And the Trade Deadline is Over!

And the Trade Deadline is over! We’ve already looked at pitchers Scott Feldman and Matt Garza getting traded, and waited and waited for others to be leaving as well. The wait is no more! First I’m going to list everyone got traded, then break each one down. 

Brian Wilson joined the dark side, going to the cross state rival Dodgers. 

Jake Peavy was traded to the Boston Red Sox, in a three team deal involving seven players. They traded SS/3B Jose Iglesisas to the Tigers, and the White Sox received OF Avisail Garcia, along with three minor league prospects. 

Astros pitcher Bud Norris was traded to the Orioles for two minor league prospects and a future draft pick.

Speaking of the Astros, the Royals acquired OF Justin Maxwell for minor league pitcher Kyle Smith. In 40 games, Maxwell is just batting .241 with eight homers and eight RBI's.

The Padres received pitcher Ian Kennedy from the Diamondbacks, trading away pitcher Joe Thatcher, pitcher Matt Stites (currently in AA), and a compensation round B draft pick.

3B Alberto Callaspo was traded from the Angels to the Athletics for infield prospect Grant Green.

LHP Marc Rzepcynski (pronounced Zep-Chin-Ski) from the Cardinals has been traded to the Cleveland Indians for minor league shortstop Juan Herrera. 

I honestly have no idea what Michael Young from the Phillies is doing. He is willing to waive his no-trade clause for the Red Sox and Yankees, but he also said he might accept a trade to the Yanks, and the Rangers are still interested. It’s complicated.

Cliff Lee is staying with the Phillies.

The Cubs want to deal pitchers James Russell and Kevin Gregg along with outfielders Nate Shierholtz and David DeJesus, but it doesn’t look like any of them will be traded. 

That’s about it. If anything else happens, I’ll let you know. Now what about these trades? Who won?

The biggest trade was the Jake Peavy trade. Peavy this year is 8-4 with a 4.28 ERA in 80 innings. Last year, Peavy went 11-12 with a 3.37 ERA and a 5.2 WAR. Obviously the Red Sox picked up a huge pitcher, possibly one of the best that was left on the market, but did have to give up a lot for him. The White Sox received OF prospect Avisail Garcia, a 21 year old power prospect in the Detroit system, along with a 100 mph throwing Francelis Montas, righty J.B. Wendelken, and infielder Cleuluis Rondon. The Tigers received SS and 3B Jose Iglesias, a 23 year old who could be the Rookie of the Year. Iglesias is batting .330/.376/.409 with enormous potential.

So who won? I think this trade has to be separated into different years. If you look at it to determine this year, then probably the Red Sox. They are big contenders to win a title this year, and Jake Peavy is a good 2 or 3 man to try and win it for them. 

In the next five seasons, Iglesias could be a huge player, and I think the Tigers will love this trade. SS Jhonny Peralta’s contract ends this year, and if he gets suspended 50 games for PED use, it would be such a good move by the Tigers. Iglesias is also a great defensive player, and could be big for contact hitting. Plus, in my opinion, they didn’t trade much to try and get Iglesias. 

Looking into a rebuilding era, the White Sox also got a good deal out of this. They gave up Peavy, but granted, he is 32 years old, and they’re going nowhere by keeping him. These prospects, especially Montas, can be big players in the organization. I don’t see much from Garcia, they says he has power, but he’s hit two homers in 53 career games in the MLB. 

If Peralta gets suspended, then the Tigers win this trade. If not, then I think the White Sox did a good job getting all of these prospects and did the right move. 

Two other trades that will probably make a big difference are the Bud Norris trade and the Ian Kennedy trade. 

28 year old Bud Norris is 6-9 with a 3.93 ERA, and has a career 4.33 ERA. He has a career 8.4 K/9 ratio, but that’s dropped this year to only a 6.4 ratio. The Orioles will need him in case they want to make any more run to the playoffs, because they sure do need pitching, even with Scott Feldman. Baltimore sent outfielder L.J. Hoes and left-handed prospect Josh Hader to the Astros. Hoes has only played three games in his career, and has not gotten a hit yet. 

Ian Kennedy has been struggling big this year, going 3-8 with a 5.23 ERA. He has a career 3.99 ERA, including his 21-4 record with a 2.88 ERA in 2011. The Padres will send reliever Joe Thatcher, AA reliever Matt Stites, and a compensatory-round draft pick. Thatcher is 3-1 with a 2.10 ERA in 50 games this year with the Padres.

I love the trade deadline, such a great idea in baseball. That’s about it for the trades. I lost my first day in Beat the Streak, but yesterday both James Loney and Andrew McCutchen got a hit, so my streak is at two. Mike Trout can make it three for me tonight!

Email me at statsbuddy42@gmail.com for any questions/comments/concerns.

-Evan Boyd