The hitter-friendly dimensions of Fenway ought to suit Jason Bay just fine.

And now, the dust settles.

July 31 came and past once again, and it was a deadline plentiful with many of the deals that were speculated to go down. If you were under a rock or just busy Thursday, let’s put the fantasy spin on it all.

Just when it seemed to be dead, the Manny Ramirez talks came back from the dead like the Rambo series, with the controversial star landing not far from Hollywood in a Dodgers uniform. Sticking with Manny, he’s been fairly consistent this year. But now he’s going from a loaded Red Sox lineup to a park that has been far from favorable in terms of home runs and a lineup in which he’ll be counted on to be the centerpiece and more. Now might not be the worst time to parlay Ramirez onto an owner who’s buying into the hype of the Manny sweepstakes, or a Dodgers fan. Sticking with Los Angeles, keep in mind that some combination of Andre Ethier, Matt Kemp, Andruw Jones and Juan Pierre figure to lose value. If Jones can possibly lose more value, that is.

As for the secondary names, Jason Bay comes over to Beantown from the Pirates in the three-team deal. In evaluating Bay, throw 2007 out the window, along with his .220 post-All Star average. It was an anomaly, as Bay was still driving balls as he is this year. Bay will take his 22 round-trippers and undoubtedly enjoy the shallow left-field dimensions of Fenway Park, along with the protection of hitting around guys like David Ortiz and Mike Lowell. Overall, his numbers should rise a little bit from leaving the not-as-friendly hitting confines of PNC Park.

Pittsburgh gets the prospects in the deal, highlighted by Andy LaRoche most significantly, who is united with his brother Adam. LaRoche batted just .203 in 27 games with the Dodgers earlier this year, but has been hitting very well in Triple-A. I thought of Jose Bautista, the current third basement for Pittsburgh, as even a decent sleeper this year, but LaRoche should get a shot sooner than later this year to supplant him. He’ll hit at an above-average clip and for decent power a few years down the road.

In a much less significant deal, a big name was still dealt, seeing Ken Griffey Jr. land in the Windy City with the White Sox, who sent Nick Masset and Danny Richar to the reds. On first glance, this looks like a good AL-only addition; Griffey moves to a lineup that’s heating up, and into one of the strongest ballparks for power hitters. Not so fast. It’s assumed that Griffey will man center field and push Nick Swisher to first base, which makes Paul Konerko the real loser of this deal. Jim Thome’s value shouldn’t be affected too much, as he’s raised his average nearly 30 points in July and looks primed for a great second half. As for the future Hall of Famer, a .212 average against left-handed pitching is an eyesore, which may mean some sort of musical chairs. Figure a possibly slight boost in average and RBIs for Griffey to be the only difference, who probably fits in as a No. 4 or 5 outfielder for AL owners, but probably still not worth picking up in vanilla mixed leagues.

From a non-fantasy standpoint, I’m not so sure the White Sox upgrade in this deal. I don’t think the Red Sox are really downgrading in the Ramirez-Bay deal. The Yankees were one team who probably filled a great need picking up Pudge Rodriguez for the price of Kyle Farnsworth. Regardless, let’s move onto a few notes from Thursday’s games.

In New York, Pudge went just 1-for-3, but plenty of other fireworks were among the action. Torii Hunter continued his torrid pace, no pun intended, continuing a blistering July after what was looking to be an underwhelming follow-up to his 2007 campaign. After hitting four dingers in April, the most for any month this season, Hunter blasted his ninth for July off Andy Pettitte. His average has risen back up over .281 as well. Also, if you missed out on trading for Howie Kendrick while his value was low, well, that train took off sometime last month, too. Owners who stashed Kendrick through an injury that plundered two months of his season are now seeing why this guy was pinned as being a future batting title champion. Kendrick is hitting an electric .379 in July, and has added some extra value; after stealing just five bags in 338 at-bats in 2007, Kendrick swiped his eighth Thursday, with roughly 100 less plate appearances no less.

In one of my leagues, Jason Kubel is probably one of the best bats available on the waiver wire. Yet he’s been extremely valuable in my AL-only league as an outfielder and DH. Kubel, who hit his 14th HR yesterday, hit roughly .240 for the first two months of the season, and after another vote of confidence, he’s hitting closer to .300 since. Kubel might come somewhere close to owner’s expectations for 2008, but what’s holding him back still from being the .285-25-90 masher he flashes potential for being? Try this dreaded split: In 58 ABs, he continues to hit a mediocre .172 against lefties, which explains why he continues to sit for Craig Monroe.

File this one under the “Draft him in 2009” file: Jayson Werth is a beast. Werth hasn’t reached full-time at bats, partially due to an oblique strain that sidelined him for two weeks. Here’s a guy who, like Juan Rivera as of late, could be a monster with another chunk of playing time. He’s now belted 15 homers after one against the Nationals, right along with 11 steals. Give this guy 500-plus at-bats, and I think we’re talking about a .275/30/20 guy by the end of September.

I’ll be back with Extra Innings Sunday, but until then, have a safe weekend.