Galaxy Guaranteed Contract Day Moves

By: NathanHJ | July 1st, 2009

As has been widely reported in the futbol blogosphere, the Galaxy made a trade today with Chivas USA, sending a conditional 2010 draft pick and allocation money down the hall in return for striker Alecko Eskandarian. To make space on the roster, the team cut holding midfielder Josh Tudela on the day his 2009 contract was to be guaranteed.

Eskandarian has been hobbled by injury for the past few years, and has yet to match the tantalizing promise of his 2004 season when he scored 10 goals for DC United and was the MLS Cup MVP. He was slowed by injury again this season with Chivas USA. He joined Chivas in January 2008 and has only appeared in 18 games, scoring six times in the process. This year he’s only started twice and seen the field in seven games.

Josh Tudela has been with the Galaxy since 2007 when he was drafted out of Indiana (Dema Kovalenko’s alma mater) and only recently moved off of the developmental roster. He was one of the survivors of the horrific 2007 campaign that saw a few games late in the season when only 14 players could dress because of numerous injuries. He held steady in the middle during the team’s improbable late season winning streak that almost saw them sneak into the playoffs. I thought he was improving this season, though I was never ready to label him ready to start regularly. I hope that some team picks him off the waiver wire – some place that needs a developing holding midfielder. The kid has heart, that’s for sure.

As for Eskandarian, I’ll take him over Jovan Kirovski in a minute, even if he can’t stay healthy, even if he’s been having trouble being dangerous since he was shipped out of DC. If nothing else he’ll bring personality. I will forever remember him scoring against New York after the rebranding as Red Bull, grabbing a can of the stuff from the sideline, swigging it, and spitting it back on the field. More of that please.

But this isn’t the last roster change in the offing. With David Beckham (and you saw this note about our sneak peek at the new book about the Beckham Experiment, right?) the current roster lists 25 players. The roster limit is 24 and it still seems like Chris Birchall is coming on July 15th. That leaves two more players to get the ax. I’ve been chatting with some folks over email about possibles. Names mentioned include: Yohance Marshall, Tristan Bowen, Julian Valentin, Leonard Griffin, and Kyle Patterson. I think that the rules say you can’t cut someone who is on the Disabled List, so Marshall is safe until he comes off. Valentin is recovering from a broken foot, so he’s on the DL. Tristan Bowen is Generation Addidas and thus doesn’t count against the salary cap, so there’s value in keeping him.

So, what do you guys think? Was getting Eskandarian the right move? What about Tudela? Will you miss him? And, finally, who are your candidates for the cuts needed for Becks and Birchall to be on the roster? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.