Cubs Get Lawton From Pirates

Needing a spark at the top of their lineup, the Chicago Cubs went dealing again with the Pittsburgh Pirates, acquiring outfielder Matt Lawton on Sunday just before the non-waiver trade deadline.

The Cubs sent outfielder Jody Gerut, whom they obtained in a trade with Cleveland on July 18, to the Pirates.

“I just hope it works out like it did in ‘03,” Cub General Manager Jim Hendry said.

In July two years ago, Chicago worked a trade with the Pirates to acquire Aramis Ramirez and Kenny Lofton and they helped lead the Cubs to the National League championship series.

The Cubs are 53-52 after losing for the third time in four games to the Arizona Diamondbacks, but are still hopeful of winning the NL wild card.

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The Atlanta Braves, seeking to strengthen their bullpen, acquired Kyle Farnsworth from the Detroit Tigers.

Farnsworth, a hard-throwing right-hander who had been the Tigers’ closer, will be the setup man for closer Chris Reitsma.

In 42 2/3 innings, Farnsworth yielded only 29 hits while striking out 55. Opposing batters have hit .192 against him.

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The San Diego Padres activated right-hander Adam Eaton, their winningest pitcher, from the 15-day disabled list and optioned rookie right-hander Tim Stauffer to triple-A Portland.

Eaton had been on the disabled list since June 16 because of a strained tendon in his right middle finger. He is 9-2 with a 3.42 earned-run average.

The Padres plan to work Eaton out of the bullpen to allow him to build up his arm strength.

Stauffer made 14 starts and one relief appearance for the Padres, going 3-6 with a 5.33 ERA.

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The Chicago White Sox, looking to add a reliable backup for third baseman Joe Crede, acquired Geoff Blum from the Padres for minor league pitcher Ryan Meaux. The switch-hitting Blum has played second base, third base, shortstop, first base and the outfield.

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The Florida Marlins acquired left-handed reliever Ron Villone from Seattle in exchange for minor league pitchers Yorman Bazardo and Mike Flannery.

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Cub shortstop Nomar Garciaparra took another encouraging step in his recovery from a torn left groin, getting a hit in two at-bats in a rehabilitation start for double-A West Tennessee. He also handled his one chance in the field, turning a double play.