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Phillies Acquire Aaron Loup

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2:37pm: The deal has been announced by the Phillies. They’ve designated infielder Trevor Plouffe for assignment to open space on the roster.

2:21pm: The Blue Jays have traded left-handed reliever Aaron Loup to the Phillies for a prospect, reports Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet (via Twitter). Pitching prospect Jacob Waguespack is headed back to the Blue Jays in return, tweets Mark Feinsand of MLB.com.

The acquisition of Loup represents the third proven veteran pickup in recent days for the Phillies, who lead the NL East by half a game and have also landed infielder Asdrubal Cabrera and catcher Wilson Ramos leading up to the trade deadline. On paper, Loup isn’t as exciting an addition as those two, though the 30-year-old has typically performed well since debuting with Toronto in 2012. This season hasn’t gone all that well for Loup, however, as he has recorded a 4.54 ERA and his second-lowest groundball rate (a still-respectable 46.7 percent) in 35 2/3 innings. On the other hand, Loup has posted 10.6 K/9 against 3.28 BB/9, logged personal-high percent swinging-strike (12.3) and infield fly percentages (12.1), and registered a 3.61 FIP.

Loup may prove to be a worthy add for the Phillies, whose bullpen ranks 18th in the majors in ERA and a much better ninth in fWAR. Regardless, he’s a pending free agent on a cheap salary ($1,812,500), making him a logical player for the out-of-c0ntention Jays to sell. As you’d expect, though, Loup didn’t carry a ton of trade value, and Toronto wasn’t able to acquire one of MLB.com’s 30 best Phillies prospects in return. Instead, they landed Waguepsack, a 37th-round pick in 2012 who has seen his first Triple-A action this season. The 24-year-old was a mixed bag as a member of the Lehigh Valley club, with which he put together a 5.06 ERA/3.66 FIP with 8.1 K/9, 3.38 BB/9 and a 51.9 percent grounder rate in 53 1/3 innings (14 appearances, eight starts).

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Cubs Acquire Brandon Kintzler

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2:26pm: This deal is in the books. Righty Jhon Romero is heading to D.C. in return.

2:00pm: The Cubs are nearing an agreement with the Nationals that would bring veteran reliever Brandon Kintzler to Chicago, according to Ken Rosenthal and Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic (Twitter link). The return is not yet known.

There have been varying reports of late on the Nats’ deadline plans, and it seems they have elected to make at least one sell-side move. It’s hardly clear, though, that this portends further departures. The Nats are reputedly interesting in shaving some money, even if they don’t go for a full teardown, and have replacement options at Triple-A (including Koda Glover and Jimmy Cordero).

Kintzler landed in D.C. this time last year and re-signed with the club over the winter. His contract promises him $5MM this year — around $1.7MM of which remains — and comes with either a $5MM player option or $10MM club option for 2019.

On the eve of his 34th birthday, it seems Kintzler will pack up and join a club he faced in last year’s NLDS clash. The Cubbies have made a few pitching additions already; presumably, this is the last arm to be brought into the organization at the deadline, though there’s still a bit of time left.

Typically a strong groundball hurler, Kintzler has drawn worm burners at a 48.0% rate this year — well shy of his career average. He is, however, generating more strikeouts than usual (6.5 per nine) and carries a sturdy 3.59 ERA over 42 2/3 innings.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Phillies Acquire Wilson Ramos

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The Rays and Phillies have announced a swap that sends veteran catcher Wilson Ramos to Philly for a player to be named later or cash considerations. To clear a spot on the roster, lefty Zac Curtis was designated for assignment.

Ramos has been on the DL since mid-July due to a hamstring strain, but he can still be moved if both sides are comfortable with his medical reports. At present, he’s expected to return to action sometime in August.

It’s somewhat of a surprise fit, as catching help hasn’t been reported to be among the Phillies’ top interests leading up to the deadline. That said, Philadelphia backstops are hitting a collective .244/.317/.393 this season, and while that’s solid relative to catchers throughout the league, Ramos would represent a definitive upgrade, health permitting. In 315 plate appearances this season, he’s raked at a .297/.346/.488 clip, slugging 14 homers and 14 doubles along the way.

Rocket-armed Jorge Alfaro has been Philadelphia’s primary backstop this season, and while he’s held his own at the plate, his .254/.305/.398 batting line could stand to be improved upon. If the deal for Ramos ultimately goes through, then he’ll likely pair with Alfaro to shoulder the bulk of the catching load behind the dish this season. Ramos would be the second rental bat the Phillies have acquired in the days leading up to the deadline, as they already landed Asdrubal Cabrera from the division-rival Mets on Friday.

The addition of Ramos might limit Alfaro’s playing time for the duration of the 2018 season, but as a free agent at season’s end, Ramos won’t be a long-term roadblock for Alfaro. Ramos is earning $10.5MM in 2018 — his two-year deal called for an $8.5MM base salary but jumped by $2MM when Ramos started his 55th game last season — and is still owed $3.44MM of that sum before the end of the year.

Mark Feinsand of MLB.com tweeted the deal was done, after Fancred’s Jon Heyman tweeted that it was close. Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports (via Twitter) first connected the sides today.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Diamondbacks Acquire Brad Ziegler

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1:31pm: The Marlins and Diamondbacks have announced the trade. Arizona moved Shelby Miller to the 60-day disabled list to open a 40-man roster spot — a move that could end Miller’s season.

12:20pm: The Diamondbacks have reportedly struck a deal to bring back veteran right-hander Brad Ziegler. They’ll send relief prospect Tommy Eveld to the Marlins in return.

Ziegler, 38, is a rental piece who is earning $9MM in 2018 and will hit free agency at season’s end. He’s still owed about $2.95MM of that sum through the end of the year, which the D-Backs will pick up in full.

While Ziegler’s 3.98 ERA on the season isn’t especially eye-catching, he’s been on absolute fire over the past two months, working to a sterling 0.93 ERA with a 22-to-11 K/BB ratio and an otherworldly 80.3 percent ground-ball rate through 29 innings dating back to June 1. Right-handed opponents are batting just .219/.305/.365 against Ziegler this season and have mustered only a .229/.285/.300 slash against him over the course of his Major League career.

The D-Backs are certainly plenty familiar with Ziegler, as he pitched for the organization from 2011 through 2016. He came to the organization at the deadline seven years ago today, then was spun off in a July 2016 deal that paid dividends for the Red Sox down the stretch. Ziegler joined the Marlins on a two-year pact in the ensuing winter. Over his time in Arizona, Ziegler worked to a sparkling 2.49 ERA and recorded 62 saves in 335 2/3 innings.

As for Evald, the 24-year-old is a recent ninth-round pick who only recently re-started his baseball career. He had recently moved up to the Double-A level after a dominant showing at High-A, where he spun 36 1/3 innings of 1.24 ERA ball with 10.4 K/9 against 1.7 BB/9.

Given how things looked after Ziegler’s ugly opening work this year, this counts as a clear win for the Marlins. Not only did they acquire a reasonably interesting pitching prospect, but they saved some real money on the tail end of Ziegler’s contract.

John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 tweeted the connection between the teams, with Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (via Twitter) saying a deal was close and Bob Nightengale of USA Today (via Twitter) reporting one was in place. Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic (in a tweet) had the return, with Zach Buchanan of The Athletic (on Twitter) providing the financial details.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Mariners Acquire Cameron Maybin

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The Marlins and Mariners have announce a deal that sends veteran outfielder Cameron Maybin to Seattle, Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times tweets. Prospect Bryson Brigman and $250K of international pool money are heading to Miami in the deal, per reports from Divish, Jon Heyman of Fancred (via Twitter), and MLB.com’s Jesse Sanchez (via Twitter).

Maybin, 31, is earning just $3.25MM on the season under the one-year deal he inked over the winter. That makes him an affordable addition to the Seattle organization.

Though he struggled for much of the early portion of the season at the plate, Maybin has turned things on recently. Over the month of July, Maybin owns a .309/.427/.456 batting line with three home runs and five steals through 68 plate appearances. On the year, he’s producing at about 10% below the league-average rate, much as he did last year.

Of course, much of Maybin’s value is tied up in his legs and glove. He’s grading poorly on the basepaths this year, but that’s likely a blip for a player who was once an elite baserunner and has been quite good in the recent past. Maybin has performed well at all three outfield spots this year in Miami.

For the Mariners, this move adds another versatile piece to the outfield mix. The club added Denard Span a few months back, and he has performed quite well. Mitch Haniger has proven worthy of regular time and Ben Gamel has knocked around opposing righties. Maybin could ultimately displace Guillermo Heredia, who has stalled out at the plate, or join him to form a pair of right-handed options to go with the lefty-hitting Span and Gamel.

Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald (via Twitter) and Craig Mish of MLB Network Radio (via Twitter) reported that the Fish were about to make another swap.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Indians Acquire Leonys Martin

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The Indians struck a trade with the Tigers that will bring center fielder Leonys Martin to Cleveland for shortstop prospect Willi Castro as well as minor league righty Kyle Dowdy.  The deal is now official.

This match makes quite a lot of sense on paper. The Indians, after all, are running away with things in the AL Central but had a clear need in the outfield. In particular, the team was missing a left-handed-hitting outfielder capable of playing center after watching Bradley Zimmer struggle and ultimately go down for the year with an injury.  Martin will likely share time up the middle with veteran Rajai Davis, who hits from the right side. There’s not much left on Martin’s tab for the present season, as he’s earning just $1.75MM. He’ll also be controllable for 2019 via arbitration, so could represent a piece of the puzzle next year as well.

Though Martin’s .251/.321/.409 batting line is below average, it’s still the best work of his career to date.  A left-handed batter, Martin is an ideal candidate for a platoon.  He’s long been a defensive asset in center field, with strong metrics dating back to 2013.

On the other side of this swap, the Tigers had every reason to get what they could for Martin. While he could certainly have been retained, cashing him in now better fits the team’s priorities.  Castro, a shortstop signed five years ago out of Puerto Rico, earned a 50 overall grade from MLB Pipeline.  Currently at Double-A, Castro is a switch-hitter with an above average bat and a good chance to stick at shortstop, according to MLB Pipeline and Baseball America.  The Tigers did well to sign Martin affordably in December, and then spin him into Castro several months later.  Dowdy, a 25-year-old righty, began the year as a Double-A reliever, then jumped into the Triple-A rotation for the Toledo Mud Hens before a move back to Double-A.

Robert Murray of The Athletic broke the trade, with Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free-Press adding the Dowdy detail.  Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Rays Acquire Tommy Pham

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10:25am: The Rays and Cardinals have announced the trade. Mark Feinsand of MLB.com tweets that the Cardinals are sending $500K of international money to the Rays in the deal. St. Louis is barred from spending more than $300K on any single international signing anyhow, and they’ve already been using their international funds as currency in trades over the past few days.

9:51am: The Rays have struck a deal to acquire Tommy Pham from the Cardinals, reports Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports (via Twitter). It’s not clear what other elements are in play, though Passan adds that Chris Archer is not involved in the trade. Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times tweets that the Rays will send outfielder Justin Williams, left-hander Genesis Cabrera and right-hander Roel Ramirez to the Cardinals in exchange for Pham and international bonus allotments.

Tommy Pham | Matt Marton-USA TODAY Sports

While some may raise an eyebrow at the notion of the Rays adding pieces when they’re firmly out of both the AL East race and the AL Wild Card picture, Pham is controlled for another three seasons beyond the current campaign. Pham will be arbitration-eligible for the first time this offseason and is not eligible for free agency until after the 2021 season, making him an affordable long-term piece to help the Rays as they hope to move back into a contention with a young core built around Blake Snell, Jake Bauers, Willy Adames and others.

For the Cardinals, the trade serves as the latest in a roster shakeup that is approaching cataclysmic proportions. The Cards have designated Greg Holland and Tyler Lyons for assignment, traded Sam Tuivailala to the Mariners and are reportedly open to offers on Bud Norris and Jose Martinez. The Cardinals also sent minor league first baseman Luke Voit to the Yankees (along with international money) in order to acquire a pair of big league bullpen assets in Chasen Shreve and Giovanny Gallegos.

With Pham out of the picture in St. Louis, the Cards will create more opportunity for younger outfield options like Harrison Bader and Tyler O’Neill, though both Marcell Ozuna and Dexter Fowler remain on hand as high-priced, veteran options.

In Pham, the Rays are buying low on a player who has slumped over the past two months but looked to have broken out as one of the National League’s better all-around players in 2017 and in the early stages of the 2018 campaign. From the start of his season in 2017 to the end of May this year, Pham posted a sensational .296/.399/.506 with 32 homers and 33 steals through 734 plate appearances. He’s capable of playing all three outfield spots, though with Kevin Kiermaier serving as one of the game’s premier defenders in center, Pham’s home will likely be in an outfield corner. Of course, Kiermaier has also proven to be injury prone, and Pham provides some insurance in center during future seasons.

It’s worth noting that over the past two months, Pham’s output at the plate has plummeted. He’s posted just a .227/.292/.330 slash through his past 192 plate appearances, though his walk and strikeout rates have remained fairly constant in that time. Pham’s average on balls in play during that stretch is .278, though, and while that isn’t all that far below the league average, it’s considerably south of his career .339 mark. With a lifetime 40.6 percent hard-hit rate and a 22.1 percent line-drive rate, Pham has proven himself to be a hitter capable of sustaining a BABIP better than the league mean, so there’s some reason for the Rays to hope for a turnaround.

In return for Pham, the Cardinals will acquire a package of three prospects that, frankly, would’ve appeared underwhelming when Pham’s value was at its peak. It’s possible, of course, that St. Louis views Pham as an asset that is unlikely to rebound or is particularly high on one or more of the pieces coming over from Tampa Bay, but the package is lacking in the way of top-tier prospects.

Williams, 22, ranked as the Rays’ No. 14 prospect as of last week’s update from Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com. He’s posted a .258/.313/.376 batting line in 386 plate appearances in his first exposure to Triple-A pitching this season, though he notched a more encouraging .301/.364/.489 slash in Double-A last season. MLB.com’s report praises his athleticism and gives him the potential for 20-plus homer pop, noting that his offensive abilities are still a bit raw but he could become a well-rounded player in an outfield corner.

Cabrera, 21, has a 4.12 ERA with with 9.8 K/9, 4.5 BB/9 and a 34.4 percent ground-ball rate in 113 2/3 innings at the Double-A level this season. He’s been playing against much more experienced competition and, in fact, is in his second run through Double-A after reaching the level as a 20-year-old last year. Callis and Mayo ranked him 25th in Tampa Bay’s system, noting that he has a projectable enough frame to potentially be a starter down the line but a strong enough fastball/slider combo to be a bullpen piece if that doesn’t pan out.

Ramirez, 23, is enjoying a solid season in the Double-A ’pen, having worked to a 3.32 ERA with 10.2 K/9, 3.8 BB/9, 0.89 HR/9 and a 35.6 percent grounder rate in 40 2/3 innings of work. He’s closer to the Majors than Cabrera, it seems, given his more advanced age, status as a reliever and greater success at that level. He could conceivably emerge as a ’pen option in St. Louis either this season or next, though was not considered to be among the Rays’ top group of prospects.

Nationals Willing To Discuss Gio Gonzalez, Jeremy Hellickson

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The Brewers are “pursuing” veteran Nationals lefty Gio Gonzalez, according to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (via Twitter). While the Nats have pulled back their relief arms, they are willing to consider scenarios involving Gonzalez or Jeremy Hellickson, per ESPN.com’s Buster Olney (Twitter link).

It’s an interesting situation for both ballclubs. The Milwaukee outfit is obviously turning over all stones to get a rotation upgrade, as Bob Nightengale of USA Today tweets. And the Nationals still appear to be dangling some veterans even after deciding not to move Bryce Harper.

It’s not immediately clear why the D.C. organization is willing to listen on those two hurlers. The team doesn’t seem to have replacement rotation pieces lined up. While Gonzalez is expensive ($12MM salary), Hellickson is quite affordable ($2MM base salary with up to $4MM in incentives), so they aren’t quite on equal footing as rental pieces. Perhaps it’s conceivable that the club is angling to add a different starter, though we’ve seen no particular recent rumors to that effect.

Mike Rizzo Says Nationals Will Not Trade Bryce Harper

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Nationals president of baseball operations and GM Mike Rizzo has issued a strong statement about his intentions amid speculation that the club has considered trading star Bryce Harper. As Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post reports on Twitter, Rizzo says: “Bryce is not going anywhere. I believe in this team.”

It’s hardly surprising to see the Nationals land on this stance. After all, for all its struggles this year, the club remains within reasonable striking distance in both the NL East and the Wild Card races. While the club has several high-end players, moreover, Harper remains the most visible member of the organization.

On the other hand, the 25-year-old Harper is heading to free agency at season’s end. If the Nats aren’t going anywhere, they’d surely love to recoup some value for Harper, who’s also still playing on a hefty $21,625,000 salary this year. A qualifying offer seems sure to bring back some draft compensation, unless Harper elects to return to D.C., but that surely won’t be as useful as the potential prospect return in a trade.

To be sure, though, Harper’s value as a rental asset isn’t as great as his name recognition. He has not looked himself for much of the season, with mortal (but still good) offensive numbers and putrid grades for his glovework in the outfield. His salary is a factor, too. Surely, the potential return for Harper weighed into the Nationals’ decisionmaking, though it’s unclear whether that was the major driving force.

While this news seems to take away any realistic possibility of a surprising deal coming together today on Harper, it doesn’t necessarily strip the Nationals of trade deadline intrigue. Notably, however, the Nationals organization is sending signals that it will not move its high-priced relief arms, per Bob Nightengale of USA Today (via Twitter). But the organization employs several other expensive pending free agents as well, including one veteran starter who just popped up in a rumor.

Of course, there’s also still at least some potential for the club to consider repositioning or even buy-side moves, particularly if it would mean adding a controllable player who’d make an impact now and in the future. If the team ends up moving a starter, in fact it could conceivably do so in order to facilitate the addition of a different arm. As things stand, there still seem to be loads of possibilities.

Pirates Acquire Keone Kela

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The Pirates have officially landed righty Keone Kela from the Rangers, per Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports (via Twitter). Lefty Taylor Hearn is one of the players in the deal, the Rangers announced. The other remains a player to be named later.

Kela, 25, has turned in a solid season to this point while functioning as the closer in Texas. He’ll presumably slot into a setup role in Pittsburgh in front of Pirates closer Felipe Vazquez.

The move reflects the Bucs’ surprising surge in the standings of late. While the club is still seven back in a tough NL Central division, it’s only four out of the Wild Card race and certainly could end up in postseason position. Of course, this isn’t a purely win-now move by any stretch. Kela, who is earning just $1.2MM this year, will be controllable via arbitration through 2020.

All told, Kela will wrap up his time in Texas with 169 2/3 innings of 3.45 ERA pitching. That’s right where his ERA sits this year, too, though estimators are a bit more bullish on his efforts (2.97 FIP/3.57 xFIP/3.22 SIERA) than the results would indicate. Kela is averaging 10.8 K/9 against 3.4 BB/9 while throwing his fastball at a career-high average velocity of 97.5 mph.

While he has been on an upswing of late, there have been some low points as well. On the heels of a rough 2016 season, Kela found himself in the Rangers’ doghouse after some Spring Training shenanigans. He has also dealt with some problems in his elbow and shoulder, though to this point no major problems have arisen.

The Rangers may have seen this as the right time to cash in Kela, though surely he’d have remained an asset at the back of their bullpen. Given the organization’s need to build a new core, and the abundance of talent elsewhere in the division, it certainly makes sense to move relievers — even established but still-controllable ones.

This swap will bring some real value. Hearn came to Pittsburgh along with Vazquez in the same deadline swap two years ago. He’s widely considered an intriguing hurler, albeit one who’ll have to make some strides to factor as a starter at the game’s highest level.

Whether or not Hearn can tap into his ceiling, he seems likely to be a big-league contributor and there’s good reason to think he’ll at least become a high-quality reliever. Soon to turn 24, Hearn has mowed through the Double-A competition since a slow start to the present campaign. Overall, he owns a 3.12 ERA with 9.3 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9 on the year. Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com ranked him seventh among Pirates farmhands in their midseason re-ranking of the organization, lauding his 97-98 mph heater and above-average changeup while also noting the need to improve his slider and the control of his entire repertoire.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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