The 2019 trade deadline has passed. Unlike in past years, there is no non-waiver trade deadline, so this was it for major trades for teams wanting to recoup value on soon-to-depart players and for teams looking to make upgrades for the stretch run. With that in mind, here are three winners and three losers from the trade deadline.
Winners
- Houston Astros
The Astros’ starting rotation was already scary, led by Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole, not to mention a reformed Wade Miley. Now add Zack Greinke into the mix. You will be hard-pressed to find a scarier rotation in October. Greinke is 35 years old and quite expensive, and it cost the Astros four top-30 prospects. However, Grienke is having his best season since 2015, holding a 2.90 ERA with 135 strikeouts and 21 walks in 146 innings of work.
The Astros also acquired Aaron Sanchez and Joe Biagini from the Blue Jays. Biagini has been solid out of the ‘pen, posting a 3.86 ERA with 49 strikeouts in 49 innings. Sanchez has struggled mightily across 23 starts, losing a league-high 14 games with a 6.07 ERA. Moving him to the bullpen, however, may help him turn things around.
- Atlanta Braves
The Braves addressed a major area of need in the bullpen, picking up Chris Martin from the Rangers yesterday as well as Shane Greene and Mark Melancon today. The 30-year-old Greene is the big get, as the right-hander has been dominant closing out games for the Tigers. He has 22 saves with a 1.18 ERA and a 43/12 K/BB ratio in 38 innings. Bumping everyone on the depth chart down a notch is a big deal.
Melancon, 34, isn’t the dominant reliever he was earlier this decade, but he’s still reliable. In 46 1/3 innings with the Giants, Melancon posted a 3.50 ERA with 44 strikeouts. Martin, 33, had slightly more success with the Rangers, putting up a 3.08 ERA with 43 strikeouts and just four walks in 38 innings.
Ideally, the Braves would have added another starter to push Kevin Gausman out of the rotation but it’s not a huge deal that they didn’t.
- Cleveland Indians
The Indians were part of a three-team deal, reported yesterday, that saw Trevor Bauer go to the Reds and Yasiel Puig pack his bags for Cleveland. Joining Puig are Franmil Reyes along with Logan Allen and minor leaguers Scott Moss and Victor Nova.
Going into the 2019 season, the outfield was the Indians’ biggest weakness. It was such a glaring need that it was shocking that the Indians did nothing to address the issue in the offseason. Adding Puig and Reyes will make a tremendous impact. The Indians’ aggregate .708 OPS from left fielders ranked 26th among 30 teams. Their .695 OPS from center fielders ranked 18th.
Puig is having a down year, owning a .777 OPS which is roughly 50 points below his career average. Still, he has 22 home runs. Reyes posted an .849 OPS and 27 home runs for the Padres prior to the trade. Their power will be a welcome addition to a team that entered Wednesday having hit the fifth-fewest homers in the AL.
Losers
- Los Angeles Dodgers
The Dodgers are a team with few flaws, but the bullpen sticks out like a sore thumb. The bullpen’s aggregate 4.17 ERA still ranks in the top-third of the league, but standards are high for a 70-39 team with 100 percent playoff odds at the end of July. Closer Kenley Jansen hasn’t been his usual dominant self, especially lately. He has allowed eight runs in his last 14 appearances. None of the Dodgers’ other relievers really have closing experience. Adding, for example, Felipe Vázquez from the Pirates or Shane Greene from the Tigers would have been arguably the single most impactful thing any team could have done at the deadline, considering the context of team need.
Now, sans bullpen upgrade, the Dodgers will have to be content with the fact that Pedro Báez, Yimi García, or Joe Kelly may have to come into a tense spot in a playoff game to pick up Jansen. At the very least, they will have to bridge the gap to him.
- New York Yankees
The Yankees’ rotation is a mess. Domingo Germán leads their starters with a 4.08 ERA. Thanks to an overpowering offense and an elite back of the bullpen, the Yankees have still managed to accrue a 67-39 record. But can this rotation hold its own in a five- or seven-game postseason series, pitching the way they have? Probably not.
Starting pitching upgrades were available, even beyond the Mets (Noah Syndergaard, Zack Wheeler) who were reportedly hesitant to deal with analytics-oriented teams. The Yankees could’ve acquired Marcus Stroman from the Blue Jays instead of the Mets, or Trevor Bauer from the Indians before they sent him to the Reds. Madison Bumgarner, Mike Minor, Robbie Ray, and Matthew Boyd all remained with their teams through the deadline, so it wasn’t as if other teams were simply beating the Yankees to the punch or outbidding them.
- Boston Red Sox
The defending champs are nine games out of first place in the AL East, but are only two games out of the AL Wild Card at the moment. This is not a team that is dead in the water, despite failing to live up to expectations following a championship season. Some of it is their own doing, as the club didn’t address the bullpen after losing Craig Kimbrel to free agency. Six different pitchers have picked up saves for the Red Sox this year. Ryan Brasier has accrued the most saves with seven and is currently not even on the active roster. The starting rotation has been underwhelming as well, particularly Chris Sale’s 4.26 ERA, but they have been operating without a fifth starter for the entire year.
The Red Sox didn’t necessarily need to add a Stroman or Syndergaard. Tanner Roark, Trevor Richards, and even Jason Vargas were guys on the cheaper end of the spectrum who could’ve bolstered the back of the rotation. The bullpen would’ve been best addressed with an impact acquisition like Vázquez or Greene. Alex Colomé, a seemingly under-the-radar reliever, would’ve been a huge get for the Red Sox. Sam Dyson, Ken Giles, Will Smith, and Mychal Givens also would have made an immediate impact.