FanHouse TyWiggington

The Orioles have had themselves quite the busy offseason. They've made about 23 trades with the Cubs (OK, so it was only two), and they've also managed to theoretically trade Brian Roberts about ten times. Perhaps more important than any move they've made to bring players in, though, they also managed to sign Nick Markakis to a contract extension a few weeks ago.

Now they've gone and made another addition to the team, as they've signed free agent Ty Wiggington to a two-year deal pending a physical.

With yesterday's blockbuster deal that saw Ty Wiggington go from Tampa to Houston for Dan Wheeler, not only did the Astros secure the NL Central crown, they also gave birth to a couple of new questions.

Are they going to move Mike Lamb? What will they do with Morgan Ensberg?

One of those questions was answered this afternoon.

The Houston Astros designated Morgan Ensberg for assignment on Sunday morning, meaning the team has 10 days to trade, release or send the third baseman to the Minor Leagues.

"As we just told Morgan, it's not our intention to send him to the Minor Leagues at this stage," Astros general manager Tim Purpura said. "It's not an option I think for him or us. So we'll try to see if we can make a trade for him and give him another opportunity elsewhere."

Ensberg has spent his entire career as a Houston Astro, and was a big reason why the team made it to the World Series in 2005. Since then, it's been a struggle. Ensberg has lost playing time and is only hitting .232 with 8 home runs and 31 RBI.

Wiggington is not only more productive with his bat than Ensberg, but he's also more versatile. Not only can the man play third, first, or the outfield, but he delivers babies! There's no way Ensberg can compete with that.

Previously at FanHouse:
Ty Wiggington Traded to the Astros

Major League Mongering will look at players rumored to be on the move between now and the July 31st pseudo-trade-deadline.

I know it's not exactly the most popular idea in Minnesota, but I really think that the Twins should try and move Torii Hunter within the next five days. There was still some hope in Minnesota at the All-Star break that the Twins would make their annual push to the top of the division, but things haven't worked out as well as they were hoped.

The Twins were swept by the Tigers last week, and they just got swept again by the Blue Jays.

They're now 9.5 games behind the Tigers and 8 games behind Cleveland in the wild card. Not exactly an impossible task, but I don't think the Twins will be able to pull it off this season. The starting pitching and offense aren't as consistent in 2007 as they have been in years past, so now the question looms.

Should the Twins be buyers or sellers?

Realistically, when you look at the options available to the Twins as far as bringing a player in, who's going to be that guy that helps push them to the top? Dmitri Young? Mike Piazza? Ty Wiggington!? Those aren't exactly the types of guys that will win you a division title.

So I think the Twins should try and move some players, most specifically Torii Hunter. Hunter says he wants to stay in Minnesota for the rest of his career, but he also says he wants the best deal for himself. That will not be in Minnesota.

Via The Feed comes this nice little story about Devil Rays infielder Ty Wigginton, who overcame the odds, kept his head in the game, gave 110% and delivered - literally - in the clutch.

From the St. Pete Times:

When his wife, Angela, went into intense labor two weeks early, Wigginton ended up delivering their son in the bedroom closet of their new North Carolina home. ...

The baby was healthy. The delivery, given the circumstances, was smooth. But it was not without drama. And some chaos.

Angela lying on the floor of the walk-in closet. Their 3-year-old son, Chase, sick and scared, locked in the adjacent bedroom, screaming "Is Mommy o-tay?" Ty getting step-by-step instructions from a 911 operator, then giving Angela the phone so he could have both hands free to tie the umbilical cord with a lace he took out of his shoe.

"I think adrenaline took over. It's kind of all a blur," Ty said. "It was unbelievable."

"Wow, I was just born. This is really cool. I mean, look at this place - it's really bright, colorful even. This is sort of crazy and mindblowing. Alive. I am officially alive. Wild, huh? Wait a second ... who is this big dude holding me? Judging by his hat and the baseball memorabilia all over the house, I have deducted - despite the fact that I am a newborn infant and would have no concept of baseball or sport in general - that he is a professional baseball player. And he's here, in sort of a compromising position with Mom, so he must be my dad. Hey, my dad's a pro ballplayer! Awesome!

"Wait a second ... what's that ... the, the Devil Rays? NOOOOOOOO!!! WAHHHHHH!!!!!!"