Now that the Braves have won the Teixeira sweepstakes, they'll see if they can parlay that into a postseason berth.

They finalized a major trade Monday for Texas Rangers first baseman Mark Teixeira, a deal that also brings needed bullpen help to Atlanta in the form of veteran Rangers left-hander Ron Mahay.

Associated Press (ENLARGE)

Rangers first baseman Mark Teixera comes to Atlanta for Jarrod Saltalamacchia and three other top prospects under terms of a deal finalized Monday.

Your Turn Now that Teixeira's with the Braves, how much can he help this season?   Take the pennant and more. See ya, Mets!   Just getting into postseason contention would be good.   He's just one bat, one player.   Too bad he can't pitch. He'd be perfect. Voter Limit: Once per Hour View Poll Results

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An expected announcement never came Monday, but a person familiar with negotiations said that medical-record formalities needed to be completed and wouldn't hold up a deal before Tuesday's 4 p.m. non-waiver trade deadline.

Meanwhile, the Braves continued to push on other trade fronts and made offers for Kansas City closer Octavio Dotel and Cincinnati starter Bronson Arroyo. The Royals might take the Braves' offer of demoted starter Kyle Davies for Dotel, the Kansas City Star reported.

Dotel has a 3.91 ERA with 11 saves and 29 strikeouts in 23 innings, and would potentially give the Braves a formidable late-innings quartet with sidearmer Peter Moylan, Rafael Soriano and Bob Wickman.

The Braves will pay a hefty price for Teixeira and Mahay, parting with four prospects including switch-hitting catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia, slick-fielding shortstop prospect Elvis Andrus and two of their top pitching prospects.

It's the most significant midseason trade for the Braves in 14 years, since they got first baseman Fred McGriff from San Diego on July 18, 1993. They hope Teixeira will help spark a playoff drive as McGriff did.

One of the pitching prospects will be Matt Harrison, provided the Rangers are satisfied that his recently sore shoulder is sound. They'll examine medical records closely and might wait to see him pitch a couple more times.

The Rangers could substitute another pitching prospect if not pleased with Harrison, though Jo-Jo Reyes isn't available in the pool they can pick from.

The second pitcher will be right-hander Neftali Feliz, 19, a hard-throwing Dominican rated the Braves' No. 18 prospect by Baseball America. He has 70 strikeouts in 5 1/3 innings in two seasons at Rookie and Class-A levels.

Saltalamacchia, Andrus and Harrison were rated the Braves' top three prospects last winter, in that order. The Rangers chose the Braves' package over offers from the Arizona Diamondbacks and Los Angeles Dodgers and Angels.

The Rangers will be taking a big chunk of the Braves' top minor league talent. But the third-place Braves, who were 41/2 games behind New York in the NL East before Monday, are going all out to try and reclaim the division title.

They've lost nine of 14 games and their bullpen is worn thin. Mahay will help there, and the Braves could make another move to strengthen the bullpen.

Chipper Jones said Sunday that acquiring a left-hander would be crucial.

"I really feel like that's a big, big move for us down these last two months, especially within our division — how we're going to get out the big left-handed bats in our division," Jones said. "We need someone who's going to get those guys out in the seventh, eighth and ninth innings, or else they'll kill you."

The Mets' Carlos Delgado and Shawn Green, who've ravaged Braves pitching throughout their careers, are a combined 1-for-19 against Mahay.

But the Braves' primary objective in the trade was the addition of Teixeira, who strengthens a lineup that now ranks among baseball's best. "Tex" joins Jones to give Atlanta two disciplined switch-hitters who hit for power and average.

Teixeira, 27, is a two-time Gold Glove winner who hit .282 with 140 homers and 450 RBIs in his first four seasons (2003-2006), including 43 homers with 144 RBIs in 2005. The only players who hit more homers in their first four seasons were Albert Pujols, Eddie Mathews and Ralph Kiner.

Teixeira's hit .297 with 24 doubles, 13 homers, 49 RBIs and a .397 on-base percentage in 78 games this season, and missed 27 games with a strained quadriceps. He played every game during the previous two seasons.

The Braves made the move to fill two glaring weaknesses. They had no lefty reliever, and their first basemen ranked last in the majors in overall offense.

Teixeira is a former Georgia Tech standout with an affinity for Atlanta, which could give the Braves an advantage if they attempt to sign him to a long-term contract. He can become a free agent after the 2008 season.

He's making $9 million this season and could command about $12 million next season in his final year of arbitration. His agent is hard-driving Scott Boras, who also represents center fielder Andruw Jones. Jones is eligible for free agency after this season.

Julio Franco could be moved to a pinch-hitting and backup first-base role.

The Braves are giving up a potential star in Saltalamacchia and potential Gold Glove shortstop in the 18-year-old Andrus, a Venezuela defensive phenom.

But they already have a two-time All-Star catcher, Brian McCann, who's 23 and signed a six-year extension in March. The Braves are three-deep in shortstops behind veteran Edgar Renteria, signed through 2008 with a club option for 2009.

The Braves won't hesitate to move ascendant rookie Yunel Escobar to the starting shortstop role if they trade Renteria this year or next.

Mahay, 36, was an important part of the deal for Atlanta, which had no lefty in its bullpen after trading Macay McBride to Detroit in a June lefty swap for Wil Ledezma, who struggled mightily and was designated for assignment Sunday.

Mahay was 2-0 with a 2.77 ERA in 28 appearances. Lefties hit .250 with two homers in 64 at-bats against him, with five walks and a .310 on-base percentage.