This year Griffin has made 20 relief appearances, pitched 23 innings, and fashioned a 2-0 record with a 0.78 ERA. He has recorded 12 saves, struck out 19, and allowed opposing clubs to hit .167 when he is on the hill.
"I got to honest, trading Griffin hurt," Owner/GM of the Hitmen Travis Hays told reporters. "He's been THE best closer in the game. In the history of our franchise we have had ZERO concerns heading into the 9th inning with Griff closing game."
After signing Scott Hill to a 10-year extension the Hitmen did not have enough budget room to re-sign Griff. With him being a Type A free agent AND the best CL in the game Hays decided to shop Griffin at the advice of LA's GM Mike Brouillette.
Haward is coming off a great rookie season where he went 4-2 with a 1.73 ERA in 11 starts. He started out 2013 in a sophomore slump where he was 4-4 with a 6.12 ERA at the time the trade was agreed apon. Haward has a huge upside, but MOST get his control under control. So far this season he has already more than doubled his walk total from last year and has given up more hits in less innings.
Hitmen pitching coach Francis Eaves told the media, "Haward has the tools to be a star in this league, but right now he has to learn to repeat his mechanics and focus better. His control issues are fixable and he's working hard to correct it."
Also coming over in the trade is 1B José Álvarez. The 26-year old has been a career minor league so far, but has absolutely raked in AAA the last 2 seasons. Last season he hit .308, 35 HRs, 135 RBIs, 42 2Bs, 122 BB, .429 OBP, .994 OPS. Álvarez is slotted to play 1B for the Hitmen with Manny Copriviza moving back to DH.
The official trade looks like this:
 | ||
| Gets: |
CL Martin Griffin
 |
| Gets: |
SP Mike Haward
1B José Álvarez
May PR2
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