Seattle Deals Cecil Cup Star to Danville

The Seattle Monarchs, once again reshaping a successful roster, sent star outfielder Armando "Rimfire" Cedeno to the Danville Dans. Cedeno hit six home runs in the playoffs, driving in 11 and scoring 15 runs. Cedeno was a very popular player with local fans, who had seen him break into the majors at the tender age of 18. Just 25, Cedeno is fifth all-time in home runs in Monarchs history with 147.

"It's tough to deal someone like Rimfire," said Seattle Owner/GM Mack Shultz, "especially after the great playoff series he had. But, we have some excellent young outfielders who we think are ready to play in the majors and we wanted to gain some flexibility going forward."

Seattle sent Cedeno, promising infield prospect Salomon Adrover, and its second-round pick to Danville in the deal. In return, Seattle acquires left-handed reliever John Burgess and Danville's picks in the first and second rounds.

"We know it's not going to be a popular move with our fans, sending out Cedeno for a reliever and a couple draft picks," said Shultz. "But hopefully those six Cecil Cups on our mantle will buy us a little leeway here. We think Burgess has a promising arm, especially for a left-hander. And, we now have four of the top 14 picks in the draft, which will give us a chance to really stock out minor league system."

Adrover, although the 88th rated prospect in the Baseball America Top 100 Prospects list, was part of a logjam that the team had forecast for its AAA infield next year. A number of players were fighting for limited starting spots.

For the first time in recent Monarchs history, it looks like there may be an open position battle in spring training. Young outfielders Bas Bijkerk and Pedro Martinez are expected to duel with established veterans Steven Jackson, Bill Bivens, and Robert Ferrer for the Opening Day job alongside Roger Nichols and David Kerry. This trade shows that the Seattle front office is expecting Bijkerk or Martinez to step up and win the spot.