The San Diego Padres have acquired starting pitcher Ian Kennedy from the Arizona Diamondbacks in exchange for reliever Joe Thatcher, relief prospect Matt Stites, and a compensation pick in next year’s draft.

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A.J. Burnett continues to defy the odds. When the Pittsburgh Pirates acquired him from the New York Yankees, it was considered nothing more than a salary dump for the Yanks. At that point, Burnett had endured two straight seasons with a +5.00 ERA, and was entering his age-35 season. 35 season. Very little was expected of Burnett. But something clicked when Burnett arrived in Pittsburgh. At an age where most pitchers are trying to survive, Burnett has been able to thrive. But the Pirates saw promise in Burnett. By stressing his sinker, the Pirates have been able to turn his career around.

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After weeks of speculation, Jake Peavy has finally been traded. He departs the windy city for the land of clam chowder and from a team going nowhere to one right in the thick of the AL East race. Or more simply, he is is changing the color of his sox from white to red. My initial thought is that this move produces a nice boost to his fantasy value. But let’s dive into the numbers and find out if this is actually the case.

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The Braves rotation, which had a solid five for the entire year up until last week, is facing a bit of turmoil in terms of who will stay and who will go. With Tim Hudson going down with an ankle injury, there are now six starters for five spots when Paul Maholm returns from the disabled list. In speaking with Fredi Gonzalez last week at Citi Field, he was rather adamant at Maholm returning to the rotation when healthy. Brandon Beachy is back tonight against the Rockies and unless he struggles he should receive enough of a chance to improve with time considering the Braves have a 8.5 game lead.
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Jake Peavy is about to join another team. Given Peavy’s status as the best pitcher on the market, the move makes sense for the Chicago White Sox. Peavy’s time with the franchise has been mixed. Early injuries defined Peavy’s first few years with the club. One of those injuries could define his career. Peavy ruptured a tendon that tied the latissimus dorsi muscle to his shoulder. The tendon completely detached from the bone. Peavy underwent the experimental surgery with no guarantee he would ever regain his form. While Peavy hasn’t come back the same player, it hasn’t stopped him from being effective.

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You remember Kris Medlen, don’t you? He of the 10-1 record last season with the ridiculous 1.57 ERA and 0.91 WHIP, world-beater Kris Medlen? You kind of have to squint, don’t you?

2013 hasn’t been nearly as kind (dare I say fortuitous) thus far. Medlen is still in the arena of respectability with a 3.78 ERA and a 1.38 WHIP, but his strikeout rate has fallen six percent to a ho-hum 17.1%, his walks are up, and in general, he’s been far easier to hit this year. What’s more, his last five starts have been just disastrous. Over his last 27.2 innings pitched, Medlen has posted a 6.51 ERA, 1.73 WHIP, with a strikeout rate of just 14.7%. His recent misfortune has resulted in whispers of moving back to the bullpen if/when Brandon Beachy returns from the disabled list (although this little conundrum might have been just solved by Eric Young). How has his star fallen so rapidly?

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Whether we like to admit it or not, exposure can play a key role in the perception of baseball prospects. Baseball’s player universe is so wide, and there’s so much going on during the season, that it’s impossible to get a good firsthand read on every notable minor leaguer out there–invariably, we have to turn to outside sources (like this very website!) to fill in the gaps and lend some measure of authority. The more sources unite at a given point in their praise or condemnation for a particular prospect, the more likely we are to take that praise or condemnation as gospel.

One surefire way for a prospect to get some helium in this fashion is to be traded, especially if the trade involves a somewhat protracted negotiation period where the prospect’s name comes up again–you know, when we hear “This is the guy System A would hate to lose and System B has to have” and so on. This sort of publicity can’t help but have an effect on the general notability of a prospect–suddenly, an A-ball guy with good numbers goes from somebody discussed on a few MiLB-centric websites and discussion threads to a topic on Baseball Tonight. For those who don’t keep extensive track of the minor leagues, suddenly the player is on their radar.

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Back in early April, Jack Moore published an in-depth look at Garrett Richards when the Angels pitcher replaced the injured Jered Weaver in their rotation. Soon after given that opportunity, Richards pitched himself right back into the bullpen. And now he once again finds himself a member of the Angels starting staff, this time as a result of Joe Blanton being Joe Blanton. You know, the one whose ERA never seems to match up with his peripherals. The Angels have lost all hope of that ever happening, so Richards is getting another shot. Should you give him one as well?

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The first big trade before the deadline next week is official. Matt Garza is headed to the land of cowboys and barbecue in exchange for Mike Olt, Justin Grimm, C.J. Edwards and one to two players to be named later. Garza will be leaving the windy city and entering the sweltering heat smack in the middle of summer. Let’s figure out how the park and league switch could affect his fantasy performance

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We’re done! We’re finally done!

With the pitchers we come to the end of another exhausting week of ranking pitchers.

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