Former Baseball Cat Joe Blanton and 2008 World Champion was traded from the Philadelphia Phillies to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday afternoon after he cleared wavers.  Blanton arrived in Philadelphia after being traded from the Athletics in 2008 and helped the Phillies win their second World Series in franchise history by winning game four against the Tampa Bay Rays.  He contributed to his own cause by hitting a solo homerun, the first of his career, in the game.  Blanton is 8-9 with 20 starts on the season for the Phillies who are mired in last place in the NL East and are dumping salaries.

Blanton pitched for the Cats from 2000-2002 with a 13-12 career record and a 4.95 ERA.  In in junior season, he led the SEC with 133 strikeouts.  The following summer he was drafted in the first round (24th overall) by the Oakland Athletics.  Overall Blanton is 81-71 with a 4.35 ERA in nine MLB seasons.