A Tough Break, Literally

I'm sure a lot of you have seen that Jason Marquis broke his leg yesterday after being hit with a line drive on the mound.  Obviously, that's a tough way to lose a pitcher for the season, particularly on a team in the playoff chase.

However, what makes it even more tough to swallow is that Marquis was a rent-a-player, trying to help the Diamondbacks get over the hump.  And remember, Arizona traded away Silver Hawks shortstop Zach Walters to get him.

So basically, Arizona received Marquis for a grand total of three starts, with an 0-1 record and 9.53 ERA.

Meanwhile, Walters was hitting over .300 in South Bend and ranked second on the team in homers and RBIs. 

Baseball can be a cruel game at times.

Walters Traded

Obviously by now most of you have heard that Zach Walters was traded yesterday to the Washington Nationals organization in exchange for Major League pitcher Jason Marquis.  The full story can be found on www.silverhawks.com in the headlines section.

South Bend is expected to announce a corresponding move tomorrow.

This is a huge blow to the team offensively.  Already struggling to score runs, the Diamondbacks just traded away the best offensive player for the Silver Hawks.  However, as we all know, winning at the big league level takes precedent over winning in single-A and these things happen from time to time.  Now, more than ever, the other players need to take a look around and figure out who is going to step up and lead this team. 

The Washington Nationals: A Playoff Team?

The Washington Nationals signed Jason Marquis to a two-year deal. Normally, not that big of a deal, but when you consider that every team Jason Marquis has ever been on has made the postseason, then maybe it's the Nationals time.

Don't believe me? Click on this link to read Tim Kurkjian break it down back in August as the Rockies were trying to climb into the mix.