Rangers acquire Ryan Dempster

The Rangers have acquired pitcher Ryan Dempster from the Cubs in exchange for minor league third baseman Christian Villanueva and minor league pitcher Kyle Hendricks. The Braves and Dodgers were favorites to acquire Dempster, but Texas eventually jumped in last minute and acquired the 35 year old righty.

Dempster was drafted by the Rangers in the third round back in the 1995 draft, but was traded to the Marlins the following day. The Rangers have been looking to acquire a pitcher ever since Colby Lewis went down with an elbow injury earlier this month. Dempster has about $4.9 million remaining on his contract, then he will become a free agent.

Dempster has had a fantastic season, posting a 2.25 ERA in 104 innings with the Cubs. The Rangers will not be able to obtain draft pick compensation for Dempster, since they are acquiring him midway through his final year of his contract.

Villanueva has a .285 batting average in 425 plate appearances at the Single-A level this year. He entered the season ranked as the 100th best prospect in the MLB, according to Baseball America. He has a career .286 batting average in four minor league seasons.

Hendricks has a 2.82 ERA in 130 2/3 innings over the course of 20 Single-A starts this year. He has 150 strikeouts and just 21 walks in 166 1/3 innings since being selected in the eighth round of the 2011 draft.

Analysis: Finally the Dempster saga is over. I was getting tired of hearing about his trade rumors. Anyway, I think the Cubs won this trade. Before you bash me for saying that, here me out. Dempster is a great pitcher, but he is a free agent at the end of the year. Plus there is no guarantee that he will stay healthy and there is no guarantee that he will continue his strong performance in a tough American League. As for the Cubs, I think these two prospects are going to be key pieces in Chicago's future. Villanueva seems like a solid player and he will turn into a star. Hendricks seems like a front of the rotation starter and I'm excited to see him develop.