One of the highlights of attending the annual Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) convention in Cleveland two weeks ago was sitting in on a panel discussion with Indians general manager Mark Shapiro. He spoke quite a bit about the decision-making process behind the 2002 trade that sent Bartolo Colon to the then-Expos for a four-player package that included prospects Brandon Phillips, Grady Sizemore, and Cliff Lee.

Shapiro stressed that the Indians' willingness to move quickly on the blockbuster was essential and spoke about how the team scouted key Expos prospects leading up to the trade. That experience no doubt came in handy again Sunday, as the Indians reportedly struck another deal to send their ace to the NL, working so fast to trade reigning AL Cy Young winner and impending free agent C.C. Sabathia to the Brewers that the rumor mill had barely kicked into high gear.

According to various reports, former first-round pick Matt LaPorta will headline the multi-prospect package of players being sent to Cleveland for Sabathia. Taken with the seventh overall pick in the 2007 draft after a standout career at the University of Florida, LaPorta has hit .294/.395/.616 with 32 homers and 97 RBIs in 112 pro games, including .291/.404/.584 with 20 homers and 66 RBIs in 82 games at Double-A this season.

LaPorta played primarily first base in college and has been working mostly as a corner outfielder in the pros, but with Prince Fielder, Ryan Braun, and Corey Hart entrenched at those positions it was easier for the Brewers to part with him. He'd likely benefit from some additional seasoning in the minors, but the 23-year-old should be ready to take over as the Indians' starting first baseman by next season and LaPorta will bring legitimate 30-homer potential to the table immediately.

Meanwhile, Sabathia should benefit from switching to the weaker league and has gone 12-6 with a 3.74 ERA and 167-to-59 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 190 innings spread over 30 career interleague starts. He's pitched brilliantly since beginning the season 0-3 with a 13.50 ERA, somewhat quietly posting a 2.16 ERA and 109-to-20 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 104.1 innings, yet has just six wins over those 14 starts thanks to poor run support from the Indians' injury wrecked offense.

Cleveland ranks 10th among AL teams in offense and Sabathia is 38th in run support, whereas Milwaukee has scored the seventh-most runs in the 16-team NL. If Sabathia continues to pitch as well as he has over the past 14 starts there's a chance that he could win double-digit games before hitting the open market this winter. Whether that (and the draft picks likely received for letting Sabathia walk as a free agent) is worth giving up LaPorta is certainly up for debate, but flags fly forever and the Brewers are fighting for their first playoff berth since 1982.

While the Indians seemingly get quite a bit less total value for Sabathia than the Twins received for Johan Santana this offseason, here are some other notes from around baseball .

* In years past this space would be filled with my complaints about the All-Star game rosters that were announced Sunday afternoon, but I've decided that it's not really worth getting worked up about. Sure, newspaper columnists, radio-show callers, and bloggers will grumble about many of the picks over the next week-and rightfully so in several maddening instances-but within 24 hours of the game being played next Tuesday you'll be hard-pressed to find anyone who cares.

Does Jason Varitek deserve a place on the AL roster while hitting .219/.301/.360? Obviously not. Is it worth wondering how Miguel Tejada made the NL squad over Jose Reyes or the league's reigning MVP, Jimmy Rollins? Absolutely. Are there a half-dozen other questionable decisions related to the teams? Always. Can most people even remember what were undoubtedly the same types of criticisms about last year's rosters? If you're anything like me, then probably not.

* Kevin Youkilis' triple Saturday not only produced an odd highlight thanks to the ball sitting atop the fence before falling to the ground, it left Johnny Damon with a sprained shoulder that sent him to the disabled list Sunday for the first time in his 14-year career. According to general manager Brian Cashman, Damon is "50-50" to return from the DL when eligible in two weeks, potentially giving rookie Brett Gardner a spot in the Yankees' lineup through the end of the month.

Gardner went 2-for-5 while batting leadoff in Damon's place Sunday night, knocking in Robinson Cano with the game-winning run against the Red Sox. He also stole his third base in just six games since being called up from Triple-A, which is where the bulk of his fantasy value will come. Gardner has hit a modest .276/.386/.391 with just three homers in 125 career games at Triple-A, but swiped 55 bases there at an 83-percent clip. Snatch him up in AL-only leagues.

AL Quick Hits: Erik Bedard (shoulder) has been scratched from his scheduled start Wednesday, with Miguel Batista likely to face the A's in his place . Meanwhile, manager Jim Riggleman said Sunday that J.J. Putz (elbow) is on track to return shortly after the All-Star break, but won't close again until he can "get the rust off" . According to Peter Gammons of ESPN, the Red Sox have had "internal discussions" about Barry Bonds, but are unlikely to sign him with David Ortiz set to return shortly after the All-Star break . Nick Markakis went 3-for-5 with a homer Sunday, going deep for the first time since June 17 . Ryan Rowland-Smith pitched well Sunday subbing for Felix Hernandez, holding the Tigers to one run over five innings . Jon Garland allowed one run in Sunday's complete-game victory over the Blue Jays, notching career win No. 100 . With Mike Napoli (shoulder) likely headed for the disabled list, Jeff Mathis will see near-everyday action behind the plate . Just a week removed from the DL, Adam Loewen is scheduled to undergo a CT scan after leaving Sunday's game with elbow soreness . Alex Rodriguez's wife is slated to file for divorce Monday while citing "extramarital affairs."

NL Quick Hits: Randy Johnson totaled 10 strikeouts Sunday in career win No. 289, moving into 24th place on the all-time list while lowering his ERA to 5.18 . Cody Ross went 3-for-5 with five RBIs while coming a triple short of the cycle Sunday, making him 12-for-20 with 15 RBIs in the four-game series versus Colorado . Barry Zito reached double-digit strikeouts Saturday for the first time since June of 2006 . Oliver Perez shut out the Braves for seven innings Sunday, giving him a 3.60 ERA and 19-to-6 strikeout-to-walk ratio in four starts since the Mets fired pitching coach Rick Peterson . Brad Hawpe went 2-for-4 with a homer Sunday, giving him 10 long balls since coming off the disabled list on June 6 . Mark Mulder will rejoin the rotation Wednesday against the Phillies, who rank third among NL teams in OPS versus southpaws . Fresh off eight innings of shutout ball in his last start, Matt Cain coughed up five runs Sunday against the Dodgers . Rafael Soriano (elbow) threw a bullpen session Sunday, with manager Bobby Cox calling it "real good" and pitching coach Roger McDowell deeming it "really encouraging."

Aaron Gleeman is a RotoWorld Senior Baseball Editor and also contributes heavily to football coverage. His work has been featured in Sports Illustrated and he can also be found blogging at AaronGleeman.com.