D-Backs, White Sox finalize Vazquez trade

After a week of physicals, medical reviews and approval by the Commissioner's office, the Diamondbacks announced Tuesday they have acquired right-handers Orlando "El Duque" Hernandez and Luis Vizcaino, along with heralded Minor League outfielder Chris Young, from the White Sox for Javier Vazquez and cash considerations.

The teams initially agreed on the deal on Dec. 13, pending the players involved passing physicals. Arizona took extra time to thoroughly review the medical records of Hernandez, who has been listed at ages ranging from 36 to 40, with the D-Backs saying he's closer to 40.

"He's pitched a lot of innings in his life and as with any pitcher, it's not a perfect shoulder," D-Backs GM Josh Byrnes said. "But it's one that we felt was a worthwhile risk. We've got him on a one-year contract and we need to be smart about how we use him, but we feel like when he's on the mound he can be one of the very best pitchers in baseball."

Arizona acquired Vazquez last January in a trade that sent Randy Johnson to the Yankees, and the veteran last month exercised his contractual right to demand a trade after going 11-15 with a 4.42 ERA in 33 starts in 2005.

"I think we were open-minded to sort of the best deal out there, and to us this deal gives us some short-term help -- two pitchers that can impact our club and, in our mind, a future everyday front-line center fielder who's not that far away, which is hard to find," Byrnes said.

Last year with Double-A Birmingham, the 22-year-old Young hit .277 with 41 doubles, 26 homers and 32 stolen bases in 38 attempts. The year before for Class A Kannapolis, he had 24 homers and 31 steals.

Baseball America, which ranked Young as Chicago's sixth-best prospect before his outstanding 2005 season, wrote, "Designated as the best athlete and quickest base runner in the organization, Young is blessed with tremendous speed and is blossoming into a power hitter as well."

Brynes said that the Diamondbacks are not ruling out that Young could start the 2006 season with the club, but it seems more likely that he will need some Triple-A seasoning.

"It's difficult to find the power-speed combination, and he really can impact the game in a variety of ways so we're very excited to get him," Byrnes said. "Very excited that he had that dominant of a year in Double-A. We feel he's relatively close, but we also don't want to rush his progression to the Major Leagues artificially just because we're so happy to have him."

The Diamondbacks made a run at free-agent center fielder Kenny Lofton, hoping that he could provide a one-year stop-gap solution while Young continues to develop. Lofton, though, signed with the Dodgers, and Arizona reportedly has turned its interest to free agent Jeff DaVanon.

The switch-hitter was designated for assignment by the Angels on Dec. 7 after hitting .231 with 10 doubles, two homers and 15 RBIs in 108 games last season.

Byrnes called the report of DaVanon's signing "premature" and declined to say whether the 32-year-old had taken a physical for Arizona.

"We've been talking to him and some others, but we haven't reached an agreement with anyone," Byrnes said. "We're talking with him and other players."

Hernandez was 9-9 with a 5.12 ERA for the White Sox last season and probably made his biggest contribution to the World Series champions in Game 3 of the AL Division Series against the Red Sox.

Hernandez entered the game in the sixth inning with the bases loaded, no outs and the White Sox clinging to a one-run lead. The right-hander got Jason Varitek and Tony Graffanino to pop out before fanning Johnny Damon to end the frame, and the White Sox went on to win the game and sweep the series.

"I think El Duque hasn't been quite as reliable physically (as Vazquez) but is probably the best postseason pitcher of his generation, of his era really," Byrnes said of Hernandez, who owns a 9-3 postseason record and became the first pitcher in history to win his first eight postseason decisions. "And he can still pitch at a high level, whether it's within a series or for half a season."

Hernandez defected from Cuba in December 1997 and pitched for the Yankees and Expos from 1998-2004 before signing a two-year contract with the White Sox last year. His base salary for next season is $4.5 million, while Vazquez will cost Chicago $11.5 million in 2006 and $12.5 million in 2007.

The amount of money the D-Backs included in the deal has been reported anywhere from $3 million to $5 million, but Byrnes declined to comment on it. As part of their deal with the Yankees last year, Arizona received $9 million to help offset the cost of Vazquez's contract.

Vazquez gives the White Sox insurance in case starters Jon Garland and/or Jose Contreas leave the club after next year, when they will become free agents.

Vizcaino gives the Diamondbacks a workhorse in the bullpen. The 31-year-old appeared in 65 games last year for the White Sox, going 6-5 with a 3.73 ERA in 70 innings. In 33 of his 65 games, he threw more than one inning, and his 289 appearances since the start of the 2002 season are the sixth-most in the big leagues during that period.

"We needed to get better there and the acquisition of Vizcaino helps," Byrnes said. "He's been a solid reliever for several years."

Without saying who, Byrnes said the Diamondbacks were still looking at a free-agent reliever to increase the team's depth there.

"It's a long season, so what seems like enough in December never turns out to be that way," he said.

The team will sort through the list of arbitration-eligible players who were not tendered contracts to see if it finds anyone of interest. Arizona tendered all five of its salary arbitration players -- Alex Cintron, Johnny Estrada, Claudio Vargas, Vizcaino and Brandon Lyon.