Featuring Colin Hecht & Trevor Utley
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Featuring Trevor Utley, Lou Kessler, & Andrew Sanford
Featuring Trevor Utley, Lou Kessler, and Al deCiutiis
By Trevor Utley The MLB Trade Deadline came and went at 4 PM yesterday and while waiver based deals can still be worked out in August, the last major deals for first place teams and the clubs chasing them have come and gone. Only time will tell if these deals bear fruit for the teams that made them, but in the interim let us review the deals of today and yesterday and hash out the winners and losers of baseball's most hectic afternoon. Firstly, let us set aside the deals that don't really need to be graded out. These are the transactions that don't have much bearing on pennant races or involve lower caliber pieces. These trades include:
This could be a reclamation project for a player Cubs' GM Theo Epstein knows very well. Look what the North Siders did with Jake Arrieta so far this season.
Denorfia becomes part of a Mariners' outfield desperate for a spark. San Diego doesn't get much back in the two prospects, even though Almonte was the Opening Day centerfielder for the M's, but the Padres can be happy to part ways with Denorfia's over $2 million salary for what amounted to a platoon guy against lefties only.
The Braves got better with Bonifacio who, while quite fragile, can play all over the field outside of being part of the battery and Russell who absolutely dominates left handed hitters. Caratini was a second round pick a year ago who is still transitioning from the infield to catching but has a bat that could pay dividends.
The A's outfield is beat up right now and will make use of a player like Fuld whom they actually waived earlier this season. He will get some decent run right now with Cespedes gone and Coco Crisp ailing but when the main cogs come back he'll be a fourth or fifth outfielder. Milone regressed from last year but should still be a part of the Twins' rotation going forward.
Miller is a free agent this offseason and Boston didn't want to let him walk for free. The left hander was traded in the division but netted the defending World Series champions a prized piece of the Orioles' farm system. 21 year old southpaw Rodriguez hasn't been exactly setting the world on fire at Double-A Bowie but was ranked as Baltimore's #3 prospect in 2013.
If you listened to our podcast we addressed Milwaukee's glaring hole, their bullpen, and even had Haniger involved in a deal for an arm. Milwaukee brass seemed to have a different plan in acquiring Gerardo Parra and inserting him into a crowded outfield. Haniger and Banda aren't world beaters. This was a weird trade for both sides as neither team really got better.
There is a big batch of young talent being swapped in this one. The Marlins got the major league ready talent from Houston while Houston will have to wait a while on their haul. Cosart should slot in behind Jose Fernandez in Miami's rotation for the future while Hernandez is playing beyond expectations currently. A whole lot of maybes going to the Lone Star State. With those minor deals out of the way let us delve into the ones that will have varying impacts on who makes the postseason in both leagues. From two aces being dealt to some head scratchers from the Bronx Bombers, this was easily one of the more active and interesting trade deadlines in recent memory. ATHLETICS GET JON LESTER, JONNY GOMES, & CASH RED SOX GET YOENIS CESPEDES & A COMPETITIVE BALANCE DRAFT PICK The A's, which seemed to be many a reporter's mystery team in the Jon Lester sweepstakes, swooped in seemingly at the last minute for the highly coveted lefty. The move improves Oakland's greatest strength and widens the gap between them and the Angels in the AL West. Jonny Gomes takes his talents to the Bay Area as well and should get a good amount of bats against left handers, he is currently second in the league in average against southpaws, in a banged up A's outfield. The Red Sox, the busiest team on Deadline Day, gets back a player in Cespedes that has a swing tailored for Fenway Park and an arm that could throw a laser to the plate even from the fabled triangle in Boston's centerfield. Boston may be in a similar situation to the Lester one next year with Cespedes though. A free agent at the end of 2015, the Cuban could ask away if the Red Sox don't improve. The argument for this trade on Boston's end is that they get a big bat in the two time former HR Derby Champion and a chance to chase Lester this offseason since it is almost a foregone conclusion that the small market A's will not pay the sticker price on Lester. If they end up whiffing on him and then Cespedes walks away next fall, this deal will be frowned upon by Red Sox Nation. If they rebound (not even necessarily resigning Lester in the process) and convince Cespedes to stay, the Red Sox made the best out of a bad situation. For Oakland, they show they are all in this year and it is World Series or bust. Lester paired with recent acquisitions Jeff Samardzija and Jason Hammel as well as Scott Kazmir, Jesse Chavez, and Sonny Gray make a team nobody wants to face come October. They may just not all be in Oakland green and yellow in 2015. But trust me that Oakland will just find new shiny toys to play with. OAKLAND GRADE: A+ BOSTON GRADE: B TIGERS GET DAVID PRICE RAYS GET DREW SMYLY, WILLY ADAMES, & NICK FRANKLIN MARINERS GET AUSTIN JACKSON After all the trades that Tampa were rumored to have turned down for their ace, it seems they panicked in trading him to the Tigers. Detroit gets a left hander to put between Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander in their rotation and frankly didn't give up that much to do so. They kept young infielder Nick Castellanos in town and the only pitcher they lost in the deal was Drew Smyly who has bounced between the rotation and the bullpen with no real consistency. It keeps Detroit on pace with Oakland for the top seed in the American League Playoffs and keeps their rotation strong if Scherzer departs in free agency. Seattle acted as a third wheel in this deal and came out smelling like roses. Jackson is still only 27 and improves a Seattle outfield devoid of offensive and defensive talent. They gave up Nick Franklin who though he was seen by some as one of the Mariners of tomorrow, only hit .128 for the M's thus far in 2014. Tampa Bay was not in the situation with Price that Boston was in with Lester. They had another year to go with their all-world left hander and instead of holding onto him for a run at the second AL Wild Card dealt him and got the proverbial pu-pu platter return. Smyly will be in the rotation for the remainder of 2014 but his role will probably end up being the same back and forth one it was in Motown. Adames is one of the more highly touted prospects in Detroit's weak hitting minor league system but he is only 18 and is light years away. It will be interesting to see if the struggling Franklin gets a chance to play everyday at the Trop. The Rays have shown they didn't even want to pay the potential arbitration figure for Price in 2015. A team that has flying high lately has just been shot out of the sky. The team with the most to give got the least in return. I am still trying to wrap my head around this deal on Tampa's end. Detroit solidifies themselves as an American League power and Seattle gets a competent outfielder for seemingly nothing. If I write any more about this trade my brain is going to explode. DETROIT GRADE: A- SEATTLE GRADE: A+ TAMPA BAY GRADE: F CARDINALS GET JOHN LACKEY & COREY LITTRELL RED SOX GET ALLEN CRAIG & JOE KELLY Boston is making no bones about blowing up their team. It seemed everbody outside of Dustin Pedroia and David Ortiz were on the block. After Jon Lester, John Lackey was the second domino to fall. The right hander had rebuilt his image in Boston after injuries and the "Chicken and Beer" nonsense faded, making him one of their most coveted assets. His $500,000 salary for next year doesn't hurt either. St. Louis has been chasing Milwaukee for the Central Division crown for the majority of 2014 and the acquisition of Lackey (along with Justin Masterson that we'll get to next) restocks the pitching shelves that were getting pretty bare for the Cards. Lackey will probably sit in the third starter role behind Adam Wainwright and Lance Lynn, a daunting opponent for the third game of any potential postseason series. Corey Littrell is basically a throw in for this deal and I wouldn't be surprised if this is the last time I ever write his name again. Boston doesn't necessarily get taken to the cleaners on this deal though. Allen Craig is only a couple seasons removed from being one of the most feared late game hitters in all of baseball. He was more than clutch in St. Louis' World Series triumph in 2011. If he can return from his injuries, which Boston will surely allow him too, they may have gotten themselves another late inning hero to pair with Big Papi. In Joe Kelly they get a pitcher who can start or relieve, and though he won't wow you with his numbers eats innings and gets outs. While Tampa seemed to force their own hand with the Price trade, Boston so far has made teams work hard for their arms instead of the inverse. This trade helps both teams now and in 2015 and both GMs should give themselves a good old Barry Horowitz pat on the back for making it. ST. LOUIS GRADE: B BOSTON GRADE: A- CARDINALS GET JUSTIN MASTERSON INDIANS GET JAMES RAMSEY This trade was consummated yesterday but it is still significant in St. Louis' charge to the Central Division title. They know all to well that you can never have too much starting pitching heading into the postseason, especially in the National League. In acquiring Masterson, they've added depth to a battle tested rotation whilst not giving up a high level prospect in doing so. The Cardinals will go as far as their starting pitching will take them. Each of their runs to the World Series in the past decade have been on the backbone of their staff. The former Cleveland right hander may not be in the rotation come the postseason but has experience coming out of the pen from early years in Boston which is valuable to St. Louis. James Ramsey, a 24 year old outfielder who has spent his season at AA for Springfield, is a prospect who may be in Cleveland by the end of this season or Opening Day 2015. He has hit .300 for St. Louis' second tier team and has shown decent pop the past two seasons. It isn't a haul for the Tribe but it isn't a complete swing and miss. After a run to the Wild Card game last year, Cleveland went backwards. They did right by their Opening Day starter and got a player in Ramsey that will be able to contribute sooner rather than a normal prospect in one of these types of trades would. St. Louis has a completely right handed rotation but one that is very flexible and experienced in postseason play. ST. LOUIS GRADE: A- CLEVELAND GRADE: B NATIONALS GET ASDRUBAL CABRERA INDIANS GET ZACH WALTERS I thought the Nationals would address the hole in their lineup left by Ryan Zimmerman's absence but thought it would be a third baseman instead of another shortstop. They did just that though as they shipped out promising middle infielder Zach Walters for Cleveland's Asdrubal Cabrera. He will get a trial by fire at second base for the first place Nationals with Ian Desmond entrenched at short. Washington is loaded with pitching so if they were going to make a move it was definitely going to be for a bat. Adrian Beltre and Martin Prado (who eventually landed in New York) were discussed but they eventually settled for the former All-Star Cabrera. Cabrera will be asked to man second base for Washington, a position he hasn't played since 2009. The former Indian will most likely leave in free agency but he'll provide some steadiness in the infield until Zimmerman returns from his latest ailment. The Indians are just waiting for Francisco Lindor to be ready. The uber talented shortstop down on the farm for Cleveland isn't there yet and Walters could plug the gap between Cabrera's exit and Lindor's arrival. He played in 32 games for Washington this year but only garnered 39 at-bats in those appearances. He will probably never hit for average but has 20+ home run potential at either shortstop or second base which is enticing. When two teams help each other on a deal you can't knock it. Cabrera gets to chase the postseason for a second straight year while Walters is a stopgap to Lindor or a much cheaper option if Jason Kipnis slips further after signing his new contract. WASHINGTON GRADE: B+ CLEVELAND GRADE: B- NEW YORK GETS STEPHEN DREW & MARTIN PRADO ARIZONA GETS PETER O'BRIEN BOSTON GETS KELLY JOHNSON This one was actually two separate trades but I combined them for the sake of time. Drew and Johnson swapped colors in the first non-waiver deal between the Red Sox and Yankees since Mike Stanley was dealt for Tony Armas Jr. Martin Prado comes over from Arizona for Peter O'Brien, a power hitting catcher who had spent his entire 2014 at AA. From just a personnel standpoint, neither of these two trades make much sense for the Yankees. Drew is going to play out of position at second base for the Bombers after Brian Roberts was designated for assignment. Prado has more positional flexibility but seems to be of no more use to the Yankees than a $11 million a year utility guy. Don't get me wrong, they gave up nothing of immediate value to acquire these two but they were two deals that just seem to have been made for making a deal's sake. In Boston, Xander Bogaerts now shuffles back to shortstop a move that may exacerbate his fielding woes. The young Aruban started off 2014 at short but then moved to third with Will Middlebrooks' injury and the resigning of Drew. Bogaerts going back to shortstop leaves third base for Brock Holt, which is his natural position. Johnson can play both in the infield and outfield and will surely get plenty of AB's spelling various Sox hitters down the stretch. Arizona gets out from under a big contract in Prado for a guy in O'Brien who could potentially replace Miguel Montero if Arizona chooses to rid themselves of his big deal. Overall, the Yankees got two expensive players with no real place to put them. Though like I said before they didn't lose out on a top prospect or high level Major Leaguer to do so, but if they were going to address anything at the deadline it should have been pitching. NEW YORK GRADE: C- ARIZONA GRADE: C BOSTON GRADE: B- Trevor Utley is sad the Dodgers whiffed in their pursuit of both available aces but LA kinda has some good arms already so he thinks he'll live. Image Credits: Let's Make A Deal (2guystalkingmetsbaseball.com); Lester, Gomes, Cespedes, Price, Lackey, Craig, Kelly, Masterson, Cabrera (espn.com); Adames, Ramsey, Walters, O'Brien (milb.com); Smyly, Franklin, Jackson, Drew, Prado, Johnson (mlb.com) By Trevor Utley There are some organizations in professional sports that just get it. They know how to put a product out on the field, promote it well, and keep it relevant even in down times. Since the millennium turned, the Cardinals have been the penultimate National League organization. Like the Spurs in the NBA and Patriots in the NFL, the Cardinals have built a tremendous core around shrewd free agent signings, good coaching, and player development. Last year they rode the young arms of Shelby Miller, Michael Wacha, Carlos Martinez, and Trevor Rosenthal all the way to the NL Pennant. Though they lost to the Red Sox in the World Series, the Cardinals have restocked their ammunition like they always do; just this time with their hitting instead of their pitching. In 2013, the Cards plugged in their young arms behind ace Adam Wainwright. In 2014, they will plug in the young bats around MVP third runner-up Matt Carpenter. The hitting machine Carpenter remains in the leadoff spot in the lineup but will move to third base to make way at second for Kolten Wong. Wong won't be the only talented lefty making an impact for St. Louis in 2014. Oscar Taveras may not be in the starting nine on Opening Day but I fully expect him to be a regular contributor in right field at some point in the spot vacated by Carlos Beltran. Not all of St. Louis's additions are highly regarded prospects though. In a trade that sent former World Series MVP David Freese to LA, centerfielder Peter Bourjos made his way to the Gateway City. He'll add stability to an outfield defense that is shaky on the corners with sluggers Matt Holliday and Allen Craig. Jhonny Peralta comes over from Detroit, one of the other teams Boston conquered on their way to the title. St. Louis will look for Peralta to solidify the shortstop position, even after a 50 game suspension last year, that has seen a different occupant the past seven seasons. Their farm system supplemented their staff and pen last year and now the lineup is getting their shiny new toys. The Cardinals will win the NL Central on autopilot and I wouldn't be surprised if they were back in the World Series come October. PREDICTED RECORD: 94-68 PREDICTED ALL-STAR REPS: Matt Carpenter, third baseman; Adam Wainwright, starting pitcher; Trevor Rosenthal, relief pitcher Image Credit: Cardinals logo (sportslogos.net) By Trevor Utley This World Series is a tough one for me. I don't want the Red Sox to win because living in New England I am going to have to hear about it for the foreseeable future every time a baseball game is on, even if it isn't the Sox. On the other hand I don't want the St. Louis Cardinals to win because they knocked my beloved Dodgers out in the NLCS and have been a thorn in most National League fans' side for quite some time. And their city is too spread out! What happened last night was an absolute mess but it was one that was cleaned up properly. Boston fans cry bloody murder. "This is bullshit!", "How could the umps screw us like that!", and "Jim Joyce strikes again!" are some of the consistent musings of Red Sox Nation I've seen over the last twelve hours. Except it was the right call. There is no misinterpretation of a rule or a rule being created out of thin air (that is the NFL's bread & butter). It just so happened it ended a WORLD SERIES game and your team was on the short side of the stick. When a fan's team loses they would rather it be straight up and not because of an umpire's ruling. It doesn't take away the sting but at least I know I would rather be knocked out than lose on the judge's scorecard. An obstruction call is not the travesty though that every one thinks it is. There are much worse ways to go down than having a poor third baseman trip up a baserunner after a horribly ill-advised throw from your catcher. Wouldn't it be worse to have an umpire with a horrible strike zone calling a called strike three in the other batter's box on your cleanup hitter? Or have the winning hit go down the line, kick up dust, and be called foul? Or have a replay show that the home run that just won you the game was a home run but the boys in blue emerge from the dugout to rule it foul? Judgment calls are so much worse. Last night's play was not a judgment call. It was obstruction and it put your Red Sox down 2-1. Or maybe I'm wrong. Or maybe I should just shut my mouth because my team is a bunch of overpaid fuckfaces who suck and stink and suck and they got knocked out na-na-na-na-boo-boo. Whatever your opinion I just hope that this series goes on from here on the straight and narrow so I don't have to hear the bellyaching from a city's fans "that never catch a break" about how they were screwed out of what seems to be their birth right in the 2000s. Go back to bitching about pushing. Now that was some bullshit. Trevor Utley wishes the World Series would end in a tie and then be declared vacant until 2014. |
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