A lot can change in four days at the Winter Meetings.
With a packed free-agent class that boasts buzz-worthy names like Bryce Harper, Manny Machado and Dallas Keuchel, the annual gathering of all 30 big-league teams should be a busy setting for off-season moves that reshape the course of seasons to come.
Although the current Toronto Blue Jays front office isn’t known for making big December deals, other teams have made major splashes at recent Winter Meetings with players such as Giancarlo Stanton, Chris Sale and Rick Porcello changing teams.
The 2018 Winter Meetings will take place on Dec. 9 to Dec. 12 in Las Vegas. Before they get started, here are some of the most remarkable moves from the past five years…
2013 – ORLANDO, FLA.
Roy Halladay retires as a Blue Jay
Halladay signed a one-day contract with the Blue Jays and retired on Dec. 9, the first day of the Winter Meetings. The future Hall of Famer called it a career after 16 years in the majors, two Cy Young Awards and eight All-Star selections.
Two-time Cy Young Award winner Roy Halladay answers questions after announcing his retirement on Dec. 9, 2013. (John Raoux/AP)
2014 – SAN DIEGO, CALIF.
The Boston Red Sox acquire RHP Rick Porcello from the Detroit Tigers for OF Yoenis Cespedes, RHP Alex Wilson and LHP Gabe Speier
Porcello’s trade value was high coming into the 2014-15 off-season, as he had just posted a 3.43 ERA in 204.2 innings for the Tigers. He only got better with the Red Sox, winning a Cy Young two years later with a 22-win season. This past October the right-hander made five post-season appearances as the Red Sox won a World Series title.
On the other side of the trade, Cespedes didn’t play a full season with the Tigers, as he was dealt to the New York Mets at the 2015 non-waiver trade deadline for Michael Fulmer and Luis Cessa.
2015 – NASHVILLE, TENN.
The Atlanta Braves deal RHP Shelby Miller and LHP Gabe Speier to the Arizona Diamondbacks for OF Ender Inciarte, SS Dansby Swanson and RHP Aaron Blair
This trade is still regarded by many as one of the worst deals in Diamondbacks history, and might be considered one of the reasons why the team parted ways with general manager Dave Stewart and front-office advisor Tony La Russa.
Miller was an All-Star in 2015 with an ERA of 3.02 in 205.1 innings, but despite his considerable potential the right-hander failed to produce with the Diamondbacks, missing time over the last two seasons to recover from Tommy John surgery. Arizona chose to non-tender Miller on Nov. 30 of this year, and he finished his Diamondbacks stint with a 6.35 ERA in 29 games (28 starts) over three seasons.
Inciarte, on the other hand, earned an All-Star nod in 2017, and Swanson has grown to become a solid if unspectacular major-league contributor for the Braves, who reached the post-season in 2018 for the first time in five years.
This blockbuster deal happened on the same day the Diamondbacks agreed on a six-year, $206.5-million contract with Zack Greinke.
The Chicago Cubs sign INF Ben Zobrist to a four-year, $56-million deal
Just two days after they signed right-handed starter John Lackey, the Cubs beat the Mets in the race to ink Zobrist in a pivotal move that helped end Chicago’s 108-year World Series drought. The switch-hitter didn’t disappoint, earning a selection to the NL All-Star team in 2016 and World Series MVP honours for a historic seven-game series against the Cleveland Indians in which he slashed .357/.419/.500.
2016 – NATIONAL HARBOR, MD.
The Red Sox acquire RHP Chris Sale from the Chicago White Sox for prospects Yoan Moncada, Michael Kopech, OF Luis Basabe and RHP Victor Diaz
This trade added Sale to a rotation including David Price and Porcello and eventually helped the Red Sox win the 2018 World Series.
The prospect package that Boston sent to Chicago has also started to pay dividends, as Moncada (then ranked No. 1 in baseball by MLB Pipeline) hit 17 home runs in 2018, his third year in the majors. Kopech made his major-league debut in August with a two-inning appearance in which his fastball reached 98 m.p.h.
The White Sox continued loading up on prospects at the 2016 meetings by sending outfielder Adam Eaton to the Washington Nationals for right-handed pitchers Lucas Giolito, Reynaldo Lopez and Dane Dunning.
2017 – ORLANDO, FLA
The New York Yankees acquire OF Giancarlo Stanton from the Miami Marlins for SS Starlin Castro and prospects Jorge Guzman, Jose Devers
Once Miami’s new Derek Jeter-led ownership group made clear its intentions to trade many of the team’s notable players for prospects, Stanton became a coveted off-season chip. The four-time All-Star followed up his 2017 MVP year by batting .266/.343/.509 with 38 homers for the Yankees in 2018, helping the team reach the ALDS.
In Miami, Castro hit .278/.329/.400 as an everyday infielder while Guzman played well enough to merit protection from the Rule 5 draft and Bevers emerged as a defensive bright spot in High-A.
The Marlins continued to deal last winter, sending All-Star left-fielder Marcell Ozuna to the St. Louis Cardinals for four prospects one day after the Winter Meetings ended.
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