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Moriarty9 · 06-12-2009, 03:58 PM

Cards, Rays swap lefties
Chen heads to St. Louis for Fuentes
November 10, 2003

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The Tampa Bay Devil Rays will have to send Bruce Chen his World Series ring in the mail after the team traded the left-hander to the St. Louis Cardinals for minor league reliever Brian Fuentes.

Chen, 26, had been an original member of the Devil Rays organization, joining the franchise when taken from the Philadelphia Phillies during the 1997 expansion draft. He first worked as a starter for Tampa Bay before moving into the bullpen the last few seasons, making a start when necessary.

Chen was 4-1 with six saves and a 4.70 ERA in 43 games last season, making one start. In his six-year career, he has gone 28-19 with a 4.47 ERA in 116 games, 56 of which have been starts.

Fuentes, 28, is a left-hander with 27 big league games under his belt, but none since pitching out of the bullpen for the San Diego Padres in 2000. That season, Fuentes went 1-2 with a save and a 4.99 ERA in 30 2/3 innings. Since then, he has worked in AAA, last season getting a fair amount of time to close out ballgames.

In 46 games with St. Louis' AAA affiliate last year, Fuentes went 3-1 with 23 saves and a 2.02 ERA and 0.96 WHIP.

Chen is pencilled into the Cardinals rotation at the moment, said General Manager Ed Wheelock. St. Louis had the worst record in baseball last season and is currently without a manager. Wheelock said Chen's experience with a winning team such as Tampa Bay, as a starter and as a reliever, "brings a valuable asset to the organization."

06-12-2009, 03:58 PM	#380 (permalink)
Moriarty9 All Star Starter Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Massachusetts Posts: 1,858 Thanks: 10 Thanked 3x in 3 posts	Cards, Rays swap lefties Chen heads to St. Louis for Fuentes November 10, 2003 ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The Tampa Bay Devil Rays will have to send Bruce Chen his World Series ring in the mail after the team traded the left-hander to the St. Louis Cardinals for minor league reliever Brian Fuentes. Chen, 26, had been an original member of the Devil Rays organization, joining the franchise when taken from the Philadelphia Phillies during the 1997 expansion draft. He first worked as a starter for Tampa Bay before moving into the bullpen the last few seasons, making a start when necessary. Chen was 4-1 with six saves and a 4.70 ERA in 43 games last season, making one start. In his six-year career, he has gone 28-19 with a 4.47 ERA in 116 games, 56 of which have been starts. Fuentes, 28, is a left-hander with 27 big league games under his belt, but none since pitching out of the bullpen for the San Diego Padres in 2000. That season, Fuentes went 1-2 with a save and a 4.99 ERA in 30 2/3 innings. Since then, he has worked in AAA, last season getting a fair amount of time to close out ballgames. In 46 games with St. Louis' AAA affiliate last year, Fuentes went 3-1 with 23 saves and a 2.02 ERA and 0.96 WHIP. Chen is pencilled into the Cardinals rotation at the moment, said General Manager Ed Wheelock. St. Louis had the worst record in baseball last season and is currently without a manager. Wheelock said Chen's experience with a winning team such as Tampa Bay, as a starter and as a reliever, "brings a valuable asset to the organization."