday.
The Phillies have a comfortable lead in the division — seven games ahead of second-place Florida going into Wednesday’s games. They’ve sought pitching help since No. 2 starter Brett Myers had hip surgery in June. Jamie Moyer leads the staff with 10 wins, but he is 46 and has a 5.32 ERA.
The addition of Lee means Philadelphia has to drop somed possesses an overpowering fastball, with 111 strikeouts in 85 1-3 innings. But he hasn’t pitched since July 11 because of right shoulder soreness.
Marson, 23, was hitting .294 with one homer and 24 RBIs in 63 games at Lehigh Valley. He was 4 for 17 in seven games with the Phillies. Donald, 24, recently returned from knee surgery and was batting .236 with one homer and 16 RBIs in 51 games at Lehigh Valley.
“We gave them four very good baseball prospects, and that hurts,” Amaro said. “When you want to acquire talent, you have to give talent, and that was part of the deal here.”
SportsTalk: Albert Pujols signs with the Angels and Prince Fielder joins the Tigers. Which team is better now?
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Doron Lamb hit a 3-pointer with 3:18 left to put No. 1 Kentucky ahead to stay, and the Wildcats took a big step toward a Southeastern Conference regular-season title by beating Vanderbilt 69-63 Saturday night for their 17th straight win.
Wesseling: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for AFC teams.