Braves trade Derek Lowe, sign Eric Hinske

Happy Halloween, Braves fans! Only instead of trick-or-treat, the Atlanta Braves gave its fans all treats. With a wealth of young arms and a shortage of dependable bats, the Braves made a pair of moves about 90 minutes apart Monday afternoon that should amount to a major step forward. At around noon, the Braves announced they were picking up the option on veteran Eric Hinske, while declining the option on Nate McLouth. Around 1:30, they confirmed a two-player deal with the Cleveland Indians that sent Derek Lowe to Cleveland for 23-year-old minor-league, lefty reliever Chris Jones. "We felt that we needed to give our young pitchers an opportunity to pitch in the rotation and this opened up that opportunity," said Braves General Manager Frank Wren. "It also frees up additional dollars to build our club for next year." Approximately 5 million, as reports say that the Braves will give Cleveland an estimated 10 million to help off-set Lowe's 15 million salary...