Week In Review: 8/30/09 – 9/5/09

Lots of interesting stuff around the league today, including a triple play and Ichiro's 2,000th hit. Here's your look back at the past seven days!

• About an hour after losing to the Twins on Monday, White Sox GM Kenny Williams had traded Jim Thome to the Dodgers and Jose Contreras to the Rockies. Thome will provide some big-time thunder off the LA bench, and while I questioned the Rockies' acquisition, Contreras held the Diamondbacks in check just fine in his Colorado debut. Here's some additional reactions to the Thome trade.
• The Dodgers weren't done there though. They solidified their rotation this week when they added Jon Garland, and also acquired Ronnie Belliard. Have the depth moves from the Dodgers strengthened them enough to be postseason favorites in the NL, or does that honor go to the Phillies or Cardinals? We've got additional thoughts on the Garland and Contreras trades as well.
• The other question on everyone's mind was, "Where is Brad Penny going to end up?" Penny signed on with the Giants and absolutely blanked the Phillies in his first appearance. If you're a struggling AL East starter… the NL will apparently cure what ails you.
• If you're a Royals fan, something else may be ailing you. The Royals extended general manager Dayton Moore's contract through 2014 this week. Moore has drawn heavy criticism for excessive spending on marginal free agents, and putting together a team that's mustered just a .311 OBP this season. Can he right the ship over the duration of this next contract?
• Speaking of OBP and the AL Central, this week we heard that the Twins will have enough money to re-sign Joe Mauer if the megastar hits free agency. Mauer's posting a completely ridiculous line of .367/.435/.607 so far this year. Many consider him to be a lock for MVP even though the Twins' playoff hopes are diminishing. However, signing a catcher to the type of long-term deal Mauer will be receiving is a risky play. Is this just talk from the Twins front office, or can you see them ponying up and competing with the big spenders in this case?
• The Cardinals extended both Ryan Franklin and Trever Miller this week, with Franklin getting two years and $6.5MM and Miller getting $2MM in 2010 plus a vesting option for 2011. My initial thought is that it's a lot of money for two aging relievers, but then again both have been brilliant thus far. Since signing his extension however, Franklin's nearly doubled his earned run total on the season. Probably not much to worry about… it's jumped from 6 to 10. Yeah, he's been that good.
• The Rays acquired Sean Rodriguez as the player to be named later in the Scott Kazmir trade this week. That completes quite a nice haul for Kazmir, especially given his struggles this year. It's easy to forget though, that Kazmir is just 25. He's still young, tremendously talented, and moving out of the AL East certainly can't hurt.
• Curious to see who the top free agents will be after the season? Check out the list of probable Type A free agents.
• Tim's back with his Offseason Outlook series, and the first installments feature the Royals and Nationals.
• Want to see what the glamorous life of an MLBTR writer is like? We're on the lookout for new writers again. If you've got evening availabilty and are interested, here's the details.