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Felipe Vazquez Arrested, Charged In Florida

By Jeff Todd | September 18, 2019 at 1:21pm CDT

Sept. 18: Lacretia Wimbley and Shelly Bradbury of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette provide further detail on the series of charges that have been brought forth against Vazquez, including statutory sexual assault of a minor. Even more disturbing is that during yesterday’s interview with the police, Vazquez apparently admitted to sexual contact with a minor, according to a criminal complaint released by Westmoreland County on Wednesday.

Sept. 17: In a stunning and deeply troubling turn of events, Pirates pitcher Felipe Vazquez has been charged with a series of crimes in the state of Florida, according to James Santelli of CBS Pittsburgh. Vazquez, a resident of Florida, is in custody after being arrested today in Pennsylvania.

The underlying behavior alleged is exceedingly disturbing. Allegations involve an online relationship with a child, with charges including computer pornography, solicitation, and providing obscene materials to a minor. From other publicly released materials, it appears that other charges relating to the unlawful relationship with a child could also be filed.

Vazquez will be placed on administrative leave by Major League Baseball, according to Jeff Passan of ESPN.com (via Twitter). The commissioner’s office has authority to place players on paid administrative leave, in seven-day increments, pursuant to the collectively bargained Joint Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault and Child Abuse Policy.

That policy also vests broad punitive authority in the MLB commissioner, along with administrative processes to protect the rights of any accused players. It contemplates punishment upon a finding of a violation, without requiring a criminal conviction and regardless of any action or inaction from legal authorities.

Any such suspension that is ultimately issued would be without pay. One of baseball’s best relief pitchers, Vazquez is signed with the Pittsburgh organization through the 2021 season. The club has a pair of team options thereafter.

In terms of criminal process, it is difficult to know how this matter may proceed. If the state is able to move forward with these and/or other charges, Vazquez could reach a plea agreement or face trial. Counts of this severity will come with the possibility of jail time and could also have immigration implications for the Venezuelan citizen.

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Newsstand Pittsburgh Pirates Felipe Vazquez

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Jakob Junis Shut Down For Remainder Of 2019

By Jeff Todd | September 18, 2019 at 1:14pm CDT

The Royals have decided to shut down right-hander Jakob Junis for the remainder of the season, skipper Ned Yost told reporters including Lynn Worthy of the Kansas City Star (via Twitter). He’ll be replaced in the rotation by Eric Skoglund.

It seems the club did not want to extend the workload for Junis, who has taken 31 starts and thrown 175 1/3 innings. That’s actually 1 2/3 frames shy of his 2018 tally, but there were some signs that Junis was tiring. His velocity was headed south (though only slightly) and he had allowed four or more earned runs in each of his past five starts.

This decision puts the wraps on a somewhat disappointing season for Junis, who recently turned 27. He owns a 5.24 ERA with 8.4 K/9 against 3.0 BB/9. That’s nearly a run per nine worse than his earned run average over the prior two campaigns.

In some respects, the down year was really just a way for the baseball gods to even things out over a larger sample. Junis now owns a lifetime 4.69 ERA that’s an exact match for his career 4.69 FIP. Metrics such as xFIP (4.47) and SIERA (4.64) generally concur. While his K/BB ratio is decent enough, Junis has consistently given up too many long balls (1.56 per nine, 15.4% HR/FB rate for his career).

Junis will remain shy of arbitration next year, so he’s still an easy and affordable choice to plug back into the rotation. If the Royals can help him solve the long ball issue, there may yet be a path to improved results.

In the meantime, Skoglund will get a brief look. The tall lefty struggled in a half-season showcase last year and has been shelled in 14 innings in the majors in 2019. The former third-rounder was also knocked around this year in the upper minors, so it’s possible he’ll be a roster casualty in the offseason.

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Kansas City Royals Eric Skoglund Jakob Junis

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Latest On Ender Inciarte

By Jeff Todd | September 18, 2019 at 11:31am CDT

The Braves are hopeful that outfielder Ender Inciarte will be ready for activation early next week, manager Brian Snitker tells reporters including MLB.com’s Mark Bowman. Inciarte is working to recover from a hamstring strain.

When the injury initially occurred one month ago, it was estimated at a four to six week recovery timeframe. Inciarte is already hitting and running, so it seems he’s at the early end of the spectrum.

That’s great news for the Atlanta organization, particularly since the organization just lost two top reserve players to injury. Optimally, Inciarte would get at least a decent run of live action at the tail end of the regular season to ramp up for the playoffs.

Trouble is, there’s only a brief window left. And the Braves must balance the desire to get the outfielder reps — and assess his readiness to contribute — with the need to avoid further injury. As Snitker puts it, “reports are good” on Inciarte’s progress as he ramps up, “but what he does in drills is a lot different than taxing it and playing in games.”

No matter what happens with Inciarte, the Braves are well covered in the outfield. In addition to star Ronald Acuna, the club has welcomed back Nick Markakis from his own lengthy rehab stint and added speed-and-glove switch-hitter Billy Hamilton. With lefty bench bat Matt Joyce also in the mix for a postseason roster spot, along with right-handed hitters Adam Duvall and Austin Riley, it’ll be interesting to see how the outfield logjam is resolved if Inciarte is able to get back and show he’s healthy.

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Atlanta Braves Ender Inciarte

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Cubs Place Addison Russell On Concussion IL

By Jeff Todd | September 18, 2019 at 9:51am CDT

The Cubs decided yesterday to place infielder Addison Russell on the 7-day concussion injured list, as Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times reports. By doing so, the organization will avoid paying Russell a $100K roster bonus.

As Wittenmyer explains, this outwardly innocuous move makes for a complicated situation from a variety of perspectives. It’s even possible that it could ultimately lead to a grievance, he suggests, though it’s not clear whether that has specifically been contemplated.

With rosters expanded in September, the use of the injured list changes significantly. The 60-day IL remains relevant because it allows teams to open a 40-man roster spot. But the only real reason to use the 10-day or 7-day concussion lists is to make a recently optioned player eligible for an earlier recall.

In this case, the Cubs have nothing to gain beyond avoiding Russell’s next roster bonus. His arbitration contract includes a $4.3MM salary and $100K bonuses at 30, 60, 90, and 120 days on the active roster (plus $200K for 150, which he cannot meet).

The club issued an explanation centered upon respect for the concussion protocol. But as Wittenmyer explains, that wouldn’t seem to mandate this official roster move. While this brand of penny pinching at the expense of an employee isn’t generally justifiable, this contract was negotiated under unusual circumstances. Russell served the bulk of a 40-game suspension for violating the league’s domestic violence policy at the start of the 2019 campaign.

There isn’t any indication at this point of tension between team and player. But it’s tempting to wonder whether this hints at things to come. Even if Russell returns to action late this year and/or in the postseason, which remains to be seen, the Chicago organization could well be preparing to part ways at season’s end.

The Cubs already made the widely questioned decision to hang onto Russell despite the shameful circumstances of his suspension. He has been a significant part of this year’s team, spending time on optional assignment but also appearing in 76 MLB games. The Cubs control Russell’s rights for two more seasons and likely wouldn’t owe him a huge raise on his existing base salary. But he has not overcome his offensive struggles, turning in a .227/.303/.389 batting line in 229 plate appearances, so it’s amply possible that the club will simply determine that it’s time to move on from a pure baseball perspective.

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Chicago Cubs Addison Russell

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Pirates Select Contract Of Jake Elmore

By Jeff Todd | September 18, 2019 at 5:26am CDT

The Pirates have selected the contract of utilityman Jake Elmore, per a club announcement. He’ll fill out the active roster down the stretch.

Elmore, 32, was on and off the Pittsburgh 40-man roster earlier this season. He has appeared in parts of six MLB campaigns, each time with a different ballclub, making him something of the consummate journeyman.

For his career, Elmore carries a modest .208/.287/.269 batting line in 498 plate appearances. He has spent most of his time at Triple-A, where he’s a .294/.389/.381 hitter over eight campaigns.

While he’s obviously not an especially productive hitter, Elmore has carved out a niche as a handy swiss army knife to have stashed when a need arises. He’s primarily a middle infielder. But at some point or another, Elmore has appeared at every single position on the diamond as a professional (including on the mound and behind the dish).

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Pittsburgh Pirates Transactions Jake Elmore

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Mariners Activate Domingo Santana

By Jeff Todd | September 17, 2019 at 12:43pm CDT

The Mariners announced that they have activated outfielder Domingo Santana from the 10-day injured list. He has missed about a month owing to an elbow injury.

While the M’s are obviously out of contention, they’ll be glad to allow Santana a chance to see some more MLB pitching before the season wraps up. The club surely hoped he’d be joined by Mitch Haniger, but that’s not to be.

Both outfielders had promising campaigns hijacked by injuries. In Santana’s case, he posted a strong .286/.354/.496 batting line over his first 399 trips to the plate this year. But he was bothered by elbow soreness out of the All-Star break and slashed just .131/.240/.250 thereafter before going on the shelf.

The Mariners will bring Santana along slowly upon his return. The hope seems to be that he’ll carry some positive momentum headed into the offseason. Santana will be due a raise on his $1.95MM arbitration salary, with one more arb-eligible campaign still to come in 2021. It’s possible the M’s will discuss Santana in trade talks, though he may hold greater value to the Seattle organization as an affordable part of the outfield rotation and potential 2020 deadline trade piece.

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Seattle Mariners Domingo Santana

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Braves Select John Ryan Murphy

By Jeff Todd | September 17, 2019 at 12:05pm CDT

The Braves announced today that they have selected the contract of catcher John Ryan Murphy. A 40-man roster spot was cleared by placing injured utilityman Charlie Culberson on the 60-day injured list.

Murphy, 28, was added over the summer in a minor swap with the Diamondbacks. He had struggled to a .177/.250/.419 batting line in 69 MLB plate appearances with the Arizona organization.

The Braves likely intend to utilize Murphy to reduce the wear and tear on the club’s primary backstops. With the division all but sewn up, the focus now is on preparing the roster for the postseason. While he’s technically eligible for the playoffs if needed, Murphy is fourth on the depth chart.

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Atlanta Braves Transactions J.R. Murphy

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Poll: NL MVP Front-Runner

By Jeff Todd | September 17, 2019 at 11:07am CDT

We just polled the MLBTR readership regarding the state of the American League Most Valuable Player race. There’s a clear preference for Mike Trout, even if he’s going to miss the last few weeks of the season.

Injuries could well impact the state of the National League MVP voting as well. Not long before Trout hit the shelf, reigning NL player-of-the-year Christian Yelich went out of commission. Javier Baez might also have staked a claim with a big run down the stretch, but he has been out for a while.

Despite his recent injury, Yelich still has a great case to be made to repeat with the top honors. He’s pacing the National League with 7.7 fWAR and a 173 wRC+ while also carrying top-of-the-class counting stats (44 home runs, 30 steals).

The other top candidate is Dodgers stud Cody Bellinger, who has added value with the glove both at first base and in the outfield. He actually leads Yelich handily in rWAR, with an 8.2 to 7.1 advantage. Bellinger is also quite likely to end up with more dingers and is playing for the National League’s best team.

What of the National League’s leader in batting average, Anthony Rendon? The exceedingly quiet star has elevated his game in all respects this year; his .333/.417/.629 batting line has crept past Bellinger’s and Rendon has swatted a career-best 34 home runs. He also plays a mean third base. Oh, and if you want to place added weight on performance down the stretch, Rendon leads the pack in second-half fWAR and wRC+.

If there’s a dark horse, it’s … probably not one of the Braves’ several stars. The club has received big-time output from Freddie Freeman, Ronald Acuna, and Josh Donaldson. But none has performed quite to the individual level of the surprising Ketel Marte, who’s the fourth National League player to carry seven or more wins above replacement by measure of Fangraphs. Marte may not quite have the stature to vault past these better-known players, particularly since more of his value is tied up in his glove, but he’s sitting on an excellent .326/.387/.589 batting line (149 wRC+) with 32 homers.

Who’s your favorite? (Poll link for app users.)

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Three Needs: Seattle Mariners

By Jeff Todd | September 17, 2019 at 10:07am CDT

We’re bringing back our “Three Needs” series, in which we take a look at the chief issues to be addressed for clubs that have fallen out of contention. We’ll start things up with the Mariners, who opened the season at a sprint before hitting the skids …

[Seattle Mariners Depth Chart]

1. Invest In A Starter Or Two

Seattle’s re-set effort has brought the payroll back under control and added some interesting young talent to the MLB mix. It’d be hard to say this is a club on the cusp of a breakout, but it’s not hard to imagine a major improvement over the 2019 showing.

That said, the rotation is entirely underwhelming. Marco Gonzales has been good, but the club dealt away its only other starter with even one full win above replacement for the season. There’s good reason to give Yusei Kikuchi more time to adjust to the majors; perhaps the club can throw Justus Sheffield into the staff and hope for the best. But slotting in marginal veterans behind openers can only do so much for a team. There’s a dire need for higher-end starting pitching.

With Felix Hernandez hitting the open market, there’s only $75MM and change on the Mariners’ books, with no enormous arbitration salaries to account for. The club shouldn’t rush to spend, but there’s certainly some cash to work with here for an organization that has had season-ending payrolls of over $170MM in each of the past three seasons.

This is a good offseason for a team in this position. The Rangers have scored by giving somewhat aggressive, but ultimately fairly low-risk three-year deals to starters Mike Minor and Lance Lynn. The Twins once did the same with Phil Hughes. That’s a strategy to consider along with the traditional pillow contract. There are quite a few interesting but not reliably dominant starters floating around on the market this coming winter — ranging from Tanner Roark and Dallas Keuchel to Jake Odorizzi and Zack Wheeler. Old friend Wade Miley is out there, along with names like Kyle Gibson, Rick Porcello, Michael Wacha, and Alex Wood.

2. Use Late-Inning Opportunities To Chase Bullpen Upside

The Mariners would like to rebound right back into competitiveness, so they’ll need to try to form an effective bullpen. At the same time, the aim is rather speculative at this point and the existing unit is all but devoid of established players in key late-inning roles, so it’d be foolhardy to spend wildly on veterans.

Therein lies the opportunity for Seattle GM Jerry Dipoto. With high-leverage spots entirely unclaimed, the M’s can dangle that opportunity — along with the prospect of pitching in one of the league’s stingier home parks — as a means of attracting high-upside bullpen talent. Dellin Betances and Arodys Vizcaino (actually a member of the M’s at the moment) are both intriguing possibilities, with a whole host of somewhat older veterans that could be targeted on the cheap.

3. Consider An Infield Upgrade

The M’s have interesting options in the outfield and behind the dish. They’ve also got quite a few possibilities in the 3-through-6 spots, but perhaps also some room to make an upgrade.

On the left side of the infield, Kyle Seager and J.P. Crawford ought to be in line for the bulk of the work. Dylan Moore probably showed enough promise to serve as the reserve there. He can also factor on the right side of the infield, but that’s where there seems to be greater opportunity.

Dan Vogelbach is a piece of the puzzle in the first base/DH mix, but the club clearly prefers to utilize him as a bat-only player and he fell off hard in the second half. It’s anyone’s guess how Ryon Healy will bounce back from his health woes, so he can’t be relied upon. Austin Nola has been a nice surprise, but it would be hard to assume that the career minor-leaguer will hit enough to warrant significant time at first base. Prospect Evan White is on the rise, adding a righty bat to the mix, but it remains to be seen when and how he’ll transition to the majors. And then there’s veteran second bagger Dee Gordon, who is still a useful player but doesn’t seem likely to return to league-average hitting and shouldn’t be trotted out as a regular.

There are two ways to view this assemblage: as a potentially intriguing array of quality parts that can be maximized by deft deployment, or as an underwhelming outfit of unspectacular talent. No doubt the answer lies somewhere in the middle; to some extent, the Mariners will want to find out by testing. But the trouble with mixing and matching is that you can only do so much of it before running into roster limitations.

Adding a true, everyday piece at first or second base — especially if the M’s aren’t totally sold on White’s ability to become such a player in the immediate future — would greatly improve the overall outlook of the Seattle position-player mix. Perhaps the club could pursue Didi Gregorius and move him or Crawford to second base. Maybe the still-youthful Jonathan Schoop is worth a decent investment. The trade market could well be fruitful.

It’s not entirely clear at this stage just how appealing the options will be. And the M’s have a case for holding pat on the whole in the position-player mix. But that’s a nice back-up plan to take into the offseason while pursuing a significant improvement.

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MLBTR Originals Seattle Mariners Three Needs

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Early Trade Deadline Re-Assessment: NL West

By Jeff Todd | September 17, 2019 at 7:32am CDT

It has only been about six weeks, so it’s too soon to judge with finality how this year’s trade deadline maneuvers will play out. That said, we’re already most of the way through the period — the regular season portion, at least — for which rental players were acquired. Even players with future control are usually added first and foremost for their immediate contributions (though there are some exceptions). It’d be awfully premature to say anything conclusive about the prospect side of any deals, but we do now have some additional information with which to work.

So, that’s why we’re going to take a glance back over our shoulders at the moves (and major non-moves) that organizations made in the run-up to this year’s trade deadline. We already covered the AL Central, NL Central, AL East, NL East, and AL West. Now we’ll finish things off in the NL West …

Dodgers

With visions of Felipe Vazquez as the trade deadline approached, many fans likely came away thoroughly underwhelmed by the Dodgers’ efforts. But if making that deal would’ve cost Gavin Lux, then he wouldn’t be in the lineup right now.

Plus, the Dodgers are awfully good even without another high-end relief arm. The bullpen has some big questions, to be sure, but the L.A. organization is loaded with starting pitching options that can all be deployed in various ways come October. There’s no question that there’s a possibility we’ll look back and think the Dodgers should have done more, but it’s likewise impossible to argue with the organization’s process or results in recent years.

So, what did the team do? On deadline day, the headliner was … trading for lefty reliever Adam Kolarek. That seemed ho-hum, but he has been quite useful, allowing just one earned run in 10 1/3 innings over 21 appearances. Yep, he’s being utilized judiciously, but that makes sense. Kolarek has been bombed by righties this year but has held opposing southpaws to a meager .183/.227/.269 batting line. The player sent out to get him, outfielder Niko Hulsizer, acquired in return, didn’t really have enough action to change his outlook in any meaningful way.

Otherwise, the moves were even lower-stakes arrangements. Utilityman Kristopher Negron has chipped in well since his acquisition and the Dodgers probably won’t miss Daniel Castro, who hasn’t hit much in the upper minors and wasn’t likely to play a significant role this year or next. The Dodgers haven’t gotten anything from Tyler White, but also probably haven’t seen anything from Andre Scrubb to cause major regret from that trade. Jedd Gyorko hasn’t hit well since coming over, but that didn’t cost much either. Young righty Jeffry Abreu, sent in the swap along with the contract of Tony Cingrani, hasn’t yet thrown competitive innings with the Cardinals. The Dodgers also picked up international spending capacity and cash considerations in the deal.

Diamondbacks

The major move came at the very last minute, with the D-Backs parting with veteran righty Zack Greinke. It’s hard to imagine that free agent contract having a softer landing. In addition to shedding much of the remaining financial obligation, the Arizona organization added four high-quality prospects.

Only one of those new players, infielder Josh Rojas, has ascended to the majors. The 25-year-old owns only a .232/.318/.337 slash in 107 trips to the plate, but his monster season in the upper minors still makes him an intriguing player going forward. The other three were even more highly regarded talents. Slugger-in-training Seth Beer struggled after the swap but still holds ample promise. Talented righties Corbin Martin and J.B. Bukauskas will be looking to bounce back, respectively, from Tommy John surgery and a bit of a down season in the results department.

The Snakes figured to take a step back sans Greinke, but they actually managed to stay relevant in the Wild Card race. Young righty Zac Gallen has had a big say in that, having thrown 43 2/3 innings of 2.89 ERA ball since arriving in exchange for touted infielder Jazz Chisholm. That’s immensely promising for the Arizona organization, which will hope Gallen can sustain his breakout year. On the other side of that deal, it’s fair to note that the 21-year-old Chisholm put his struggles behind him to finish with a strong .284/.383/.494 (156 wRC+) run after going into the Miami system.

With a continued eye to making sound baseball decisions for sustainable competitiveness, the Diamondbacks finally hammered out a swap for sturdy but unexciting starter Mike Leake. The veteran righty had a no-trade clause and personal reasons to prefer pitching in Arizona, which may have helped the Snakes work out a solid deal that cost only $6MM in total salary obligations and Jose Caballero. The young infielder struggled to a .256/.339/.333 batting line at the High-A level after the deal.

The D-Backs got some cash in exchange for catcher John Ryan Murphy, but otherwise that was it for mid-summer roster moves. It’s easy to like the overall slate of changes, though we’ll need to track them to see how it all shakes out over the long haul.

Giants

Also busy were the Giants, who faced a tricky deadline situation owing to a hot streak that had the club in Wild Card contention. Ultimately, the team decided not to sell of quality lefties Madison Bumgarner and Will Smith — each of whom might have brought back significant returns. The former is sure to receive a qualifying offer and the latter is a candidate as well, so there are still some paths to achieving future value, but the organization knew it was making some sacrifices by holding on to these pitchers.

The San Francisco denizens did move quite a few other hurlers. Chief among them was righty Sam Dyson (link), who will be eligible for arbitration one final time in 2020. Unfortunately, he has struggled badly in just a dozen appearances with the Twins and is now under consideration for a season-ending shoulder procedure. That doesn’t look great for Minnesota, though questions remain on the other side of the swap as well. Power-hitting outfielder Jaylin Davis laid waste to Triple-A but has struggled in his first, brief foray into the majors. We won’t know for quite some time what the Giants really have in young pitching prospects Kai-Wei Teng and Prelander Berroa.

The well-timed reemergence of southpaw Drew Pomeranz allowed the Giants to package him with power righty Ray Black in a deal that landed long-lauded infield prospect Mauricio Dubon. Pomeranz has been useful in Milwaukee but is a pure rental; Black still hasn’t shown his big heat can consistently retire MLB hitters. Meanwhile, the 25-year-old Dubon has turned in an impressive .302/.327/.547 run in his first 55 plate appearances at the game’s highest level. That showing could make him the favorite to handle second base next year in San Francisco. The club made way by dropping veteran Scooter Gennett, who had been acquired as a buy-low replacement for Joe Panik.

The other significant reliever swap involved high-priced veteran Mark Melancon. It was surprising to see the Giants shed all of the veteran’s remaining salary obligations. He has a strong 20:2 K/BB ratio in 15 2/3 frames since the deal, along with ten saves, but hasn’t consistently kept runs off the board. The Giants have to be pleased with what they saw from the player they added in that swap. Young righty Tristan Beck threw 35 2/3 innings of 2.27 ERA ball, with 9.3 K/9 against 3.3 BB/9, for the club’s High-A affiliate.

Rounding things out for the Giants, the team took a shot on outfielder Joe McCarthy, who has not yet figured things out at Triple-A. The cost was younger prospect Jacob Lopez, who is still in the low minors but generated solid results this year.

Padres

The deadline turned out to be all about one man: Taylor Trammell. Long considered an uber-talented outfielder, the former first-round pick was plainly targeted by the Padres. It took a complicated, three-team arrangement to make it happen, but the San Diego organization now has a player that it views as the center fielder of the future.

Trammell remains an unfinished product. He wrapped up the season on a hot streak but ultimately carried only a .229/.316/.381 slash in his 133 Double-A plate appearances after the swap. The Friars are betting on their ability to finish off his development and surely hope they bought at a relative low point.

Making the deal cost the Pads a few quality assets. Young outfielder Franmil Reyes hasn’t yet settled in with his new team, posting 56 strikeouts in 161 plate appearances, but he comes with loads of cheap control and ample potential. Southpaw Logan Allen has mostly struggled this year, but he is another player that could soon be a quality MLB contributor. The Padres also parted with far-away youngster Victor Nova. Clearly, the San Diego end of this swap will take many years to evaluate in full.

It was otherwise a fairly quiet deadline period. The Padres got nothing from Carl Edwards Jr. after adding him from the Cubs; he seems a non-tender candidate this fall. Meanwhile, lefty Brad Wieck has been a surprising contributor in Chicago since that swap was completed. The 27-year-old has eleven strikeouts without a walk in 5 1/3 appearances. Also heading out of San Diego was righty reliever, Phil Maton, who has thus far been useful but unremarkable in Cleveland.

Rockies

Typically, when a team enters a season intending to contend and finds itself buried by the trade deadline, there’s a sell-off. Not so in Colorado — and for good reason. The club just didn’t have any assets that made sense to move. The higher-priced veterans haven’t performed well enough to generate appreciable cost savings, while the club’s core talent can’t be shipped out without leaving un-fillable holes. While some Charlie Blackmon explorations reportedly took place, that never seemed likely to result in a move and in the end fizzled out.

So … all we’re left with was this stirring blockbuster with the Yankees: the acquisition of right-hander Joe Harvey for minor league left-hander Alfredo Garcia. Harvey is a MLB-ready reliever who has shown some strikeout ability in the minors, though his initial transition to the highest level of the game hasn’t been especially promising. Garcia generated good results on both sides of the swap, but he’s a low-A player who is a long way from the bigs.

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