A day after acquiring Daryle Ward from the Astros, the Dodgers traded OF-L Luke Allen to Colorado for 2B/OF-R Jason Romano. My primary concern after the first trade was that the Dodgers would leave Allen in the minors, but under those circumstances he would have at least remained in the organization.

I think LA has made a rash decision in dealing Allen, and while I believe the Rockies received a slight upgrade in the trade, Allen further exacerbates their outfield crunch. An article by Ken Gurnick on the Dodgers website, offers a partial explanation of the deal. Gurnick remarks that Romano "played out of his mind in a September series against the Dodgers, with highlight-film defensive plays at two position." Dodger GM Dan Evans was quoted as saying, "That one game confirmed what the scouts said. That he's a terrific prospect. It heightened our awareness of his abilities."

You wouldn't think that a player's performance in such a limited sample set would inspire a team to acquire him, yet I can't count the number of times I've seen similar comments, and normally in situations when there are few other explanations for a deal. Such behavior never fails to flabbergast and infuriate me due to its recklessness.

The Dodgers were likely less committed to making Allen a part of their long-term plans because he wasn't a prominent draft pick, having been signed as a nondrafted free agent out of a Georgia high school. However, Allen has more promise than many drafted players. Last season at AAA Las Vegas, the 24-year-old hit .329 with a .395 OBP and .469 SLG on 165 H, 28 2B, 3 3B, and 12 HR with a 56:77 BB:K and 4/10 SB% in 501 AB. Although those numbers are aided by one of the better hitting environments in the hitter friendly Pacific Coast League, they display solid major league quality skills. If the Rockies didn't have Jay Payton, Gabe Kapler, Ben Petrick and Jack Cust standing in line for left-field playing time, I'd pencil in Allen. LA was concerned he lacked power, but I think that as he matures physically over the next couple seasons he could blossom and if not he still has a lot to offer.

Meanwhile, Texas drafted Jason Romano out of high school with the 39th overall pick in the first round of the 1997 draft. Splitting his time between Oklahoma and Colorado Springs, both in the AAA PCL, he hit .286 with .332 OBP and .388 SLG on 93 H, 15 2B, 3 3B, and 4 HR with a 25:68 BB:K and 18/24 SB%. While Allen only recently began displaying his plate discipline skills, Romano has fluctuated between promising and poor for most of his career. Romano will give the Dodgers some additional position flexibility, as he can play second base in addition to centerfield and he's had a little experience at short, making him a better fit with the club's 2003 needs. He also retains similar upside to Allen, however Allen is much closer to achieving his upside, and Romano is less than a year younger. Consequently although the Rockies likely won't use Allen, I think they came out ahead in this trade.

Meanwhile in Texas, where they no longer have either of the players they acquired from Colorado when they dealt the Rockies Kapler and Romano, the Rangers signed Ismael Valdes to a one-year, $2.5M contract. Valdes spent most of 2002 with Texas prior to being traded to Seattle in mid-August. The salary seems appropriate for the innings-eating Valdes offers them. However, while I'm not surprised they brought in another veteran, this reinforces my opinion that their bullpen moves were a mistake. The additions to the relief staff were supposedly necessary due to the number of young pitchers that would be in the rotation; now at most, they'll have two non-veterans. Hopefully they're at least planning to again deal Valdes during the season, allowing one of their younger pitchers to join the rotation.

The Rangers agreed to a one-year, $900,000 contract with the arbitration-eligible Francisco Cordero. If Cordero continues to perform solidly, Texas should consider signing him to a multi-year deal after this season, as once he receives an opportunity to close, his price will shoot up dramatically. However, in light of the fact that they've signed Ugueth Urbina to close for the 2003 season and Jeff Zimmerman should return for 2004, there wasn't any urgency to get Cordero locked in now.

OF-R Ryan Christenson and OF-S Ruben Sierra have signed minor league deals with Texas. Christenson spent last season in the Brewers' organization. While the 28-year-old has established himself as a AAAA outfielder, he really hasn't displayed the skills to remain in the majors for any extended length of time and Texas has several alternatives if they suffer injury problems in the outfield.

Ruben Sierra will likely make the team out of Spring Training unless Ryan Ludwick is fully healthy and has an outstanding camp. Sierra began his career with the Rangers when Texas signed him as a nondrafted free agent out of Puerto Rico in 1982. He made his major league debut on June 1, 1986 and remained with the club until August of 1992 when Texas traded him to Oakland with Jeff Russell, Bobby Witt, and cash for Jose Canseco. Years later after spending the 1999 season playing ball in the independent Atlantic League, Sierra made his comeback with the Rangers. Now the 37-year-old returns to Texas where he'd like to end his career. Sierra has also served under manager Buck Showalter before, as the two were together with the Yankees for a short while. His skills remain in tact, giving the Rangers a powerful bat from both sides of the plate to contribute at DH and in left-field.