Cliff Lee

The Mariners have traded Cliff Lee and injured reliever Mark Lowe for Justin Smoak and three minor leaguers. The minor leaguers are AA pitchers Blake Beavan and Josh Lueke and AA second baseman Matt Lawson.

The Mariners had no choice but to trade Lee after falling well behind in the AL West, and seem to have pulled off a deal that will help the team not only now, but in the future.

It was nice while it lasted, Angels fans.

With the stunning acquisition of Cliff Lee by the Texas Rangers from AL West rival Seattle, it is time for the Angels to cut their losses and let the fire sale begin.

Not only should this be the nail in the coffin for the Angels, but maybe for the rest of baseball as well. Texas just assured themselves not only a trip to the playoffs, but a real chance to take it all.

Angels fans, don't feel bad.

The Evil Empire might have a lot of championships and money. But they don't have the 2008 AL Cy Young winner. 

The Texas Rangers acquired starting pitcher Cliff Lee from the Seattle Mariners for first basemen Justin Smoak, pitchers Blake Beaven and Josh Lueke, and infielder/outfielder Matt Lawson. 

Lee is 8-3 on the season with a phenomenal 2.34 ERA

Only moments after pulling out of an "imminent" deal with New York for lefty ace Cliff Lee, Seattle has reportedly agreed to send Lee along with reliever Mark Lowe to Texas in exchange for first baseman Justin Smoak and three other prospects.

We'll have to wait and see who the three other prospects are, but this is still a strange move for the Rangers regardless.

According to the New York Post 's Joel Sherman, Seattle Mariners pitcher Cliff Lee will be traded to the Texas Rangers along with pitcher Mark Lowe in exchange for first base prospect Justin Smoak and three other players.

The Rangers will be Lee's fourth team in two seasons, and the acquisition of the Mariners ace and 2010 AL All-Star ostensibly puts the Rangers in the pole position for the AL West division crown.

It looks as if the "superteam" in baseball will not have the best pitching rotation. According to ESPN, talks between the Seattle Mariners and New York Yankees over Cliff Lee have broken down. 

Lee, a dominant lefty, was scheduled to be traded to the New York Yankees and the deal looked all but finalized. 

This afternoon, however, talks have stalled after the Mariners became concerned over second baseman David Adams' health. Adams is currently dealing with a sprained ankle and is not playing. 

A rumored deal that would send Mariner's star lefty Cliff Lee to the Yankees for top prospect Jesus Montero, along with infielder David Adams and pitcher Zach McAlister, is apparently off.

The Mariners have allegedly balked due to concerns over David Adams bad ankle, which he injured breaking up a double play while at Double-A Trenton about a month ago.

Seattle GM Jack Zduriencik will almost certainly move his All-Star starter. But with more than three weeks left until the trade deadline, Zduriencik will take his time to find the best offer.

Fox Sports is reporting that trade talks between Seattle and New York have stalled.

A source says that Seattle is concerned about David Adams' health, and that led them to ask for more.

The Yankees are unwilling to accommodate that request, and the two teams are at a standstill.

The Reds have begun to intensify their talks with the Mariners now, and the Rangers are also lingering.

Reports that a deal to the Yankees is imminent may have been a little premature

Lee remains scheduled to pitch tonight. By then we will surely know more.

Update: (2:28pm CDT) The player to be named later, according to MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan, is minor leaguer Blake Beaven.

Update: (2:25pm CDT) The players involved in the deal to Seattle are Justin Smoak and minor leaguers Josh Lueke, Matt Lawson and one other player to be named later. The player to be named later, and this is just speculation, could be pitcher Derek Holland or possibly minor league pitcher Tanner Scheppers. 

Anything that doesn't involve LeBron James in sports talk right now has my attention and the Cliff Lee rumors are at the top of that list.

Though it isn't the magnitude of the 1919 World Series, we have a very odd situation brewing in Seattle tonight, and it isn't their coffee.

Cliff Lee is rumored to be headed to the Bronx for Yankees prospect catcher Jesus Montero and possibly second base prospect David Adams as well.

The problem? Cliff Lee faces the New York Yankees tonight.

"Hey Alex, here comes a fastball middle-in, see if you can hit it!"