Giants trade Jason Ellison

Sadly, Brian Sabean wasn't willing to wait another seven years, when Ellison would have been 36 and thus eligible to start in San Francisco. Ellison is a Nice Guy, a hard worker, and probably not a Major League starter in any town this side of the Capital. Instead, he gets to go back home to Seattle, so everyone's happy on that front.

Ellison had a monster spring, which is perhaps how the Giants landed Travis Blackley in the deal. Blackley is hardly a star; his career Major League era is 10.04. But tracking backward, the guy looks pretty good: 8-11, 4.06 is commendable in the Texas League (2006), especially given that he completely lost 2005 to injury. The year before that, Blackley posted a winning record and an era in the 3's; and at age 20, he took that same Texas League for a ride: 17-3, 2.61.

Plus, Blackley (pictured here) is three things you rarely see enough of: he's young, he's lefthanded, and he's Australian.

Red Herring, let's hope, to those trading Blackley. Maybe he's the next Trevor Wilson, but that's not bad in exchange for a likeable never-wuz.

Incidently, Blakley's status may have been affected somewhat by the Mariners' decision to keep former Cal standout Brandon Morrow on the big club; Morrow has 16 whole innings under his belt since getting his degree in June.

OK, 'til soon.

-Zed

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"I find that the harder I work, the more luck I seem to have."
-Thomas Jefferson