You have to admire the gusto. The Houston Astros saw what was shaping up to be a quiet 2019 MLB Trade Deadline day and said, ‘Nah, hold my World Series ring.’
Then general manager Jeff Luhnow went out and put his organization in prime position to capture its second title in three years.
Wow… that escalated quickly! @astros
— Justin Verlander (@JustinVerlander) July 31, 2019
The club added ace Zack Greinke on Wednesday in a deal that filtered out on Twitter just after the 4 p.m. ET deadline. That came right on the heels of the club acquiring Blue Jays starter Aaron Sanchez and reliever Joe Biagini.
That calculus makes the Astros clear winners of the deadline. Here’s a closer look at some other teams in the ‘W’ and ‘L’ columns.
Winner: Astros
Greinke is a legit ace enjoying his best season in years. Yet, he’s likely earmarked for a Game 3 start in an Astros playoff series behind Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole. That’s a scary troika that could very well haul the Astros through the end of October.
There are added bonuses to the move. First, some evaluators believe none of the prospects Houston sent to Arizona for Greinke are impact players. Second, the 35-year-old Greinke is signed through 2021, meaning the team’s rotation is protected should Cole leave as a free agent at the end of this season.
We haven’t even discussed the Astros’ acquisition of Sanchez, who could also factor into next year’s staff. More on that soon.
Loser: Yankees
The Yankees lost out to the Astros in the Cole sweepstakes prior to the 2018 season. This has got to hurt just as much, if not more.
While the Bronx was on Greinke’s no-trade list, the AL East-leaders were under pressure to add a starting pitcher to their wobbly rotation. James Paxton, CC Sabathia, Masahiro Tanaka and J.A. Happ each own ERAs above 4.70. On top of that, Luis Severino has yet to throw a pitch this season.
Major yikes.
The Yankees reportedly coveted Trevor Bauer, Marcus Stroman and Robbie Ray, among others, but GM Brian Cashman ended up making no moves to bolster his 25-man roster. That won’t go over well with a New York fanbase that expected the club to augment its strong offence and bullpen.
Winner: Indians
On one hand, it’s easy to criticize the Indians for moving a pitcher of Bauer’s calibre while in the thick of a pennant race. But we all know about their franchise’s limitations, so threading the needle was likely the optimal scenario. And boy, did they precisely place a strand through the eye of that needle on Tuesday.
Cleveland turned one-plus years of the enigmatic right-hander into a package that infused its offence with immediate power (Yasiel Puig and Franmil Reyes), a back-end starter with potential to be more (Logan Allen), plus two prospects.
If ace Corey Kluber provides an impact in his return from the injured list, the complexion of this Indians club drastically changes as they attempt to chase down the division-leading Twins.
Loser: Marcus Stroman
Stroman badly wanted to be traded to the contending Astros, Red Sox or hometown Yankees, according to multiple reports — in addition to his father.
Instead, what he got was a trade to the dysfunctional Mets, who are five games out of a wild-card spot and, despite a strong rotation, likely won’t provide the right-hander with the playoff spotlight he so desires.
He takes the ‘L’ for that and for the now infamous clubhouse commotion he sparked on his way out of Toronto.
Winner: Aaron Sanchez
The Stroman-Sanchez friendship/enemy/frenemy saga got one final twist on Wednesday, with the latter traded to a contender. Oh, to wonder what Stroman must be thinking now. His former Blue Jays counterpart is going to an analytically savvy organization with a wildly successful history of saving pitchers’ careers — or at least helping them reach the next level. See Verlander, Cole, Charlie Morton, Ryan Pressly, etc.
Sanchez, whose outings leading up to the deadline were promising, is a prime candidate for a revival, even though it’s unclear if he’ll be a starter or reliever in Houston. Also, he’s under team control through next season, so the right-hander has plenty of time to rebuild his value ahead of his future venture into free agency.
Loser: Blue Jays
The Blue Jays shipped Sanchez, Biagini and a prospect to Houston for outfielder Derek Fisher, who profiles more as a fallen prospect, flyer-type than a prized return. Optically, the trade appears rather one-sided and ignited a firestorm on Twitter, where the club’s fanbase voiced its feelings. Loudly. With lots of profanity, confusion, disappointment and sadness.
But that move wasn’t the only factor landing the team in the loss column here:
· Ken Giles’s right-elbow inflammation ultimately depressed his value as a potentially massive asset.
· The trade returns for relievers Daniel Hudson and David Phelps didn’t exactly move the needle.
· The team’s haul in the Stroman trade was largely panned across the industry.
Of note is that the Blue Jays placed a heavy focus on acquiring pitching in their pre-deadline moves. That’s a positive, because the organization’s position-player core is far ahead of its pitching foundation and the latter will need to catch up soon if this rebuild is to take major steps forward.
Winner: Braves
The division-leading Braves entered Wednesday with a bullpen that ranked fourth in the NL with a 4.10 ERA. GM Alex Anthopoulos bolstered that group by adding all-star Tigers closer Shane Greene (1.18 ERA, 22 saves) and veteran Giants reliever Mark Melancon (3.33 FIP, 8.5 K/9). The strategy could help Atlanta continue a trend that has seen playoff teams over the past few years rely on bullpen arms nearly as much as starters in October.
Loser: Red Sox and Dodgers
Both these teams needed an impact reliever, yet both stood pat. The Red Sox are defending World Series champs, so it’s a bit surprising that they wouldn’t make a significant move to address their most glaring deficiency. However, they’re 9.5 games behind the Yankees in the East and ultimately chose not to push chips in to vie for a wild-card spot.
The Dodgers own the best record in baseball and this might very well be the franchise’s best team in three decades. But still. This is a organization that has lost the past two World Series and was eliminated early from the playoffs in each of the prior four seasons.
L.A. was said to be in pursuit of Mets closer Edwin Diaz, but ultimately didn’t land him. Keep an eye on their late-inning relief this fall because closer Kenley Jansen is not the same pitcher he once was.
Stay tuned to see if this deadline comes back to haunt the Dodgers.
Honourable mentions
Winner: Giants (Kudos to Farhan Zaidi for keeping Madison Bumgarner as the club tries to mount one final hurrah under outgoing manager Bruce Bochy).
Loser: Twins (Come on! You’re leading the division by obliterating opposing pitchers. But the best you could do to improve your pitching staff is get Sam Dyson? Soft).
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