Cincinnati wrapped up their trading with a pair of deadline day deals with the Yankees. The first trade sent 3B-R Aaron Boone to NYY for LHP Brandon Claussen, LHP Charlie Manning, and $1M, while the Reds received a player to be named later and a reported $400,000 for LHP Gabe White in the second swap. New York then dealt Robin Ventura to the Dodgers for Bubba Crosby and Scott Proctor.

Aaron Boone was a hot commodity on the trade market, and the Reds potentially have infield prospects to slip into his shoes, so Cincinnati chose to move him while his value is high. New York drafted Claussen out of Howard Texas Junior College with their 34th round pick of the 1998 draft. He spent the majority of the next season at Staten Island in the Short-Season New York-Pennsylvania League and then split 2000 between A Greensboro in the South Atlantic League and A+ Tampa in the Florida State League. Claussen returned to Tampa for eight starts in 2001 but spent most of the year at AA Norwich in the Eastern League. Unfortunately, the 24-year-old's season at AAA Columbus last year was cut short by June Tommy John surgery.

Claussen bounced back quickly from the procedure, making his first rehab start in late April this year and working his way back to AAA by June. At the end of June, the Yankees called him up to spot start the second game of a June 28th split-stadium double-header with the intention of potentially leaving him in the rotation. Claussen compiled a 5:1 K:BB with 8 H and 1 HR allowed in 6.1 IP for a 1.42 ERA in his first major league start. Roger Cedeno came to the plate and struck out swinging at Shea Stadium as the first major league batter Claussen faced. Claussen then retired Raul Gonzalez on a pop out before giving up the first hit of his career when Ty Wigginton singled into left. He didn't issue his first walk until Jason Phillips took a base on balls in the fourth inning. Cedeno knocked Claussen from the game in the seventh with a homer to left. As a result of rainouts in the next week, Claussen wasn't needed for another start, so the Yankees called up Curtis Pride to have an extra player on the bench.

Prior to this trade, Claussen compiled a 39:18 K:BB with 53 H and 4 HR allowed in 68.2 IP for a .275 ERA over 11 starts at AAA Columbus in the International League. Those numbers don't quite match the dominance he was displaying prior to his elbow surgery, however the procedure only took place a little over a year ago, so further improvement can be expected. His stats won't look as pretty with the Great American Ballpark as his new home field, especially since he appears to have some fly ball tendencies, but he looks like he'll develop into a solid starter for the Reds over the next few seasons. He should be up in September and join the rotation full time next season.

New York drafted Manning out of the University of Tampa with their 9th round draft pick of the 2001 draft. He spent the remainder of that season at Staten Island and then split last year between A+ Tampa and AA Norwich. The 24-year-old returned to the Eastern League to start this season, reporting to the Yankees' new AA affiliate at Trenton. However, New York spooked after he made a few bad starts. The club first moved him to the pen and then sent him down to A+ Tampa. New York appears to have overreacted in demoting Manning, but I don't want to predict an overly bright future for a pitcher of his age, who's not been hampered by injury and hasn't experienced success in the high minors. The identity of the player to be named later is still unknown, though the Reds' fixation on their pitching points toward another arm.

As a fan, I like Aaron Boone's combination of speed and power. However, I don't believe the Yankees acquired a particularly large upgrade on Ventura. The 30-year-old Boone's power numbers and average will drop with the move from the Great American Ballpark to Yankee Stadium. As he relies on his contact rate and not his walk rate to keep his stats looking solid, he could slide considerably. On the plus side, he's a more versatile fielder and offers them more speed. As long as they don't sign him to a lengthy contract, I believe the Yankees come out well in this deal, as New York was able to obtain a nice return on Ventura.

Although initial estimates indicated Gabe White wouldn't spend much time on the disabled list with his strained left groin, hurrying may have caused setbacks as he's already missed close to six weeks and the Yankees currently estimate he'll be on the DL another three weeks. When healthy, White's proven a strong reliever, though over the last two seasons he's displayed specialist tendencies and he's always had a bit of trouble with the long ball due as he's a fly ball pitcher. He should provide the Yankees with a solid relief option in September. While they won't hesitate to leave the 31-year-old throwing side sessions in the pen if he shows signs of rust, New York also may consider picking up his $3.5M option for 2004 if he does well over the end of the season, though there's no need to spend that kind of money on a reliever.

Reports indicate these two deals were split to accommodate sending more cash to the Reds, as the Commissioner's office didn't approve of the amount of money changing hands in the original deal, as Cincinnati appeared basically to be selling off their players.