The Matt Morris mystery move has been scrutinized by front office executives around baseball like scientists examining an asteroid that came screaming through space with no warning.

Verdict: The last-place Pittsburgh Pirates' acquisition of the decidedly average 33-year-old with one year and $13.5 million left on his contract was a commentary on the sorry state of pitching everywhere and the alarming escalation of salaries.

Not to mention a tacit admission of how few veterans want to play for the perennially pathetic Pirates. Pessimistic that any self-respecting free-agent pitcher would sign with his club this off-season, Pittsburgh general manager Dave Littlefield traded for one that is locked up for another year.

And the move doesn't appear to be leading to Morris clearing waivers and being dealt to a contender. During conversations that led to the trade with the San Francisco Giants for reserve outfielder Rajai Davis and a minor leaguer in the last hour before the non-waiver trading deadline, Littlefield told his Giants counterpart, Brian Sabean, that he had no deal in place to spin Morris to another team.

Littlefield had determined Morris was a worthwhile acquisition – his 7-7 record, 4.35 earned-run average and horrendous July notwithstanding.

"They wanted him because he's a veteran presence and because in this market, he's not overpaid, in the Pirates' estimation," a rival GM said.

Morris is being counted on to steady a young rotation that includes Ian Snell, Tom Gorzelanny, Paul Maholm and – when his elbow heals – Zach Duke.

Morris' numbers are similar to those of the Milwaukee Brewers' Jeff Suppan and the Kansas City Royals' Gil Meche. Littlefield had just enough left in his 2007 budget to afford the $4 million Morris will make the rest of this season and was itching to spend it because his job – and manager Jim Tracy's – might depend on the Pirates not completely collapsing.

Dealing shortstop Jack Wilson and the $15.35 million he is due after this season – the Detroit Tigers are pursuing him to spell the fatigued Carlos Guillen – could free payroll. Yet more than anything, Littlefield's acquisition of Morris is proof the Pirates aren't working under the assumption that desirable free agents want to play in Pittsburgh.

FIVE …

• Mike Maroth can't be merely tipping his pitches, as St. Louis Cardinals pitching coach Dave Duncan believes and Albert Pujols tried to correct during a video session with Maroth.

He must also be shouting the precise velocity and location with a bullhorn. How else to explain an 11.08 ERA and .389 opponents' batting average in eight appearances since begin acquired from the Tigers? "When a guy like Maroth is showing his pitches, it's a plus for a hitter," Pujols told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. "His best pitch is a changeup. And now you don't have to worry about his changeup because you know when it's coming."

• Eventually Milton Bradley's venom will spew in the direction of his newest employer. He'll rip San Diego Padres GM Kevin Towers, or maybe even Paul DePodesta, a Padres executive and the person who has been in Bradley's corner longer than anyone. The volatile, injury-plagued outfielder is enjoying a honeymoon period in San Diego, yet he couldn't help himself from unloading on Oakland Athletics GM Billy Beane, the last executive who gave Bradley a chance to redeem himself.

"Billy just has a way of thinking he's smarter and better than everyone else, and I don't take kindly to the better-than-you attitude," Bradley told the San Francisco Chronicle. "I don't think Billy cared about how I was. He knew he could use me for cheap and get a lot out of me. … You tell me I'm not an everyday player, and I just have to laugh at you because there's not a player they've got over there that's better than me. It's just a joke."

• Bradley isn't the only Padres player popping off. Pitcher David Wells, knowing Bud Selig was in San Diego over the weekend to watch Barry Bonds chase Hank Aaron's home run record, invited the commissioner for a chitchat after learning that he is being fined an additional $5,000 for comments he made following his seven-game suspension for an ejection a month ago.

"I guess I'll be my own attorney," Wells said. "I'll depose Bud. I've got some questions I want to ask him. I wish he'd come down and meet me face-to-face."

• The Arizona Diamondbacks tinkered with their roster and are tearing up the National League West, winning nine of their last 11 and gaining seven games on the Los Angeles Dodgers in that time, going from three games behind them to four games up. They lead the second-place Padres by 1½ games. The Dodgers have lost five consecutives series and opted to go with youth rather than make a significant deal at the trading deadline.

Not that the Diamondbacks' acquisitions of Jeff Cirillo, Byung-Hyun Kim and Joe Kennedy are earth-shaking. And they might not even have been purposeful. But they add depth and maturity to a young team.

"We essentially – some by accident, by some design – got depth and insurance so that if we had injuries with our pitching, we're a lot more covered today than we were a couple of days ago," GM Josh Byrnes told the Arizona Republic, adding that he submitted waiver claims on the players in part to block other teams from them. Now that the Diamondbacks are in first place, however, the Dodgers and Padres can claim a player off waivers before them.

• Blowing a five-run lead in the ninth inning before losing in 11 innings is no way for a division leader to behave. The Milwaukee Brewers' implosion against the Philadelphia Phillies on Sunday seemed to have been anticipated by the crowd at Miller Park. Camera shots showed fans in various phases of duress – from dread to horror to resignation – with every pitch from closer Francisco Cordero.

Brewers rookie Ryan Braun became the fastest player to reach 20 home runs in team history, belting his 20th in his 64th game since getting promoted from Triple-A. However, his error with two outs in the ninth enabled two runs to score and tie the game.

… AND FLY

On Milestone Weekend, we shouldn't forget the ageless, physique-less Matt Stairs reaching his 1,500th game played.