The Phillies traded for Houston Closer Billy Wagner today. Wagner had 19 win shares for Houston last year. He'll be replacing Mesa and Williams, who combined for 0 win shares for the Phillies. Philadelphia loses Brian Duckworth in the trade plus future considerations.

I'm not a big fan of closers, but the Phillies just picked up six wins with this move. It's lopsided, one-sided, and just what is needed as the new ballpark opens. I suspect that even Ben Franklin is excited about this deal. :-)

As for the Astros, they've freed $8 million they can use to find those six wins they lost. It looks like Dotel will be the closer. Eight million dollars can go a long way if you're careful how to spend it.

Update: Note that the Astros don't necessarily need to look for those wins in the bullpen. They have Dotel, who has stats very similar to Wagner's and should be an effective closer. Dotel had 12 win shares in a set up role, and a set up man is one you should be able to find without having to spend too much money. I think the best bet for the Astros is to look for those six wins (or more) in their starting rotation.