The Seattle Sounders have announced that midfielder Pete Vagenas has been traded to Colorado Rapids in exchange for defenders Julien Baudet and Danny Earls.
Vagenas is an 11-year MLS veteran and has been with Seattle for the past two seasons, chosen by the team in the 2008 expansion draft. This season, Vagenas had 10 appearances with the club before being placed on the disabled list with a quadriceps strain. In an interesting move, Vagenas has now been left unprotected for this season's expansion draft, scheduled to take place on Wednesday.
Trading away Vagenas could be considered a sign of the Sounders' continued faith in youth, with the club favoring youngsters rather than experienced veterans. While Julien Baudet is a 31-year-old Frenchman, having played ten years in his native country, it is the arrival of Danny Earls that is more exciting for Seattle. The 21-year-old has been in MLS for just one year, starting 15 games for the Rapids.
Earls, a native of Dublin, Ireland, started his career with Wicklow Rovers before moving to Aston Villa. Although Earls never had an appearance for the senior side, the Villa reserves are one of the best sides in England, regularly winning the reserve league championship. A young, quality defender would go a long way toward strengthening the Seattle defense, which started to show signs of wear and tear at the end of last season.