When Brewers GM Dean Taylor dealt reliever David Weathers to the Cubs for starter Ruben Quevedo Monday, it hearkened back to last July 28 when he acquired Richie Sexson and Paul Rigdon from Cleveland (as well as Kane Davis and Marcos Scutaro) for pitchers Bob Wickman, Jason Bere and Steve Woodard.

Though Taylor gave up 30 percent of the team's pitching staff, the deal was clearly a good one for Milwaukee. In the year since, Sexson has hit .267 (159 hits) with 40 homers and 118 RBIs. Muse all you want on his 184 punchouts in 595 ABs, 40-homer, 26-year-olds do not come cheap.

Even if you don't like the Sexson deal, Taylor's prodigious nature is notable. On the current 25-man roster, only seven players (Chad Fox, Allen Levrault, Ben Sheets, Ron Belliard, Mark Loretta, Geoff Jenkins and Jeromy Burnitz) were on the club or in the system when Taylor took over in autumn of 1999. The team has not improved in the standings, but certainly not for a lack of trying.

What of the other moves? So far, they've been a mixed bag, and several key ones are still shaking out in the daily box scores. Let's look at Taylor's winners, losers and all the others.

Winners

RP Mike DeJean and P Mark Leiter and IF Elvis Pena for RP Juan Acevedo, P Kane Davis and IF Jose Flores (trade with Rockies, April 2001) - DeJean's effectiveness (57.2 IP, 2.03) is a big improvement over Acevedo's inconsistency. He also made Weathers even more expendable. Acevedo was originally acquired for Fernando Vina in Dec. 1999 in a deal with St. Louis, also under Taylor's watch.

OF Devon White for OF Marquis Grissom (trade with Dodgers, March 2001) - With the team's uncanny injury problems, White has been a godsend. He has 28 extra base hits and 10 steals in bench duty and still plays an effortless center field. Grissom (16 HR, 44 RBIs) had a big contact and a bad history in Milwaukee.

Sexson, et al (July 200) -- Jury deliberations continue on Rigdon, who went down with an elbow injury in early July after bouts of promise. But none of the three players lost are likely to ever haunt Taylor.

RP Ray King for Doug Johnston (trade with Cubs, April 2000) - King has been the Brewers' lone bullpen lefty this year, and was nearly unhittable in 2000 (1.26). If you can tell me who Johnston is, I owe you a drink.

Claimed C Raul Casanova off waivers (March 2000) - At times, Casanova appears to be the only Crew member capable of getting home a man from third with less than two outs. The former Tiger prospect has also shown good power (9 HR) in a part-time role.

IF Tyler Houston signing (FA, Jan. 2000) - Houston was team's most consistent hitter this year before going down in mid-July. The affordable infielder belted 18 homers in 284 ABs in 2000.

SS Jose Hernandez signing (FA, Dec. 1999) - Yeah, it looked awful last year, and Jose will always whiff too much. But until a recent slide, his 17 homers and 46 RBIs looked awfully nice and his defense at short has been exceptional.

Losers

P John Snyder and P Jamie Navarro for P Cal Eldred and SS Jose Valentin (trade with White Sox, Jan 2000) - Eldred benefited from getting out of town and Valentin was eventually fully replaced by Hernandez, but Snyder and Navarro were absolutely awful in their brief stints in Milwaukee. Taylor likely has repressed memories of this one.

OF Mark Sweeney and Gene Altman for OF Alex Ochoa (trade with Reds, Jan. 2000) - Ochoa (.292/7/42) was recently dealt to the Rockies for Todd Walker and Robin Jennings, and he's certainly better than James Mouton as a fourth OF. Sweeney never regained his impressive pinch-hitting form of 1999 and is at AAA-Indianapolis.

P Brandon Kolb and P Will Cunnane for SS Santiago Perez and OF Chad Green (trade with Padres, Dec. 2000) - Kolb and Cunnane have been consistently bad, while Perez could still become a decent major-league shortstop. The failure of high draft pick Green is on Sal Bando's resume, not Taylor's.

OF Jeffrey Hammonds signing (Dec. 2000) - The oft-injured one has been injured often. He may bounce back a la Hernandez in 2002, and his huge contract demands it in order for Taylor and the Brewers to break even.

TBD

P Jamey Wright, P Jimmy Haynes and C Henry Blanco for 3B Jeff Cirillo (three-way deal with Rockies and Devil Rays, Dec. 1999) - Taylor's major move until the Sexson deal continues to teeter between success and failure. Wright (8-7, 4.13) showed flashes of being a quality No. 2 man, but has struggled with injuries and consistency; Haynes' Brewer career should be on life support after continuing struggles (7-13, 4.85); and even Blanco's vaunted defense is starting to suffer along with an inept bat. Cirillo (.307/13/58) hasn't completely panned in Denver, but his consistent stick is precisely what the Crew lacks.

RP Curtis Leskanic for RP Mike Myers (trade with Rockies, Nov. 1999) - The Leskanic move looked brilliant when he closed 11 of 12 save opportunities after Wickman's departure in 2000, but he's blown several of his few chances this season. Myers remains the lefty out-getter he was here, but King has filled his role adequately.

Two-year contract with Jeromy Burnitz (March 2001) - At the time, this move looked terrific, but Burnitz's numbers (.241/22/66) pale in comparison to would-be Brewer Phil Nevin's in San Diego (.315/29/88), the guy Taylor tried to trade for before the Pads balked at Burnie's money demands.

Miscellaneous

Had the Brewers wanted to badly enough, they could have re-signed Weathers. But considering he was a waiver pickup in the Bando regime, Quevedo's youthful promise is worth losing him. Taylor likes reclamation projects (Mike Buddie, Lance Painter, Mac Suzuki, and Angel Echevarria on the current roster), and his bottom-feeding pays off every so often. Taylor also decided not to re-sign Hideo Nomo for the 2000 season (11-4, 3.86 with Boston) for financial reasons.