The Royals have traded minor league relief pitcher Victor Marte to the Cardinals for the always fun "future considerations." An elaborate document is being produced by a team of Cardinals calligraphers as we speak, to be delivered by courier to Kansas City by the week's end. Oh, the Cardinals owe the Royals for this one, they owe them big. And at some moment in the future, when they are especially vulnerable, Kansas City is going to call this favor in, nineteenth century drama style. Your past will always come back to find you, Mr. Chiltern.

Marte has been terrible in his brief appearances at the Major League level, including a 9.76 ERA in 22 games last season. Though he was 3-0 somehow, which earned him a down ballot Cy Young vote from Murray Chass.

The curious thing is, however, that Marte posted some decent numbers in the advanced minors. Nothing spectacular, mind you, but definitely not anything that would suggest that he's going to be a flaming ball of garbage at the Major League level. It seemed a little curious that he didn't make the bullpen last year, for example. 

Anyway, he's a (organizational) Cardinal now, showered in the love of the Best Fans in Baseball.