A’s Trade Hudson to Braves

Tim Hudson was traded from the Oakland Athletics to Atlanta, a blockbuster deal Thursday that further bolstered the Braves’ revamped rotation.

The Dodgers, Boston and the New York Yankees were pursuing Hudson, but the Braves swooped in and got the Oakland ace for outfielder Charles Thomas and pitchers Juan Cruz and Dan Meyer.

With the A’s facing yet another payroll crunch, General Manager Billy Beane finally broke up his “Big Three” starting pitchers of Hudson, Mark Mulder and Barry Zito.

“Honestly it was tough to hear the news,” Hudson said. “I understand Billy has to do what he feels is best for the organization. You’ve got to move on sometimes. The hard part for us is all the friendships we’ve built in the Bay Area.”

It was Atlanta’s second big trade in a week. Last Saturday, the Braves acquired All-Star closer Dan Kolb from Milwaukee -- a move that allowed them to move John Smoltz back into the rotation.

“This winter, we have set our sights on going back to sort of the old-fashioned Braves’ way of building championship teams with dominant pitching,” Atlanta General Manager John Schuerholz said. “That’s what we think we have done.”

Moments after the trade was announced, the Braves unveiled another deal -- they sent outfielder Eli Marrero and cash to Kansas City for pitcher Jorge Vasquez.

The Braves began the day by reaching agreement with Smoltz on a two-year, $20-million contract.

Schuerholz said the flurry of activity “helps us create one of the stronger pitching staffs we’ve had here for many, many years.” He first began talks with Beane during the winter meetings in Anaheim.

The trade was finalized around midday Thursday, Beane said. The A’s wanted to make sure they acquired a pitcher -- Meyer -- who could compete right away for a spot in the rotation.

“Meyer has pitched at every level successfully,” Beane said. “... He’s a guy we’ve always liked.”

The Georgia-born Hudson posted 81 wins from 2000 to ‘04, tied for the most in the AL over that span. He is 92-39 with a 3.30 earned-run average lifetime.

Thomas made his major league debut last season and batted .288 with seven homers and 31 runs batted in. Cruz was 6-2 with a 2.75 ERA in 50 relief outings. Meyer was 0-0 in two games with Braves after going 9-6 with a 2.49 ERA at double-A Greenville and triple-A Richmond.

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Benito Santiago was traded by the Kansas City Royals to the Pittsburgh Pirates, who have sought a veteran catcher since trading Jason Kendall to Oakland last month.

The Royals get right-handed prospect Leo Nunez for Santiago, but also must pay about $1 million of Santiago’s $2.15-million salary in the second season of his two-year contract.

Santiago, a five-time All-Star and three-time Gold Glove winner, hit .274 with six homers and 23 RBIs in 49 games in 2004, but didn’t play after breaking his left hand June 18 against Philadelphia.

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As expected, pitcher Pedro Martinez was introduced at Shea Stadium, a day after he passed his physical and the New York Mets finalized his $53-million, four-year contract.

“It was more of a commitment from this team than it was money, actually,” Martinez said. “I gave Boston every opportunity to actually get me.”

Martinez turned down a three-year, $40.5 million offer from the Red Sox.

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The Chicago White Sox agreed to a three-year, $9.75-million deal with infielder Juan Uribe, avoiding arbitration.

Uribe hit .283 and set career highs with 23 home runs and 74 RBIs last season, his first with the White Sox after being acquired from Colorado.

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As the future of a Washington baseball team hangs in the balance, the mayor said it’s still possible to meet the Dec. 31 deadline for a deal.

Mayor Anthony A. Williams said his administration is working to pull together private financing to win the vote of District of Columbia Council Chairwoman Linda W. Cropp. An amendment she introduced requiring that at least half the stadium funding come from private sources was declared “wholly unacceptable” by Major League Baseball officials.

Cropp said all she wants is a way for the city to save money on the deal to build a $440-million ballpark near the Anacostia River waterfront.

But before she offers any compromises, Cropp wants baseball to extend its deadline.

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The Angels signed Kendry Morales after the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control cleared the Cuban defector to work in the U.S.

Morales and the Angels had agreed to a six-year contract Dec. 1 that could pay the former cleanup hitter for the Cuban national team as much as $10 million if he attains the bulk of his incentive clauses. Morales, 21, received a $3-million signing bonus.

To make room for Morales on their 40-man roster, the Angels designated for assignment injury-plagued pitching prospect Bobby Jenks. Jenks, 23, has a 100-mph fastball but was sidelined three times in the last two seasons because of stress reactions in his pitching elbow.

If Jenks is not traded in the next 10 days and clears waivers, the Angels will retain his rights.

Times staff writer Ben Bolch contributed to this report.