Yankees and Astros finalize deal for Berkman

Baseball Betting Lines

07/31/2010 - St. Petersburg, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Yankees and Houston Astros have finalized a trade for first baseman Lance Berkman.

Berkman and cash considerations will head to the Yankees in exchange for pitcher Mark Melancon and minor league infielder Jimmy Paredes.

The 34-year-old Berkman had spent his entire career with the Astros and this season was batting just .245 with 13 homers and 49 runs batted in through 85 games. He began this season on the disabled list after undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his left knee on March 13 to remove loose cartilage.

A Texas native who went to college at Rice University in Houston, Berkman had to waive his no-trade clause to accept the deal. He is expected to see most of his playing time as the designated hitter for the Yankees, while also spelling Mark Teixeira at first base.

The five-time All-Star is in the final year of a six-year contract and has a salary of $14.5 million this season. His deal has a $15 million club option for 2011 with a buyout of $2 million.

Over 12 major league seasons, Berkman is a .296 hitter with a .410 on-base percentage, 326 homers and 1,090 RBI.

It is the second major trade for the Astros this week, as the club sent ace Roy Oswalt to the Phillies on Thursday.

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Big East Conference odds

Work left to do: Villanova, Syracuse, DePaul, West Virginia, Providence

Notre Dame and Louisville appear to have done enough to make the move, so we'll make them locks. The Cardinals, despite a modest RPI, are trending way up and have clinched at least a tie for third in the Big East, which should be more than enough with their pair of big road wins. Villanova got back to .500 and gets back to more solid footing. Syracuse got a very important road win and crippled a fellow contender in the process. West Virginia's fate could be in its hands Tuesday at Pitt.

Work left to do:

Villanova [18-9 (7-7), RPI: 21, SOS: 5] Pounded Rutgers to get back to .500. If Cats can get their last two (at UConn, vs. Syracuse), that should be enough with strong computer numbers and a host of wins away from The Pavilion. The Cats have beaten Texas and swept the Big 5 (never easy in Philly), but have a couple of losses to bubble teams (Xavier, Drexel), too. I still think they'll be OK, possibly even at 8-8.

Syracuse [20-8 (9-5), RPI: 53, SOS: 62] History says 10 wins will be plenty, but it might be hard for the Orange to get that last one with a final two vs. G'town, which is trying to win the league title, and at Villanova, which will be desperate for a W. The relative lack of nonconference heft and the weak computer numbers are still concerns, but the Orange have won four in a row and got a very, very big win at Providence on Saturday.

DePaul [16-12 (8-7), RPI: 54, SOS: 18] Beat Cincy and should get past South Florida to get to 9-7, but then what? They have beaten Kansas and Cal (right after the DeVon Hardin injury) earlier this season, but also have lost to Bradley and Purdue, among others. They'll likely need a couple of BE tourney wins, too, but we'll see ...

West Virginia [19-7 (8-6), RPI: 58, SOS: 125] The game at Pitt on Tuesday night could decide the Mountaineers' fate (barring a deep tournament run). They can still get to 9-7 in the Big East without it by beating Cincinnati, but the nine wins would be against UConn, Villanova, St. John's, South Florida, DePaul, Rutgers, Seton Hall twice and the Bearcats. Beating bubble foes is fine, but where's the beef? Outside of beating PG-less UCLA in nonconference play (still a top quality win), there's not a lot to fall back on (besides maybe NC State). WVU vs. Syracuse would be an interesting debate, as the teams don't play in the Big East regular season. WVU has the best win, but Cuse has played the much better schedule.

Providence [17-10 (7-7), RPI: 70, SOS: 33] The Friars likely saw their at-large hopes die at home in the four-point loss to Syracuse, barring an unexpected run to the Big East semis or more. The RPI, bad already, won't be helped by playing St. John's and South Florida in the final two league games.

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