There wasn’t a lot of big deals made at the MLB trade deadline. But when there was, it got everyone talking. Some winners of the MLB trade deadline made small but important moves to help the team. A couple of winners made a huge move to help their chances. The majority of losers are the ones who didn’t make a move at all. This was a very quiet deadline but an interesting one.
MLB Trade Deadline Winners and Losers
Winners
Houston Astros
The Houston Astros made a blockbuster trade at the trade deadline. They acquired Zack Greinke from the Arizona Diamondbacks for four prospects. Greinke is still one of the best pitchers in the league and he gets added to an already great rotation. The Astros rotation just got a whole lot better with Justin Verlander, Gerrit Cole, Greinke, and Wade Miley as their top four. They also landed relievers Aaron Sanchez and Joe Biagini from the Toronto Blue Jays. The Astros added to what was already one of the best rotations in baseball. Teams who face the Astros in the playoffs will be one tough task.
Washington Nationals
The Washington Nationals have caught fire after their terrible start to the season. They have all of the pieces in place except for one area and that’s the bullpen. Well, the Nationals addressed the bullpen issues with a couple of moves. They traded for relievers Daniel Hudson from the Blue Jays and got both Roenis Elias and Hunter Strickland from the Seattle Mariners.
The Nationals needed to improve their later innings and now they have more options in front of closer Sean Doolittle. These moves weren’t blockbusters moves, but they will definitely help them.
Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Indians swung a huge three-team trade a day before the deadline including the San Diego Padres and the Cincinnati Reds. The Indians lost Trevor Bauer but got back Yasiel Puig from the Reds and Franmil Reyes from the Padres, which added more than 50 home runs between Puig and Reyes.
Even though they lost Trevor Bauer, their ace Corey Kluber is coming off of the injured list soon. They filled a couple of holes out in the outfield and getting Kluber back will fill Bauer’s spot. It might not be enough to hang with teams like the Astros or Yankees but they will certainly give teams trouble.
Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves also needed bullpen help and they got some good reinforcements. They traded for reliever Chris Martin from the Texas Rangers, Mark Melancon from the San Francisco Giants, and Shane Greene from the Detroit Tigers. These three have had good seasons out of the bullpen, especially Martin and Greene. The Braves were already one of the top teams in the National League and this makes them and the bullpen even better.
Losers
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees did absolutely nothing at the trade deadline. The Yankees have a reputation of getting their guy at the deadline to help the team get even stronger but not this year. The Yankees don’t have any holes except for maybe the rotation. CC Sabathia is injured again and Masahiro Tanaka is having a huge slump. The Yankees problem is pitching every year but they sat quiet at the deadline, which was a surprise to everyone. They are still a monster team and is still one of the teams to beat but pitching help would have been helpful.
Los Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers made a small move at the deadline. They got Jedd Gyorko from the Cardinals for a pitcher who is out for the year and a 19-year-old minor league pitcher. This wasn’t really what anyone expected at all as they are one of several teams to fail at the deadline.
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals did absolutely nothing at the deadline expect to unload utility man Jedd Gyorko and add a couple of minor league pitchers. This was a very disappointing deadline for the Cardinals. They haven’t made the playoffs in three years and this year is also in doubt. The Cardinals have been in first for the last few days and they had a chance to get better for their run but they didn’t. They are still a clear playoff contender but if they miss the playoffs by a game, they will look at this past deadline and wonder why.
Boston Red Sox
The defending champions Boston Red Sox got off to a bad start to the season. They got a little better as the season went on but they are still playing nowhere near what we thought. As of right now they are out of a playoff spot and could very well miss the playoffs. They made no moves at all at the deadline. They have shown that they can beat the Yankees this season but they won’t be able to show it in the playoffs at all if they don’t get it together. Doing nothing at the trade deadline didn’t help at all.
MLB Trade Deadline Reaction
Many are surprised by what teams did and what they didn’t do. Some of the top names stayed on their respective teams. Madison Bumgarner stayed with the Giants, Noah Syndergaard stayed with the New York Mets, and Robbie Ray stayed with the Diamondbacks. Many were surprised that some of these big names players were not moved but what was more surprising was the teams that didn’t do anything. This deadline wasn’t the hottest but teams certainly got better.
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