Archives for 2019

Here’s the roundup of what the NL’s teams did on trade deadline day…

Zac(k) Attack In ’Zona: It wasn’t clear for weeks whether the Diamondbacks would be buyers or sellers at the deadline, but they ended up making the day’s biggest trade, sending ace Zack Greinke to the Astros for four of Houston’s top prospects — right-handers Corbin Martin and J.B. Bukauskas, first baseman Seth Beer and infielder Joshua Rojas.  It’s a franchise-altering move that instantly gets $53MM of Greinke’s large contract off the books, and adds even more young talent to a farm system already bolstered by a huge draft class.  It remains to be seen if other veterans like Robbie Ray or David Peralta could be shopped in the offseason after not being dealt at the deadline, though GM Mike Hazen has long resisted a full rebuild, and Arizona’s made two other deadline moves that are also indicative of a desire to stay competitive.

The D’Backs dealt shortstop prospect Jazz Chisholm to the Marlins for rookie right-hander Zac Gallen, adding a controllable young arm who has already had some success at the Major League level into the rotation.  The Snakes further added to their starting five by acquiring Mike Leake (and just $6MM of Leake’s remaining salary through 2020) from the Mariners for young infielder Jose Caballero.

Cub-Stellanos: The Cubs acquired southpaw Brad Wieck and some international bonus money from the Padres for Carl Edwards Jr., then dealt backup catcher Martin Maldonado to the Astros for second baseman/outfielder Tony Kemp.  It was a pair of useful pickups for players who no longer seemed like roster fits, but the Cubs saved their biggest trade for last with the addition of Nick Castellanos.  Chicago sent Paul Richan and Alex Lange to the Tigers for Castellanos, whose production has taken a step backwards this season after three very solid years in Motown, though it wouldn’t be surprising if Castellanos hits better now that he is free of the trade rumors that have swirled around him for months.

Not Done Yet: The Padres and Reds each swung their biggest move of deadline season on Tuesday night, in the huge three-team trade with the Indians that saw Trevor Bauer, Yasiel Puig, Franmil Reyes, and Taylor Trammell all switch uniforms.  But San Diego wasn’t quite done trading, as per the aforementioned deal that brought Carl Edwards Jr. from the Cubs.  Cincinnati had an even busier day, both in trading Gennett to the Giants and then moving Tanner Roark to the Athletics for outfield prospect Jameson Hannah, a second-rounder from the 2018 draft.

Giant Steps: If you learned a month ago that the Giants were going to make five deadline-day trades, you wouldn’t have at all been surprised — San Francisco had been pegged as deadline sellers for months.  But while the Giants did move out some excess pieces, their recent surge up the standings also made them buyers, acquiring Scooter Gennett from the Reds for cash in an attempt to upgrade at second base.  Time will tell if the Giants will remain in the wild card hunt, or if their hot streak was ultimately rather ill-timed, and the team cost itself a chance to trade some veterans and add some much-needed young talent into the pipeline.

The Giants did move some pitching, but Madison Bumgarner, Will Smith and Tony Watson remain, while Sam Dyson (who went to the Twins) was the only premium arm dealt.  San Francisco also sent Drew Pomeranz and Ray Black to the Brewers for intriguing young infielder Mauricio Dubon, and Mark Melancon to the Braves for Tristan Beck and Dan Winkler.  While Melancon was pitching well, the fact that Atlanta is covering all the roughly $18.6MM owed to Melancon through next season is an unexpected boon for San Francisco.

The Braves’ Bullpen Blowout: After getting Chris Martin from Texas on Tuesday, the Braves swung two more deals that brought Tigers closer Shane Greene into the fold, as well as former Giants closer Mark Melancon.  Dan Winkler and Tristan Beck went to San Francisco, while left-hander Joey Wentz and outfielder Travis Demeritte went to Detroit.  While none of Atlanta’s top prospects were dealt, the Braves paid a rather unexpected cost of another kind in absorbing Melancon’s hefty salary.  Melancon hasn’t been a true difference-maker since his heyday with the Pirates), and all advanced metrics suggest that Greene’s startling 1.18 ERA is due for some big regression.  Still, even good production from these two veterans will help Atlanta’s relief core.  The Braves were linked to some starters and position players in recent days, though a minor depth deal for Diamondbacks backup catcher John Ryan Murphy marked the club’s only other swap.

The Nationals’ Trifecta: Not to be outdone in the NL East bullpen sweepstakes, the Nationals added three new pitchers to the relief corps.  Washington sent three minor league hurlers to the Mariners in a pair of trades that brought Roenis Elias and Hunter Strickland to D.C., while Daniel Hudson was acquired from the Blue Jays for right-handed prospect Kyle Johnston.  This isn’t the first time even this season that the Nats have overhauled their inconsistent bullpen, and they’re hoping that this final shakeup will at last smooth the late-inning path to closer Sean Doolittle.

Phillies Add Corey Dickerson: The Phils have been hurting in the outfield ever since Andrew McCutchen suffered a season-ending injury, so the team replaced one former Pirates outfielder with….another Pirates outfielder, grabbing Dickerson from the Bucs for international cash and a player to be named later.  Philadelphia also took a flier on Dan Straily in a minor trade with the Orioles, to see if Straily can recapture any of his Marlins form now that he’s back in the NL East.

Dodgers Focus On Depth: Rather than add a Yu Darvish or a Manny Machado like at past deadlines, the Dodgers avoided blockbusters in favor of two small deals.  L.A. supplemented its left-handed bullpen depth by acquiring Adam Kolarek from Tampa, and then brought yet another multi-position infielder into the mix in the form of Jedd Gyorko, as part of a trade with the Cardinals that also saw Los Angeles add international funds and cash considerations while Tony Cingrani and Jeffry Abreu went to St. Louis.  With a big lead in the NL West, the Dodgers are just tinkering for October at this point, though do they finally have the right mix to claim that elusive World Series?

Marlins Reel In Position Player Prospects: Miami dealt a young asset in Gallen for an even younger and perhaps more questionable asset in Chisholm, a top-100 prospect who has struggled in 2019.  But the Marlins also completed another trade involving moving young pitching for a young position player, as they also moved right-handers Nick Anderson and Trevor Richards to Tampa Bay for outfield prospect Jesus Sanchez and right-hander Ryne Stanek.  Like Chisholm, Sanchez is also having a subpar year, so the Marlins are hoping they’ve been able to buy low on a couple of potential everyday players for the future.

Pitching Depth In Milwaukee: The Brewers were linked to a number of notable pitchers on the rumor mill, though they ended up adding mostly depth arms between Pomeranz, Black, and Jacob Faria, who was acquired for struggling first baseman Jesus Aguilar in a deal with the Rays.  The addition of Jordan Lyles ended up being the Brewers’ biggest move, as the team decided to wait for its injured starters (Brandon Woodruff, Jhoulys Chacin) to return rather than make a splashier rotation fix.  It could be a risky tactic for the Brew Crew, given how tight the NL Central race is between Milwaukee, Chicago, and St. Louis.

The Quiet Deadlines: Even with the Pirates in sell mode, Dickerson and Lyles were the only notable pieces moved by Pittsburgh, despite a lot of chatter surrounding Felipe Vazquez.  The Mets also had a lot of late rumblings about Zack Wheeler, though in the end, they didn’t make any deals.  The Rockies didn’t do anything apart from one minor trade with the Yankees, and the Cardinals also stood pat apart from the Gyorko trade.  St. Louis’ lack of action was perhaps the most surprising given the tight NL Central race — the front office was certainly annoyed at the inability to complete any major deals, yet the Cardinals will have to hope their current roster (plus some players returning from injury) are enough to reach the postseason.

Here’s a recap of some of the biggest moves made by American League teams on what ended up being a very busy day of trade deadline action…

Astros Add Arms: It was no surprise that Houston was looking to acquire starting pitching, but the Astros struck the day’s biggest trade just minutes before the 3pm CT deadline, acquiring Zack Greinke from the Diamondbacks for a four-prospect package.  While the Astros gave up some of their best minor leaguers to make the deal happen, the idea of a Greinke/Justin Verlander/Gerrit Cole trio atop the rotation (and, of course, the idea of another World Series trophy) was just too tempting for GM Jeff Luhnow to pass up.

If that wasn’t enough, the Astros also picked up right-handers Aaron Sanchez and Joe Biagini from the Blue Jays, with minor league outfielder Cal Stevenson also coming to Houston while Derek Fisher went to Toronto.  Biagini’s addition will bolster the relief corps while Sanchez will add even more depth to what now looks like a truly fearsome rotation, though Sanchez could potentially also be used out of the bullpen down the stretch.  Finally, the Astros acquired a familiar face behind the plate to help guide these new pitchers, sending Tony Kemp to the Cubs for catcher Martin Maldonado in what marks the second straight year the Astros have traded for Maldonado at the deadline.

Twins Land Sam Dyson: After adding Sergio Romo earlier in the week, Minnesota continued to augment its bullpen by acquiring Dyson from the Giants for three low-level prospects.  While relief pitching was a need, the Twins arguably needed just as much help in the rotation, yet the club couldn’t land a starter despite talks with multiple teams about some very notable names.

Athletics Trade For Tanner: While the A’s are still counting on some of their young arms to return from the injured list and make an impact on the postseason race, Oakland supplemented its rotation with a veteran in Tanner Roark.  The Athletics got Roark and $2.1MM in cash considerations for outfielder Jameson Hannah.  Despite a pretty solid year in Cincinnati, Roark was something of an odd man out after the Reds picked up Trevor Bauer on Tuesday, and the A’s pounced on the opportunity to add a rental player to their starting mix.

The Rays’ Shuffle Continues: Tampa Bay continued to be one of the deadline season’s most active teams, facing the need to both add reinforcements for the wild card chase and also pare down some names from a forthcoming 40-man roster crunch.  To this end, the Rays picked up the right-handed bat they had been seeking in Jesus Aguilar, landing the former All-Star first baseman from the Brewers in exchange for righty Jake Faria.  Another deal with the Marlins also saw the Rays bolster their their injury-riddled rotation with a regular starting pitcher (Trevor Richards) and also add a young and controllable reliever (Nick Anderson), though these adds came at a steep cost — top outfield prospect Jesus Sanchez and erstwhile “opener” Ryne Stanek are headed to Miami.  In other moves, the Rays sent Adam Kolarek to the Dodgers and, in a swap of minor leaguers, outfielder Joe McCarthy to the Giants.

Rangers And ChiSox Swing A Deal: The White Sox and Rangers combined on an interesting under-the-radar trade that saw Nate Jones and $1MM in international bonus pool funds head to Texas in exchange for two minor league pitchers.  The deal may have been more about the int’l signing money in the short term for the Rangers, though Jones could help the club next season if he gets healthy.  From Chicago’s perspective, the Pale Hose save some money in getting the oft-injured Jones’ contract off the books.

The Rebuild Continues In Detroit… Matt Boyd, Shane Greene, and Nick Castellanos were the three biggest trade chips on the Tigers’ plate, and while the controllable Boyd is staying put, Greene and Castellanos were shipped out.  The Tigers acquired minor league outfielder Travis Demeritte and lefty Joey Wentz from the Braves for Greene, and Castellanos went to the Cubs for two more young arms in Paul Richan and Alex Lange.

…and in Seattle… After weeks of speculation, the Mariners finally dealt Mike Leake, sending the right-hander to the Diamondbacks for prospect Jose Caballero.  The M’s will also eat roughly $12.66MM of Leake’s remaining salary (through the 2020 season) in the trade.  Roenis Elias and Hunter Strickland also departed the Emerald City, going to the Nationals in a pair of trades that netted the Mariners three minor league pitchers.

…and in Baltimore… The Orioles found a taker for the recently-outrighted Dan Straily, as the Phillies acquired the struggling right-hander.

…and in Toronto: In addition to the aforementioned Sanchez/Biagini deal with the Astros, the Blue Jays also sent Daniel Hudson to the Nationals for high-A ball right-hander Kyle Johnston.  The Jays were such clear deadline sellers that it’s also worth noting who they didn’t trade, as veterans Justin Smoak and Freddy Galvis are still with the team.  Ken Giles received some late buzz, though as expected, the closer’s elbow problem all but erased his trade candidacy.

The Quiet Deadlines: The Yankees and Red Sox almost entirely stood pat, so the arch-rivals will head down the stretch with major question marks still remaining on the pitching front.  Boston’s acquisition of Andrew Cashner two weeks will mark its only noteworthy new arm of the summer, while the Yankees were linked to virtually every pitcher on the market but came away empty-handed.  New York is still one of the league’s best teams simply by dint of its incredible lineup and bullpen, though the Astros’ big pitching additions stand in stark contrast to how the Yankees didn’t address their most prominent weakness.

The Angels were another team with a need in the rotation, though since the Halos are only on the fringes of the playoff race, they opted not to make any big moves and only added backup catcher Max Stassi from the Astros.  The rebuilding Royals and Orioles also stayed quiet on Wednesday, while the Indians took it easy after their huge three-team blockbuster on Tuesday.