Trade Deadline Winners & Losers

 

Trade Deadline Winners

 

·         Tigers: Just adding David Price makes them a winner but doing so by just shipping out Drew Smyly, Austin Jackson, and Willy Adames is amazing for Dave Domrowski.  The Tigers now have 3 Cy Young award winners in their rotation.

·         Athletics: The A’s turn Yoenis Cespedes, Tommy Milone, and a comp pick for Jon Lester, Jonny Gomes, and Sam Fuld which alone is a decent haul for Billy Beane but then add in the fact they got Jason Hammel and Jeff Samardzija on the 4^th of July; WOW! 

·         Cardinals: As it pains me to say this they had a great deadline by giving up Joe Kelly and struggling Allen Craig to get John Lackey and Corey Littrell.  Add this to their awesome buy low acquisition of Justin Masterson the day before and you can argue they had as good as a deadline as any team not named the Tigers or A’s.

·         Red Sox: Honestly the moves they made throughout the trade season rivaled what the A’s did getting Lester and Samardzija.  On deadline day they acquire the power hitting young OF to damage their short porch in LF with Yoenis Cespedes. They also get more young pitching with Joe Kelly and a struggling hitter but good rebound candidate in Allen Craig for a year of John Lackey and minor leaguer Corey Littrell. Then they move top notch reliever Andrew Miller for lefty Eduardo Rodriquez who was their #3 prospect at the start of the season according to John Sickels.  Then to top it off they saved 5 million bucks by shipping Stephen Drew to the Yanks for Kelly Johnson.  The BoSox were a winner at the deadline but again you take that and add that they also acquired Edwin Escobar and Heath Hembree for Jake Peavy who has similar number to Edwin Jackson… that blows me away.

·         Mariners: The M’s needed hitters so they got some with Chris Denorfia and Austin Jackson.  They did have to pay a hefty price with Nick Franklin, Abraham Almonte, and Stephen Kohlscheen but overall I think the pieces they acquired are far superior to the pieces they gave up.

 

Trade Deadline Losers

 

·         Pirates:  The Bucs did nothing during the deadline to improve their team and they watch the Cardinals just load up on pitching.  Big time losers are the Pirates for not landing Price or Lester especially giving the cost of both.

·         Phillies:  How do you not trade anybody on a team full of aging veterans.  They need to start over but opted to hold high priced old vets in Lee, Byrd, Rollins, Howard, and Utley.  While their best trade chip Hamels is also staying put.  Very disappointing for the Phils.

·         Blue Jays:  Again they had several needs including a hitter and a top line pitcher but opted to stay put while the Yankees and O’s bought in.  Even the Red Sox got better in my book and at least the Rays did something by acquiring some decent prospects for Price (although the Price deal still baffles me).

·         White Sox:  Again!  A team that should have sold off some of their pieces remain stubborn and hold on to guys who are get less valuable by the day.

·         Rangers:  Failing to trade Alex Rios is beyond excusable since hitters were at a premium at the deadline giving the lack of them available.  Inexcusable.

 

The others

 

Teams like the Cubs, Braves, Nationals, Orioles, Dodgers, Reds, etc… did not impress or disappoint with their moves or non-moves.  The teams above are clearly defined as winners or losers by the moves they made.

 

WHAT A FREAKING AWESOME DEADLINE!  THE REAL WINNERS ARE US WHO LIVE FOR THIS STUFF!

 

Until Next time

 

 

 

 

5 trades and 5 call-ups

5 Chicago Cubs players that are going to be dealt before the July 31^st trade deadline and 5 players that will take their spots on the roster

 

1.     James Russell: He is the most obvious one to me that will be traded before this deadline. He seems to fallen out of the helping this team moving forward group and into the trade discussion.  I was not that convinced that he would net anything substantial until the Hudson Street trade now I am thinking a high-risk raw prospect could be the realistic net for Russell.

 

Taking his spot: Zac Rosscup is the guy that will take Russell’s spot.  The Cubs are going to need a lefty out of the pen and I think he will get the first chance to be a lefty specialist.

 

 

2.     Nate Schierholtz: Here is a guy that Theo and Jed may have misread when it comes to trade value.  It seems the FO may have whiffed on getting max value for Nate last year but he still provides value for a team looking for a defensive left-handed hitting OF with some pop.  To me the Tigers are a perfect fit here as are several other teams looking to strengthen their bench.

 

Taking his spot: Jorge Soler is the guy and I hear the cheers already!  Now there are reports he will be called up in September but how he has been playing and the status of his contract makes him an easy call up after Schierholtz is dealt.

 

 

3.   Emilio Bonifacio: I thought he may have gotten the Cubs some really nice pieces before his injury but now I think he may have right around the same value as Schierholtz or maybe a little more considering speed and versatility.  No way he is not traded by the deadline to a contending team.  Guys like Emilio are at a premium for playoff teams.

 

            Taking his spot: Javier Baez gets the call.  The guy has been hitting about as well as you can be and to me the move to 2^nd base has already stated the Cubs front office is ready to give Baez a chance at the ML level this season.

 

 

4.     Wesley Wright: I have to admit I was not a fan of the signing and thought “how could he be a flip able piece?” Well I was wrong and actually think now he could get a better return than James Russell.

 

            Taking his spot: Kyuji Fujikawa is most likely the guy.  He has been working his way back to the majors and the timeline just seems to be perfect.

 

 

5.     Edwin Jackson: Edwin Jackson will be traded before the end of the season but I even think he is moved before the deadline.  With the return the Red Sox got for Peavy it is no doubt that pitching right now is at a premium even for guys that have even struggled this year.  This is good news for Edwin Jackson and the Cubs alike.  Rumors have been circulation that the Yankees still have some interest but other clubs are kicking the tires such as the Orioles and Blue Jays.  The return will be small for Ejax but the spot on the roster combined with the salary relieve maybe enough to get him dealt before July 31^st.

 

            Taking his spot: Dan Straily gets the nod.  I think the Cubs have already seen enough Chris Rusin and Dallas Beeler so I think Straily gets a crack at the rotation next.  While he has not pitched well for Iowa I think he is the next logical choice.

 

 

Guys on the rumor mill that will not get traded:

            Travis Wood

            Jake Arreita

            Luis Valbuena

 

Guys who maybe traded after the deadline:

            Ryan Sweeney

            Justin Ruggiano

            Chris Coghlan

            Carlos Villanueva

 

Until Next Time…