Category Archives: Trades

July 28, 2023

First Trade All the Pitchers

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The White Sox trade three more pitchers on Friday, bringing their total so far to five. Could we see a three-man rotation with a four reliever pen?

First, Chicago sent Lance Lynn and Joe Kelly to the Dodgers:

In exchange, the White Sox received outfielder Trayce Thompson, who was originally drafted by Chicago in 2009, along with minor league starter Nick Nastrini and minor league reliever Jordan Leasure.

Lynn and Kelly join shortstop Amed Rosario and utilityman Enrique Hernandez among the Dodgers’ acquisitions this week, all of whom could be free agents after the season. Lynn and Kelly both have club options for next season and are making a combined $27.5 million in 2023.

ESPN.com

The Dodgers need arms, as they are in an unusual situation of tons of injuries and what appears to be a depleted farm system concerning pitching. They send Nastrini and Leasure to Chicago, a pair of high K, high walk pitchers who allows few hits.

Chicago then trades Kendall Graveman to the Astros:

The Houston Astros traded for veteran reliever Kendall Graveman on Friday, sending Triple-A catcher Korey Lee back to the Chicago White Sox in the deal.

…

Lee is hitting .283/.328/.406 with 18 doubles, five home runs, 32 RBIs, 37 runs scored and 12 stolen bases over 68 games this season with Triple-A Sugar Land in the Pacific Coast League. He currently is on the injured list with a strained right oblique.

ESPN.com

Graveman has been consistently good since the 2021 season. Lee’s minor league hitting numbers are not that impressive, so I hope he is a good defensive catcher.

Mostly it seems the White Sox are clearing their free agents now rather than get nothing for them at the end of the season.

July 27, 2023

For Want of a Nail

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The Brewers acquired Carlos Santana from the Pirates for a teenage shortstop:

Santana, 37, was dealt to a contender for the second consecutive season after going from Kansas City to Seattle last year. Long considered a clubhouse leader, Santana will fill in at first base for Rowdy Tellez, who, while recovering from a forearm injury, tore a fingernail on a chain-link fence while shagging batting practice.

In exchange for Santana, who is hitting .235/.321/.412 with elite defense at first base, the Pirates will receive 18-year-old shortstop Jhonny Severino, who signed with Milwaukee for $1.23 million last year and is currently playing in the Arizona Complex League.

ESPN.com

Santana used to be an on-base machine, but since the start of the 2021 season posted just a .318 OBP with some power. At this point, he really should only be facing left-handed pitchers.

Severino is just starting out, and seven of his twelve rookie league hits have gone for extra bases. He’s also 5 for 5 stealing bases.

July 27, 2023

Angels Go All In

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The Angels traded prospects to the White Sox for pitching:

The Los Angeles Angels acquired right-hander Lucas Giolito and right-handed reliever Reynaldo Lopez from the Chicago White Sox for two top prospects late Wednesday, bolstering their roster on the same day they decided they would not trade star Shohei Ohtani before he hits free agency this winter.

The move for Giolito, arguably the best pitcher on the trade market, and Lopez, whose fastball regularly hits 100 mph, was the first significant trade in Major League Baseball before Tuesday’s deadline. Multiple contenders had considered dealing for Giolito and Lopez, but the Angels swooped in with catcher Edgar Quero and left-hander Ky Bush, both at Double-A, to reinforce themselves for a playoff run.

ESPN.com

Giolito’s 2023 numbers are very similar to Ohtani as a pitcher, so that should be a decent 1-2 punch provided the Angels offense performs. Lopez blows batters away, but like Giolito, tends to give up home runs.

The prospect to watch is Quero. At seasonal age 20, he owns a .414 OBP in the minors, and a .386 mark at AA this season. He’s a catcher who can hit. Bush pitches at seasonal age 23, and took a step backwards this season after a great season at AA in 2022. He upped his K rate this year, but became more wild in the process.

We’ll see if the Angels continue to trade prospects to win this season. It’s possible that they are setting up a scenario where they not only don’t win this season, but they lose Ohtani to free agency and don’t have prospect to help rebuild the team.

July 25, 2023

Picking Up Pitching

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The Red Sox send Enrique Hernandez back to the Dodgers for two pitchers, Nick Robertson and Justin Hagenman:

Robertson, 25, was a seventh-round pick of the Dodgers in 2019. He’s appeared in nine games for Los Angeles this season, going 0-1 with a 6.10 ERA, striking out 13 and walking four in 10.1 innings. He’s also appeared in 27 games at Triple A, with a 2-0 record and a 2.54 ERA in 28.1 innings, striking out 42 with seven saves. 

Hagenman, 26, has spent the whole season at Triple A, going 4-0 with a 2.78 ERA, striking out 60 in 55 innings.

ESPN.com

Robertson is seasonal age 24. Both pitcher look competent enough to contribute at the major league level.

Hernandez gives the Dodgers tons of flexibility defensively. I can see the Red Sox doing better long term with this deal.

July 19, 2023

A’s Flip a Pitcher

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Oakland traded pitcher Shintaro Fujinami to Baltimore for minor league pitcher Easton Lucas:

In 34 appearances (seven starts) with the Athletics, Fujinami went 5-8 with an 8.57 ERA across 49? innings. He most recently pitched against the Boston Red Sox on Tuesday, surrendering a hit in one inning of scoreless relief.

ESPN.com

Fujinami pitched better lately. In his last sixteen appearances, including two starts as an opener, he allowed five runs, all earned in 18 1/3 innings, with excellent three true outcomes. He seems to have found his groove, and the Orioles should be getting a good arm for the bullpen.

Lucas is a high strikeout pitcher, and he also brought his BABIP allowed way down this season. At seasonal age 26, the Athletics a reliever in his prime.

The Orioles are not in first place in the AL by percentage points as they beat the Dodgers 8-5 while the Rays fell to the Rangers 5-1.

July 3, 2023

Time to Simplify Transactions

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This might be the weirdest trade I’ve ever seen. The Mets and Mariners trade two players who were getting DFA’s in order for the Mets to buy a reliever from the Mariners:

The Mets took on the contract of Chris Flexen in order to obtain reliever Trevor Gott from the Mariners.

Going to Seattle will be lefty Zach Muckenhirn, whom the Mets had designated for assignment.

The Post’s Joel Sherman confirmed the Mets will pick up the roughly $4 million due to Flexen, who immediately was designated for assignment.

In buying Flexen, the Mets pried away Gott, who is owed about $600,000 and who has been a solid, journeyman reliever.

NYPost.com

Back in the 1970s, Charlie Finley, the owner of the Athletics, tried to sell his stars to the Yankees and Red Sox in order to have money to rebuild, rather than getting nothing when the players left for free agency. Then commissioner Bowie Kuhn, who disliked Finley, put in a rule that an owner could not sell off his players like that. As far as I know that rule is still in place, otherwise the Mets could have just bought Gott’s contract for $4 million.

Let’s return to the ability to buy and sell contracts without bodies being traded for no reason.

June 30, 2023

Chapman to the Rangers

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The Rangers acquired Aroldis Chapman from the Royals:

The Rangers opened the Trade Deadline season early this year by trading for Royals reliever Aroldis Chapman, the club announced on Friday afternoon. Texas sent lefty Cole Ragans and Minor League outfielder Roni Cabrera to Kansas City in return.

MLB.com

Chapman is having a Chapman season, lots of Ks, lots of walks, and few hits. His velocity is up compared to last season. The Royals signed him hoping that either the team would be good and Chapman would help, or that Chapman would return to form and the Royals could turn him into other talent. It was the latter.

Ragans fills a current need for innings from the pen, but is rather unimpressive. Cabrera is just 17 years old and is hitting .320/.469/.620 in Rookie League Ball in the Dominican Summer League. The sky’s the limit there. It may be three or four years before we know how this trade worked out for the Royals.

June 23, 2023

Mets Start to Rebuild

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The Mets traded third baseman Eduardo Escobar to the Angels Friday night for two pitching prospects, Coleman Crow and Landon Marceaux. The Angels were down two infielders with both Anthony Rendon and Gio Urshela hurt.

Crow is a high strikeout, low walk pitcher, but so far in the minors, that has not translated to a low ERA. Marceaux limits home run better than Crow, but his relatively low K rate is catching up to him at AA this season where he allowed 72 hits in 59 innings.

The 34-year-old Escobar was hitting .236/.286/.409 for the Mets this season, and New York will pick up most of his remaining contract.

January 25, 2023

Royal Purge

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In the last few days the Royals traded away Michael A. Taylor and Adalberto Mondesi for three pitchers, all high strikeout, high walk relievers. Neither Taylor nor Mondesi was a particularly good hitter:

Kansas City once saw Mondesi as a foundational player in its rebuild, and he looked the part in the 2018 and 2019 seasons, hitting for power and stealing 75 bases with his elite speed. For him to be packaged with a player to be named later and return only a reliever illustrates how far Mondesi’s stock has fallen. Over his seven seasons, Mondesi’s career line is .244/.280/.408 with 38 home runs and 133 stolen bases.

ESPN.com

Taylor’s value lay entirely in his defense. The Royals offense generated 3.95 runs per game in 2022, one of four AL teams below four runs per game. This is an addition by subtraction move. Offensively, the Royals can replace these players at the league minimum. With luck, the replacements actually hit better, and the offense improves.

The article indicates Hunter Dozier might be next, and that move would fit the narrative as well.

January 21, 2023

Good Trade

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The Twins and Marlins completed a trade that sends infielder Luis Arraez for pitcher Pablo Lopez and two prospects:

The deal, variations of which the teams have discussed for months, brings a much needed bat to the Marlins, adding to their winter signing of Jean Segura, who’s expected to play third base.

The cost was significant, though. In addition to Lopez, a talented starter who slots in toward the top of Minnesota’s rotation, the Marlins will send shortstop Jose Salas and outfielder Byron Chourio, two well-regarded teenagers, to the Twins.

ESPN.com

Salas plays as a twenty year old in 2023 and owns a .356 MiLB OBP so far, playing at high A ball in 2022. Chourio plays as an eighteen year old in 2023, and posted a .429 OBP in rookie league in 2022. I suspect he has more upside of the two prospects.

The Marlins get a hitter who fits their park. Arraez puts the ball in play with authority. He struck out just 137 times in his 389 MLB career, and draws a decent number of walks but little power. Since the Marlins home park hurts home runs, the Marlins should be trying to stuff the bases with as many runners as possible to move people around. Arraez is also in his early prime years.

The trade also causes Jazz Chisholm to move to the outfield.

The Marlins used a solid rotation to acquire the player, the Twins getting a solid starter who showed last year he can go the distance for the season. He limits walks and home runs. He also limits hits with a decent K rate. It’s exactly the type of trade where both teams likely come out winners.

There was also this from the story:

According to ESPN Stats & Information research, Arraez is the first player to win a batting championship and then be traded in the offseason since Rod Carew won the AL batting title in 1978 with the Twins and then was traded to the Angels ahead of the 1979 season.

ESPN.com

I suspect this trade will work out better for the Twins. Minnesota received four players in the Carew deal. Ken Landreaux gave Minnesota a couple of good years, but then was traded away for more players who didn’t contribute. I suspect Twins fans are much happier with this deal.

I’m very interested to see if the Marlins farm system starts developing more players like Arraez. We’ll see if they can develop into the 2002 Angels.

December 23, 2022

Relative Trade

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The Blue Jays break up their group of young legacies with a trade of Lourdes Gurriel, Jr., but replace him with another:

The Toronto Blue Jays have reached a deal to acquire outfielder Daulton Varsho from the Arizona Diamondbacks in exchange for outfielder Lourdes Gurriel Jr. and catching prospect Gabriel Moreno, sources told ESPN’s Jeff Passan on Friday.

ESPN.com

Varsho is the son of Gary Varsho. He showed home run power in 2022, but remained an out machine with a .302 OBP, 306 for his career. The Blue Jays will control him for two additional year compare to Gurriel, and he gives Toronto a left-handed bat. Varsho’s inability to get on base extends to his time in the minors. He does give Toronto some roster flexibility, as he can catch.

Moreno does get on base, with high numbers in both the minors and his cup of coffee in the majors. He appears to be fast as well, with nine triples in 1069 minor league plate appearances. He also went 22 for 31 attempting to steal.

Off-hand, this looks like a very good deal for the Diamondbacks.

December 22, 2022

Mets Save Money

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The Mets sched the contract of catcher James McCann, trading him to the Orioles while picking up a good portion of his contract:

The Mets will send $19 million of the remaining $24.3 million on McCann’s contract to the Orioles and receive a player to be named later. The deal saves the Mets more than $5 million in cash and $650,000 for each of the next two years toward the team’s competitive balance tax payroll.

ESPN.com

So the Mets are a bit more concerned bout the CBT than their free agent signings indicate. McCann will be the back-up to Adley Rutschman. I suspect Rutschman will do some designated hitter duty to keep his bat in the lineup while resting his body from catching duties.

I suspect the Mets will no longer keep marginal players making a lot of money.

December 12, 2022

Big Deal

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The Athletics, Braves, and Brewers pull off a nine player deal, involving two very good catchers:

The Atlanta Braves acquired star catcher Sean Murphy in a three-way trade with the Oakland Athletics and Milwaukee Brewers that saw nine players switch teams, the organizations announced on Monday.

Murphy, 28, was among the most prized players on the trade market this offseason, and Atlanta — which dealt young catcher William Contreras to Milwaukee and still has veteran Travis d’Arnaud — pounced to get him.

ESPN.com

This is the second off-season in a row where the Athletics traded a star to the Braves.

Oakland gets pitchers Kyle Muller, Freddy Tarnok, and Royber Salinas from the Braves, along with catcher Manny Pina. They get Esteury Ruiz from Milwaukee.

The Brewers also get two relievers, Joel Payamps from Oakland and Justin Yeager from the Braves.

The two catchers were among the best hitters at the position in 2022, although Contreras did not play that much.

Muller owns 49 MLB innings, and has walked a high number of batters. Walks are definitely his weak point, but he does limit home runs. Tarnok is similar, but with a higher K rate and a lower walk rate in his minor league career. Salinas, just 21, posted very high strikeout numbers as a starter in 2022 at A ball, but that came with high walk numbers. All three give up very few hits, and maybe the A’s are willing to live with the walks since without hits those runners have a tough time advancing around the bases.

Ruiz, based on his minor league numbers, should be an excellent lead-off hitter. He hit 26 triples in the minors in 521 games while stealing 243 bases with 59 caught stealing. He is clearly a player designed to take advantage of the new pick-off rules. That goes with a high OBP.

Yeager is the other prospect in the deal, and is another high K, high BB pitcher. The Braves seemed to have cleared that type of pitcher out of their system.

It’s a good deal all around. The Braves and Brewers, competing now, get solid at positions that are tough to fill with offense. Oakland gets a number of good arms and a Rickey Henderson type player as they rebuild.

November 23, 2022

Hunting for Power

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The Angels trade with the Brewers, acquiring Hunter Renfroe for three pitchers:

“Obviously, it’s a productive player who’s done it year in and year out for a while,” Angels general manager Perry Minasian said on a Zoom conference with reporters. “It’s a quality two-way guy. Not only can he produce on the offensive side, he’s a quality defender. He can really throw. Just the total package. We felt like he was a really good fit for us.”

Renfroe, who turns 31 in January, is eligible for arbitration again and likely to get a raise after earning a $7.65 million salary this year. He can become a free agent after next season.

ESPN.com

On offense, Renfroe excels in one dimension, power with a .250 career isolated power. The cost is high in outs, however, as he owns a .300 OBP and strikes out 26% of the time. At seasonal 31 in 2022, those weaknesses are unlikely to get better.

FanGraphs disagrees that he is a two-way player, showing Renfroe costing runs in most of his seasons. On top of that he is a one-year stop-gap.

The Brewers get Janson Junk, Elvis Peguero, and minor league lefty Adam Seminaris. None of them exactly sets the world on fire, which you might expect for a trade of this nature. Given the Angels pitching woes over the last decade, I’m surprised they needed to clear their minor league roster.

I see this as a pretty minor move. The Angels offense needs to keep Mike Trout and Anthony Rendon healthy for a season. If they can get that to happen, then Renfroe’s power will drive in some runs. Otherwise, he’s just another black hole of outs on a team that posted a .297 OBP in 2022.

November 17, 2022

Mariners Deal Again

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The Mariners trade 2020 Rookie of the Year Kyle Lewis to the Diamondbacks for Cooper Hummel. Lewis never really recovered from his torn meniscus injury suffered in 2021. Hummel was an old rookie in 2022 at seasonal age 27. Hummel does have a history of getting on base in the minors, something the Mariners expected from Lewis. So in two days the Mariners acquired a table setter and a tabled cleaner. Lewis is still in his prime, so maybe the Diamondbacks can get a few good years out of him.

November 16, 2022

My Slugger Has a First Name, It’s T-E-O-S-C-A-R

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The Mariners acquired Teoscar Hernandez in a trade with the Blue Jays, Toronto receiving two pitchers in return:

“We began our offseason with the intent to add impact and length to our lineup,” Mariners president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto said in a team statement. “In adding Teoscar to an already solid foundation, we feel we’ve become a far more dangerous offensive club.”

SeattleTimes.com

Hernandez slugs, with a career isolated power of .238. That does come at a bit of a cost, with a .319 career OBP, somewhat inflated by two outlier seasons of .340 and .346 in 2020 and 2021 respectively. Note that his power makes him pretty good at scoring runners from any base, and he works well as a fifth or sixth hitter.

Toronto gets  reliever Erik Swanson and left-handed pitching prospect Adam Macko. Swanson is a high strikeout, low walk pitcher who made a big leap in 2022 by preventing home runs. Macko goes into his age 22 with an extremely high strikeout rate and a high walk rate to go with it. If the Blue Jays can get the walks under control, Macko could be great.

November 10, 2022

First Choi

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The Pirates traded with the Rays for first baseman Ji-Man Choi.

The move gives the Pirates a veteran bat with a chance to provide the team with a short-term solution at a position it has struggled to fill since trading Josh Bell to the Washington Nationals in December 2020.

ESPN.com

Choi’s strength as a hitter is his ability to to get on base. The Pirates finished 2022 with the lowest OBP in the National League. On defense, he does pretty impressive splits as he stretches to catch throws at first.

This is a great example of a problem at first base not being a real problem. The Pirates gave up next to nothing, and have a player who should improve the offense.

August 21, 2022

The Hader Trade

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The Padres took Josh Hader out of the closer role due to two poor performances against the Nationals. When the Padres made the trade with the Brewers I thought it was a bit of a challenge trade, with the teams swapping closers, and the Brewers getting more players. Hader has yet to record a save for the Padres while allowing five hits, five walks, and a home run in 3 1/3 innings. Rogers has yet to record a save, but allowed six hits and one walk in seven innings while striking out ten. So the Brewers seem to have gotten the better pitcher. The Padres are 10-10 in August, the Brewers 6-11, so the trade didn’t really help either club.

August 2, 2022

Two Closers

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The Braves made a last-minute deal to add a closer to their bullpen as they acquire Rasiel Iglesias from the Angels:

Iglesias will likely set up Braves closer Kenley Jansen but can also fill the role on days Jansen isn’t available to pitch.

ESPN.com

The Angels get pitchers Jesse Chavez and Tucker Davidson. Chavez gives them a strong arm out of the bullpen for the rest of the season. Davidson could be better if he gets his walks under control.

August 2, 2022

Whitty Deal

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The Royals flip Whit Merrifield to the Blue Jays for a pretty good pitcher:

Toronto acquired Royals infielder Whit Merrifield minutes before the 2022 trade deadline, as first reported by Jon Heyman. The Jays sent back prospects Max Castillo and Samad Taylor back to Kansas City, per Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith.

MSN.com

Castillo is a high strikeout, low walk pitcher, and so far his number translated well to his short major league career. In Merrifield, the Blue Jays get the super utility player who can slot in almost anywhere, and is very good at delivering hits. This is a nice move for both teams.

August 2, 2022

Gallo Gone

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The Yankees traded Joey Gallo to the Dodgers for pitcher Clayton Beeter. Beeter made 43 starts in the minors, but has yet to win a game, going 0-9. He strikes out a ton of batters, but also walks a lot.

Given this interview Gallo gave before the trade, it looks like a no-win player got him out of a no-win situation.

Q: Isiah Kiner-Falefa told me Rangers fans accepted you as a low average, big-strikeout guy who hit a lot of homers. It’s different in New York.

Gallo: Coming here, I knew it was going to be really tough. It took a while for people to understand the player I am in Texas. Early on, I was the No. 1 prospect, but I struck out a lot. I was a strange player. But Rangers fans started to understand, ‘OK, this guy strikes out, but he hits homers, he plays good defense, he’s a good person.’ Rangers fans came to understand that. Here in New York, if you don’t get enough hits, it doesn’t matter what else you’re doing. They’re going to tear you apart. I’ve been a Three True Outcomes player my whole life. It’s not like I hit .300 my whole life. I’ve been a .200 hitter my whole life and I hit .160 here. So I knew New York was going to be a tough time and a tough place to play, especially the player that I am.

NJ.com

I really wonder if this is a Sampson type thing. Gallo looks more intimidating with a beard. If he grows it back, maybe his power comes with it. The Dodgers also have a way of turning around players.

August 2, 2022

Noah Floats East

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The Phillies acquire pitcher Noah Syndergaard from the Angels for Mickey Moniak and Jadiel Sanchez. The article calls them prospects, but in looking at their statistics, prospects would be a stretch. Syndergaard is set to be a free agent, and he’s unlikely to rate a qualifying offer, so the Angels save a little money and have a couple of players for their minor league teams.

Syndergaard returns to the NL East. but his strikeouts are way down from his career average. His K rate stands at 7.2 per 9 IP this season versus 9.5 per 9 IP for his career.

August 2, 2022

Soto Deal Done

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The Padres and Nationals completed the deal that moves Juan Soto to San Diego.

The San Diego Padres have signed superstar outfielder Juan Soto and first baseman Josh Bell from the Washington Nationals, it was announced Tuesday.

The price for the Padres is far from cheap. The return package going to the Nationals includes prospects left-handed pitcher MacKenzie Gore, outfielder Robert Hassell III, shortstop C.J. Abrams, outfielder James Wood and right-handed pitcher Jarlin Susana. Washington also gets first baseman/designated hitter Luke Voit.

ESPN.com

So the Padres really get three chances to win the World Series, as they will have Soto, Fernando Tatis, and Manny Machado on the team through 2024. In their 53rd season, San Diego clearly wants to end their championship drought. That was worth emptying the farm system.

Now it is up to the Nationals to take the five young players acquired in the deal and turn them into the core of the team. Note that group is likely to include a high draft pick next season, given Washington’s poor record. The Sporting News provides a good analysis of the youngsters.

Note also that when this group matures around 2025, the Nationals might want to add a free agent to round out the roster. Why not have Soto return then, when the team is ready to win with a rather low payroll?

August 2, 2022 August 1, 2022

Buy Polar

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The Red Sox are both buyers and sellers at the trade deadline. First, they trade Christian Vazquez to the Astros, a seller move:

The seasonal age 23 Valdez is hitting for quite a bit of power in the minors this year, while Wilyer, also 23, is doing a great job of getting on base.

Then the Red Sox turn around and acquire Tommy Pham from the Reds for a future player. Pham represents a possible replacement for J.D. Martinez, who may get traded as well.

Update: The Red Sox also picked up a catcher:

McGuire’s BA, OBP, and slugging percentage this season are all between .225 and .285.

August 1, 2022

No Shortage of Shortstops

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The Royals make a minor trade, moving a third baseman Emmanuel Rivera to the Diamondbacks for pitcher Luke Weaver. The real reason for the trade was to make room for rookies:

The 26-year-old Rivera was hitting .237 with six homers and 22 RBI in 63 games for the Royals this season. But he was mostly used as a backup in Kansas City, and his trade could mean a move back to third base for elite youngster Bobby Witt Jr. and more time in the lineup at shortstop for rookie Maikel Garcia.

ESPN.com

Garcia is six for his first 16 in the majors, while Witt showed impressive power so far. Those two might be playing next to each other for a long time.

August 1, 2022

Pitching Replenish

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The Yankees solidified their rotation and bullpen with two deals on Monday. They traded four prospects to Oakland for two pitchers, including Frankie Montas:

The A’s sent Montas and right-handed reliever Lou Trivino to the New York Yankees in exchange for four prospects in what’s expected to be one of the biggest trades of the summer, sources confirm to this news organization. The A’s acquired pitching prospect JP Sears, left-handed pitching prospect Ken Waldichuk, infield prospect Cooper Bowman and right-handed pitching prospect Luis Medina.

MSN.com

Montas pitched well so far this season, owning a 3.18 ERA. He lowered his walk and home run rate this year while leaving his strikeout rate at a high 9.4 per 9 IP. Trivino allowed a ton of runs this season, but his K rate is high, and the Yankees defense is pretty good.

On the Oakland side, Sears blew away the minor leagues and pitched well in his 22 MLB innings. Waldichuk is another high K pitcher who needs to work on his control. Bowman has not been impressive with the bat, while Medina, finally making it to AA, walks a ton of batters. Sears is the prize in this deal.

The second deal involved the Cubs and a reliever:

The New York Yankees are acquiring right-handed reliever Scott Effross from the Chicago Cubs, according to Jack Curry of YES Network. The Cubs will receive right-hander Hayden Wesneski in return, according to Ken Rosenthal. 

CBSSports.com

In his short MLB career Effross allowed a .223/.270/.321 slash line. Wesneski is a starter with a 3.52 minor league ERA but very good three true outcomes.

The Yankees get some insurance for the rotation and help fill the injury void in the bullpen. The Athletics and Cubs each get a pitcher who can help them long term.

August 1, 2022

Moon River Shot

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The Astros make a three-team deal, receiving Trey Mancini from the Orioles:

The Houston Astros acquired first baseman Trey Mancini from the Baltimore Orioles in a three-team trade Monday that also moved speedy outfielder Jose Siri to the Tampa Bay Rays.

…

Houston also received minor league right-hander Jayden Murray from Tampa Bay. The Astros sent Siri to the Rays and minor league right-hander Chayce McDermott to the Orioles.

Chron.com

Almost all of Siri’s value comes from defense this season, and he should be a decent replacement for Kevin Kiermaier.

Murray owns a low ERA in the minors with good three-true outcomes, while McDermott blows away batters. With both Mancini and Murray, the Astros might have gotten the best of this transaction.

August 1, 2022

Challenge Trade

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I find the deal for closers between Milwaukee and San Diego fascinating:

The Padres moved to address the hole in the back end of their bullpen Monday by trading for the best closer in the major leagues.

And what they sent to Milwaukee for Josh Hader does not preclude them from continuing to engage in talks with the Nationals about acquiring Juan Soto, the main prize they seek to upgrade their offense.

The Padres sent the Brewers relievers Taylor Rogers and Dinelson Lamet and outfielder Esteury Ruiz, as well as minor leaguer Robert Gasser, their No. 7 prospect who has been pitching at Single-A Fort Wayne.

SanDiegoUnionTribune.com

This is a meditation on the value of a closer. If you rank them by saves, Hader and Rogers come out one-two, so it’s easy to do a straight comparison. Both own rather high ERAs. Hader strikes out batters at a higher rate, 15.6 per 9 IP compared to 10.5 for Rogers. Rogers however, allows a miniscule number of walks and home runs compared to Hader. Both have much lower FIPs than ERAs, but Rogers has the better FIP, Hader the better xFIP. They each have strengths and weaknesses, but they are both good pitchers.

Yet the Padres value Hader much more highly than the Brewers. Both teams are expansion clubs from 1969 that never won a World Series, and both are likely to make the playoffs. The Padres see a single pitcher as an integral part of the team, while the Brewers were willing to let the same pitcher go for more depth and some good, young players.

Ruiz appears to have found himself this season, putting up high OBPs at both AA and AAA. Gasser is a starter with a high K rate and a low walk rate.

I know people who believe the role of the closer is over-rated, and others that feel it’s an extremely important part of the team. I’m almost hoping that the Brewers and Padres face each other in the post-season to put this trade to a head-to-head test.

July 30, 2022

Peralta to the Rays

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Tampa Bay acquired David Peralta from the Diamondbacks:

With injuries to Wander Franco and others, Peralta fills an immediate need from the left side of the plate for the Rays. He has a .823 OPS against right-handed pitching this season.

ESPN.com

Peralta did a good job of getting on base during most of his career, with a .340 career OBP. That fell to .325 in 2021 and .316 this season. If the Rays can get him back to the .340 level, he’ll help a lot. His power did come back this season after an off-year in 2021. He hit eight homers in 150 games last year. He has 12 home runs in 87 games this season.

The Diamondbacks get catcher Christian Cerda. He is seasonal age 19, with a .246/.395/.390 slash line in 62 rookie league games. It’s nice to have a catcher with a high OBP, and he has plenty of time to develop.