Looking at the Trade Deadline Results a Week Out

Winners

Boston Red Sox – From the looks of it, the major winner of the All Star Game trading deadline has been the Boston Red Sox. They bolstered their pen with the addition of Addison Reed, and also acquired a red hot Eduardo Nunez.  Since joining the Sox, Nunez has hit .400 with 4 home runs in 9 games. All the while the Red Sox have been 6-0 with the Yankees 3-4 since the deadline. Then throw in GM Dave Dombrowksi’s decision to not trade for a big name third baseman.  By adding Nunez as a platoon and calling up marquee prospect Rafael Devers, he still added needed production to the lineup.  Devers has been better than advertised so far, showcasing great opposite field power, and even if he experiences typical rookie struggles, he and Nunez seem like a fine pair at third going forward. The rest of this lineup also looks markedly reinvigorated by the new additions.

New York Yankees – Even with a 3-4 record since the July 31st trade deadline, the Yankees are major winners of the period. Adding Sonny Gray is still a brilliant move for the Yankees for two reasons.  One, he will add front end power (showing glimpses in his first start) to a rotation that really only has Luis Severino as an ace caliber talent.  Gray also has shown in the brief A’s stint in the 2014 playoffs that he doesn’t mind the bright lights, so I believe he will fit into pinstripes very well. The former A’s hurler is a gamer, the type who is likely stoked for the hunt. If you want to read an interesting story about him, here’s a link to his remarkable backstory.  Having his father die at 14 and being able to cope with that reveals how mentally tough Gray is.

But the Gray move makes sense from the perspective that he has a controllable contract as well.  Unlike the Darvish move, he is not a rental.  All the while the Yankees hold onto their two prized prospects in Gleyber Torres and Clint Frazier.  They also add Jaime Garcia, elite reliever David Robertson, and Todd Frazier in the time before the Deadline. Well done Brian Cashman.

Los Angeles Dodgers – What was that about Darvish being bad in July? Well now it is August and Darvish has been ushered into the Dodgers remarkable success. They don’t lose, and Darvish looked just as impeccable as Yu Darvish should in his first start for the new squad.  7 innings, 3 hits, no earned runs, 10 K’s. No big deal for Darvish and the Dodgers reveal themselves to once again be in just so much better of a place than anyone else in baseball. His contract will be up after the season, but with the championship or bust attitude of the Dodgers it is a very good move.  Not only will Darvish further bolster this elite pitching staff, but they did not even give up either of their top two prospects.  The package for Darvish only included Willie Calhoun, who was LA’s number 4 prospect.  

Colorado Rockies – A very under the radar performance at the deadline was that of the Rockies front office. Not only did they add Jonathan Lucroy at catcher, but they also added a valuable bullpen arm in Pat Neshek.  Although Neshek has given up 3 runs in 4.2 innings already, I still like the move. In neither cases did they surrender high quality prospects.  The Lucroy deal involved a player to be named later, and the prospects given in the Neshek deal were not sterling treasures either. In a race for 2nd in the NL West and essentially homefield for the Wild Card Game, the Rockies made a few nice small moves that can’t hurt if they go awry. Don’t look now but they are 4-2 since the deadline.

Losers

Houston Astros – This Astros rotation has been much better than expected, but do we trust them in the Playoffs? Their bullpen also sits at 20th in the MLB in era. Addison Reed went to the Red Sox for a relatively cheap return. Pat Neshek and David Robertson did as well.  I won’t jump to conclusions that their era is a 5.96 in the last 7 days, but I do want to point out that they could have easily acquired one of the aforementioned players or someone like Brad Hand on the Padres. The Stros have a great future lined with arbitration eligible players for years and still boast 5 top 100 prospects, but it perplexes me that they could not get anything but Francisco Liriano to come to Houston.  Even giving up one of those top 100 guys for a Sonny Gray or Darvish would have sense to me.  The AL is there for you Astros, come on.

San Diego Padres – Still shocked the Padres made one minor deal without selling more. They are a team of bleak ready-now talent, with a powerful farm system waiting. Why not sell on All-Star Brad Hand like the Phillies did with Neshek? They did it with Drew Pomeranz a year ago.  I would’ve been in favor here too.

Written by Will McGuinness