Aftermath of the Ed Donovan Trade

Two seasons ago the Philadelphia Black Lightning were looking into dealing the face of the franchise, All-Star 2b Ed Donovan. The teams asking price was high and while many teams were interested GM zhawks couldn't find anyone willing to give what he was asking for. After a few weeks of mulling over trade offers the Lightning front office got a call from the Trenton Generals who were in contention for a playoff berth, sitting 2nd in the AL North behind the Montreal Royals.

After a few days of discussion the clubs reached a trade agreement that would send Donovan and minor league SS Bill Buford to Trenton in exchange for 2b Scott Tankersley, SP Joaquin Santos and RP Tom Owens, none of whom still wear a Lightning uniform.

So what happened?

First the club agreed to trade All-Star SS Che Kim to the Portland Hippies along with RF Alex Alfonseca. In return the club got 3b Nick Hunter and SP Valerio Javier.

Then the Lightning quickly agreed to a trade proposal sending Tankersley to the Florida FlyTekks in exchange for SP Brian Baek, who the club had been trying to acquire all season.

The lightning then turned around and made an agreement with the Nashville Nerd Herders sending them SPs Santos and Javier, along with slugging 1b prospect Vic Cedeno. The Lightning received SPs Wilt Pagnozzi and Wayne Anderson and $1.5 million. The Lightning were the forth team that Pagnozzi was a part of in Season 5 but they wouldn't be his last.

Philadelphia, who had been in trade talks with the Louisville Long Balls about SP Ted Phillips for a while agreed to terms to bring the pitcher to Philly. The Lightning sent Pagnozzi, LF Don Atkins and 1b James Morton and got Phillips and RP Kid James.

Fast foward to the Winter Meetings following the Salem Witch Doctors repeat as World Champions and the overnight sale of the Lightning and move to Kansas, Owens is the only player directly from the Donovan trade still in a Lightning Uniform, until today when the club announced its trade with the Richmond Shaggy Marlins, where they acquired IF F.P. Johnson for Owens.

"I hadn't really thought about that," said Lightning GM zhawks at todays press conference announcing Owens trade,"I guess you are right, nobody that we got for Ed (Donovan) is currently suiting up for our organization. I guess we've been busy, I must be earning my salary!"

"In my brief time with the club I have been happy with the way this club has continually tried to improve the talent within the organization," stated Wichita Bench Coach Juilo Duran at the same press conference,"zhawks won't back down from making a big move if he feels it will improve his team and I like that."

The club has won one AL Pennant under GM zhawks and has 5 straight AL East Titles, but has failed to win a playoff series in any other year.

"We know that we have not had the success in October that we would like to see and we hope that moves like these will put us in the position to play for the AL Pennant this year and for the foreseeable future," zhawks stated.