Long-time Baltimore Lords second baseman Randy Keisel, a 6-time All-Star and the 1971 MGL Rookie of the Year, is a Lord no longer, having been traded earlier today to the Oklahoma City Diamond Kings in exchange for 22-year old infield prospect Craig Hoover and 24-year old minor league outfielder Troy Turdik.
It had been rumored for awhile that the 29-year old Keisel was on the trading block, though it isn't yet quite clear who will be replacing him at second. The Lords do have the good hitting, poor fielding 28-year old Joe West as their backup second baseman, but there are questions about whether they would want to take the defensive hit in the middle of their infield that they would suffer if he was a starter. Far more likely is that one of their two solid third basemen will move over to second and the more obvious candidate would be 27-year old Luis Rodriguez, who already has some experience at the position. It remains to be seen what role the defensively gifted Hoover might end up in.
For the Diamond Kings the big question is what this means for current starting second baseman Chris Standafer, who is strong defensively but a weaker hitter than Keisel though a much better runner.
Could another trade be on the horizon?