Cla Meredith is on his way to the Baltimore Orioles, and I wish him all the best. I am sure this trade will be bashed by others, but that is only because of the tremendous start Cla had to his Padre career. When he came over from the Red Sox in the Mirabelli trade in 2006, he immediately stepped into the bullpen and became a force of nature. He had that sidearm sinker working to perfection, and every time he came into the game, no matter what the situation, he would deliver. Bases jammed needing a groundball for a double play, here you go. Need to get through the 7th and hold the lead, here you go, one two three. He was unstoppable, and a huge part of a division winning team that year. And man, it was fun having The Claw on our side.
But that was three years ago. The last couple of years, he has been hittable, nowhere close to the automatic Cla we got to see in 2006. Not sure if his stuff isn’t the same, or if the league has made its adjustment and is waiting for Cla to respond. This year, when he came into games and you just weren’t sure what you were going to get. The safe feeling is gone, he is a run of the mill reliever nowadays. Also, he was about to be a lot more expensive in 2010, and his effectiveness does not warrant that kind of pay check.
So off he goes to Baltimore for some backup infield fodder (no offense meant to Salazar, but if you are a 31 year old rookie utility infielder, you are fodder, face the fact and do your job). Maybe the new league will be slow to adapt to Cla and he can have another run. I wish him the best of luck, because its probably going to take some luck this time around.
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