On the frenzied last day before the trading deadline, a number of stars are on the move: P Jake Peavy goes from San Diego to the White Sox, C Victor Martinez moves from Cleveland to Boston, SS Orlando Cabrera from Oakland to Minnesota, 3B Scott Rolen from the Blue Jays to the Reds, and P Jarrod Washburn from Seattle to Detroit. Five other deals involving major leaguers are also completed, but the star most-rumored to be on the trading block over the past two weeks, Toronto’s Roy Halladay, stays put.

In a stunning last-minute deal, the White Sox obtain Jake Peavy from the Padres for four pitching prospects, Clayton Richard, Aaron Poreda, Dexter Carter, and Adam Russell. The 2007 NL Cy Young Award winner, presently on the disabled list, had previously refused to waive his no-trade clause to join Chicago in a similar deal proposed in May.

The Marlins acquire Nick Johnson from the Nationals in exchange for left-handed pitching prospect Aaron Thompson. The 30 year-old injury-prone first baseman’s ability to get on base should provide more scoring opportunities for a Florida team vying for a wild-card berth.

Cliff Lee’s adaptation to the National League is a quick one. Traded to the Phillies on July 29th, Lee gives up no hits over the first five innings against the Giants, on his way to a complete-game four-hitter. He adds two base hits of his own in the 5 – 1 win.

A story in the New York Times states that sluggers David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez are among the 104 major leaguers who tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs in 2003. The test results were supposed to be kept secret, but Alex Rodriguez’s presence on the list of those who tested positive had already been leaked earlier this year. Ortiz states that he was not aware he had tested positive six years earlier and denies using steroids.

Action continues on the trading front with Los Angeles acquiring closer George Sherrill from the Baltimore Orioles for two players currently at AA Chattanooga. For their part, the Pirates are still busy house-cleaning, sending Ps John Grabow and Tom Gorzelanny to the Cubs, one day after trading three players on their 25-man roster. The Pirates receive P Kevin Hart and Jose Ascanio and minor league infielder Josh Harrison from their NL Central rivals.

In an attempt to upgrade their starting rotation, the first-place Phillies obtain Cliff Lee from the Indians. The defending World champs, who also get outfielder Ben Francisco in the deal, trade pitching prospects Carlos Carrasco and Jason Knapp, infielder Jason Donald, and catcher Lou Marson to get last season’s AL Cy Young Award Winner.

In a thriller in St. Louis, the Cardinals rally from a 1 – 0 deficit with two outs in the 9th against Dodgers closer Jonathan Broxton. A broken-bat single by Colby Rasmus sends the game into extra innings, negating a great start by Clayton Kershaw, who pitches 8 scoreless innings for Los Angeles, helped by a magnificent leaping catch by slugger Manny Ramirez at the LF fence that robs St. Louis of at least two runs in the 7th. Both teams score in the 11th, then in the 15th, Brendan Ryan leads off with a triple, and, two outs later, Albert Pujols hits a single off Jeff Weaver to end the marathon, handing Blake Hawksworth the 3 – 2 victory, his first in the big leagues.