News from the Mill

As the trade deadline rapidly approaches, there are all sorts of rumors going on out there.  If you kept up with baseball rumors, you still would have been somewhat surprised that Dan Haren was traded to the Angels, a team that I hadn't seen mentioned in any rumors before it happened.  But, alongside all the rumors floating about, there's quite a bit of other news going on.  So, in rapid-fire succession:

• Jim Edmonds essentially announced his retirement, which is a surprise to precisely nobody.  Edmonds has had a borderline Hall of Fame career, but he had a hard time finding somebody that would take him this season.  It definitely wasn't going to be easy next year for the 40-year old outfielder.
• In similar news, Brad Ausmus, the 41-year old catcher mostly known (to me) for his years with Astros, will take his 80 career home runs, lifetime .252 batting average, 3 Gold Gloves and 1 All Star appearance and call it a career.  Wait, Brad Ausmus is still playing?
• Ben Sheets is returning to a very familiar place... the disabled list.  He will join David DeJesus of the Kansas City Royals on the DL and on the list of players that should have been traded two weeks ago.
• Livan Hernandez apparently doesn't want to retire just yet.  He has said that he can imagine himself playing four more years and would like to retire as a National.  When asked, Nationals GM Mike Rizzo said, "Wait, Livan is still playing?"