It shouldn’t really come as a surprise that the Philadelphia Phillies are trading for another big name pitcher at the deadline.

If there’s any team in the National League that loves acquiring aces, it’s Philadelphia, which is clinging on to a 3.5 game deficit in the NL East.

Trades are exciting, but this one is actually kind of dumbfounding.

Why in the hell would they ship off Cliff Lee last December, just to trade for Oswalt now?

The Phillies plan on sending J.A. Happ and two prospects to the Houston Astros in return for Oswalt, according to Fox 26 Houston.

Happ has started just three games this season, and owns a 1-0 SU record with a 1.76 ERA. While the 27-year old has potential, he’s no Roy Oswalt despite sitting third in the rotation.

Philadelphia already has Cole Hamels, a World Series hero from 2008, and acquired Roy Halladay from the Toronto Blue Jays in a trade over the winter that sent Cliff Lee to Seattle.

For those of you that have lost track of the rotating door at the mound for Philadelphia, Lee was acquired at last year’s trade deadline.

The fact that the Phillies are dealing for Oswalt after sending Lee away, ultimately, is the biggest head scratcher about this deal.

Oswalt is 6-12 SU in 20 starts with a 3.42 ERA despite playing with the Astros, the National League’s third worst team.

If you’re going to wheel-and-deal at the deadline, why would you trade away Lee in the first place?

Lee is 9-4 SU in 17 games started with a 2.40 ERA and has played for four teams in the past two seasons.

That has nothing to do with his talent, but trading for Oswalt at the 2010 MLB deadline shows that Philadelphia screwed up by ditching Lee in the first place.

First off, Lee is cheaper, slightly younger and left handed.

Philadelphia will have to absorb the remainder of Oswalt’s $15 million salary instead of paying Lee $9 million this year. Financially, it’s a pretty dumb screw up.

Let’s not forget that it’s not like they had to give up Lee to get Halladay in the first place.

Toronto ended up with a handful of prospects after sending Halladay south of the border, and didn’t even make a pitch to get Cliff Lee.

As a baseball betting fan, would you rather have started the season with Hamels, Halladay and Lee instead?

Or are you happy that the team is trying to swing for the fences by taking on Oswalt at mid-season?

Maybe the team thought they had enough firepower in the stable with Hamels and Halladay alone.

Even with the second best scoring offense in the National League (4.7 runs per game), a solid starting rotations and a decent bullpen, the Phillies find themselves sitting 6th in the National League.

Trades usually have a whiff of sex appeal and excitement. This one just stinks of desperation.