I have long said I believe Doug Melvin is one of the top General Managers in the game today, and the successful completion of the Sabathia-for-LaPorta deal is further evidence of that.  Melvin just turned a draft pick with less than a year of pro baseball experience into the best pitcher in the American League, and he did it in such timely fashion that he will get a couple of bonus starts from Sabathia before the All-Star break and, perhaps far more importantly, no other team had enough time to try to sneak in and pull CC in another direction.  If the negotiations had gone all the way to the trading deadline, it is quite conceivable that another club might have ruined the Brewers' plans.  A good baseball trade is not dissimilar to a poker game, and Melvin pushed all-in with his pocket aces before the flop, effectively securing the pot before anybody else could try to out-play him.  By playing his hand perfectly, Melvin has been able to make what is arguably the most significant trade in franchise history.

This is very much a Jack Zduriencik deal, too.  If Zduriencik wasn't so meticulous and thorough, he and his staff would never have put an outfielder's glove on Matt LaPorta's left hand last May and filled the air with fly balls.  The Brewers quickly realized that LaPorta could be passable in the outfield, something which apparently had never occurred to the rest of the scouting community.  I still think back to the gasps in baseball when LaPorta's name was called with the seventh pick of the first round barely more than a year ago, and I am wondering how those same shocked scouts feel now as they watch Melvin reach into his wallet and pay the bill for the reigning AL Cy Young Award winner with the Florida Gator and three other minor leaguers.

With Sabathia and Ben Sheets atop the rotation, I believe the Brewers are likely to make the playoffs in 2008, and with those two aces pitching the first two games of any post-season series, I believe the Brewers are also likely to make a lot of noise in the playoffs.  I think pulling the trigger was a no-brainer for Melvin and his staff.  As I blogged a couple of days ago, I think LaPorta is going to be a fine Major League player, perhaps an All-Star bat for a long time.  I also like Taylor Green, who might be in the deal, and I know that Rob Bryson has a good arm.  However, getting a true, proven ace in the prime of his career who is extremely motivated to pitch his very best in order to generate the biggest contract of his life is a value which I believe exceeds the loss of top prospects, no matter how promising.  That the Brewers now have two aces with that same type of motivation can only be good.

I'm heading to Miller Park to talk to CC in a little while.  You'll hear our conversation at 6:30 on the Jockey Pregame Show.  I'm impressed with Sabathia's quick arrival in Milwaukee and what that says about what kind of teammate he will prove to be in that Brewers' clubhouse.  I know the fans are already going crazy over this trade, buying up tickets and burning up the talk shows and message boards.  With the team playing great, two players named to the All-Star team already and Corey Hart in the early lead for the final spot (vote HERE), JJ Hardy winning the NL Player of the Week award, and now the best pitcher in the AL pulling on a Brewers uniform, this might be the best day to be a Brewers fan since 1982.  That may be a familiar refrain the rest of this summer in Wisconsin.

UPDATE:  HERE is my first meeting with CC Sabathia, who says he doesn't care if you use periods in CC or not, by the way.