In a move that will benefit the organization in the long run, the Athletics had to say goodbye to two of their most talented and beloved players, and an AL West rival seriously geared up for the stretch run, among other news.
Welcome back to the Daily Bernie! The weeks leading up to it may have been slow, but Monday’s trade deadline did not disappoint. It’s the best dance in the game, so let’s get rolling once more!
The A’s said farewell to a fan favorite and an excellent offseason addition, as long-time right fielder Josh Reddick and left-hander Rich Hill were sent to the Los Angeles Dodgers. In exchange, the Athletics received three extremely talented young righties in Grant Holmes, Frankie Montas, and Jharel Cotton. Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports was first on the deal, which has been made official. The deal certainly stings, as I don’t think a single A’s fan doesn’t love Reddick, who had been a huge part of the team since the magical 2012 season. However, the team and Reddick were simply too far apart in extension talks, so the organization had to capitalize on his value. Hill, on the other hand, was also becoming a fan favorite, as he was excellent in Oakland prior to getting dinged up with a groin injury and a recurring blister. There still remains the possibility that the A’s try to sign either player from free agency this offseason. The A’s received a really strong package in exchange for the two stars, as Holmes, Montas, and Cotton each have huge potential. Holmes, only 20, has mid-rotation upside or better, while Montas is a 23 year-old fireballer currently recovering from a rib injury and Cotton is an extremely interesting 24 year-old who could be helping out in Oakland sooner rather than later. The three could form the core of the next great Athletics squad, while Hill and Reddick were unlikely to do so. For more on Oakland’s haul, check out Eric Longenhagen’s report on the righties for FanGraphs.com, and for a bittersweet farewell to Pie-derman Josh Reddick check out Tim’s wonderfully written piece.
The biggest deal of the day was the Texas Rangers’ blockbuster acquisition of star catcher Jonathan Lucroy and excellent reliever Jeremy Jeffress from the Milwaukee Brewers. Texas gave up an extremely talented young outfielder with five-tool potential in Lewis Brinson, a hard-throwing righty in Luis Ortiz, and a player to be named later. Lucroy, who was originally ticketed for Cleveland before vetoing the deal with his no-trade clause, will add some serious production behind the plate for a Texas team that hasn’t fielded an above average catcher since Mike Napoli’s catching days. Lucroy has a very cheap team option for 2017. Jeffress is a hard-throwing reliever who will help close out ball games for the club, and could make the bullpen a force to be reckoned with in October.
Texas made another significant addition as well, picking up outfielder Carlos Beltran from the New York Yankees in exchange for minor league righties Dillon Tate, Nick Green, and Erik Swanson. Beltran has clearly lost multiple steps on defense since his prime with the Kansas City Royals and New York Mets, but the switch-hitter will get plenty of time at DH with Texas and has been great offensively this season, slashing .304/.344/.546 with 22 home runs. The Yankees, on the other hand, wrapped up a fantastic deadline with this deal, as they restocked their entire farm and now boast one of the best in the game. Tate was Texas’ first round pick in 2015, and although the 22 year-old has struggled in 2016, the sky is still the limit for him. Swanson, also 22, is in the midst of a breakout year in Single-A, while Green boasts a solid fastball.
One major trade took all day to complete, as in the end the Mets did end up acquiring outfielder Jay Bruce from the Cincinnati Reds in exchange for young second baseman Dilson Herrera and lefty Max Wotell. While the deal was progressing towards completion early Monday morning, discussions stalled due to medical questions regarding one of the prospects originally headed to Cincinnati. However, the deal was re-worked and completed in time. While Bruce adds a huge bat to a Mets lineup in need of offense and provides insurance for Yoenis Cespedes, who could opt out of his contract after 2016, the fit remains curious as Bruce has been atrocious on defense. He didn’t come cheap, either - Herrera looks like a five-tool second baseman and is MLB-ready at only 22, while Wotel has some potential as well at only 19 years of age.
The San Francisco Giants also made a bit of a curious move, sending third baseman Matt Duffy along with top shortstop prospect Lucius Fox and young righty Michael Santos to the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for left-handed pitcher Matt Moore. Moore is a decent starting pitcher with cheap team control, but the lefty has posted a 4.08 ERA in 2016 and underwent Tommy John Surgery in 2014. Duffy seems like a huge price to pay for a seemingly mediocre pitcher, as Duffy posted a 4.9 fWAR season last year. He hasn’t hit as well in 2016, but still plays excellent defense and is very valuable. And that’s not to mention the considerable upside of Fox and an interesting arm in Santos.
The Giants didn’t stop there, also adding lefty Will Smith of the Brewers to their bullpen in exchange for pitching prospect Phil Bickford and young catcher Andrew Susac. While Smith hasn’t quite been the same since his early-season knee injury, he is still one of the most underrated left-handed relievers in the game. The price was steep, as Bickford was one of San Francisco’s top young righties and Susac is fairly talented in his own right. Susac will help hold down the fort at catcher until Milwaukee’s long term replacement for Lucroy is found.
One of the deadline’s biggest deals was made public well after the deadline had passed, as the Toronto Blue Jays picked up lefty Francisco Liriano and prospects Reese McGuire and Harold Ramirez from the Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for righty Drew Hutchison. This move doesn’t seem to make much sense for the Pirates - it is clearly a salary dump of Liriano, but he isn’t really that bad or that expensive, and Ramirez and McGuire are both very talented prospects. Maybe pitching coach Ray Searage and the Pirates see something in Hutchison that the rest of us don’t (which is quite possible), but it’s still just a strange trade.
The Blue Jays also sent righty Jesse Chavez to the Dodgers in exchange for fellow righty Mike Bolsinger, and acquired righty Scott Feldman from the Houston Astros in exchange for young pitcher Lupe Chavez. This is simply a shuffling of long relievers, as Chavez struggled in Toronto but has been long-coveted by Los Angeles, and Bolsinger and Feldman could each use a change of scenery. The PIrates also grabbed righty Ivan Nova from the Yankees in exchange for two players to be named later, and sent former Metropolitan Jon Niese back to the Mets in exchange for former Pirate Antonio Bastardo.
Another odd deal was struck between the Los Angeles Angels and Minnesota Twins, as Ricky Nolasco’s bad contract headed to Anaheim along with young righty Alex Meyer in exchange for southpaw Hector Santiago and righty Alan Busenitz. The Twins sent cash to the Angels to even the 2016 salaries of Nolasco and Santiago, but Nolasco is owed $12 million in 2017 while Santiago will be eligible for his final year of arbitration. Also, Nolasco is quite bad, while Santiago is a viable Major League arm. The Twins also sent former Athletic lefty Fernando Abad to the Boston Red Sox in exchange for minor league righty Pat Light.
The strangest transaction of the day was actually a re-trade. New Miami Marlins righty Collin Rea suffered a major elbow injury in his first outing with the club, who were enraged at the San Diego Padres. Rea was ultimately sent back to the Padres in exchange for righty Luis Castillo, a major piece of the initial trade.
A pair of interesting trades for relief help were completed just before the deadline, as Joe Smith went from the Angels to the Chicago Cubs in exchange for young righty Jesus Castillo, and struggling righty Josh Fields was sent from the Astros to the Dodgers in exchange for international signee Yordan Alvarez. Smith adds yet another piece to what has become a terrifying Cubs bullpen, while the acquisition of Fields is a no-risk, high reward move for Los Angeles.
Finally, the Rays sent out a pair of right-handed hitting outfielders, as platoon bat and ball magnet Brandon Guyer was sent to the Indians in exchange for minor leaguers Nathan Lukes and Jhonleider Salinas, while breakout bat Steve Pearce was sent back to the Baltimore Orioles in exchange for catching prospect Jonah Heim. Both Guyer and Pearce will be productive part-time players for their new teams, while the Rays picked up three interesting albeit unsexy prospects.
That’s all for today, and for what was another wild trade season. I would like to thank you all so much for all of your unending support of this series. It has been a blast writing for you all. The new-look A’s take on the slegnA at 7:05 PM. Southpaw Sean Manaea will face off against righty Matt Shoemaker. Feel free to leave any links in the comments below. Until next time - lean on, A’s fans!
The trades in chronological order...
June 30: San Diego Padres trade RHP Fernando Rodney to the San Diego Padres for RHP Chris Paddack
June 30: Atlanta Braves trade RHP Bud Norris and OF Dian Toscano to the Los Angeles Dodgers for LHP Phillip Pfeifer and RHP Caleb Dirks
July 7: Milwaukee Brewers trade IF Aaron Hill and cash considerations to the Boston Red Sox for RHP Adam Wilkerson and IF Wendell Rijo
July 8: Arizona Diamondbacks trade RHP Brad Ziegler to the Boston Red Sox for OF Luis Alejandro Basabe and RHP Jose Almonte
July 14: San Diego Padres trade LHP Drew Pomeranz to the Boston Red Sox for RHP Anderson Espinoza
July 20: Seattle Mariners trade LHP Mike Montgomery and RHP Jordan Pries to the Chicago Cubs for RHP Paul Blackburn and IF Daniel Vogelbach
July 27: Atlanta Braves trade LHP Dario Alvarez and RHP Lucas Harrell to the Texas Rangers for INF Travis Demeritte
July 28: Minnesota Twins trade IF Eduardo Nunez to the San Francisco Giants for LHP Adalberto Mejia
July 29: San Diego Padres trade RHPs Andrew Cashner, Collin Rea and Tayron Guerrero to the Miami Marlins for RHPs Jarred Cosart, Carter Capps, and Luis Castillo, and IF Josh Naylor
July 30: Pittsburgh Pirates trade RHP Mark Melancon to the Washington Nationals for LHPs Felipe Rivero and Taylor Hearn
July 30: Oakland Athletics trade OF Billy Burns to the Kansas City Royals for OF Brett Eibner
July 30: Atlanta Braves trade OF/IF Hector Olivera to the San Diego Padres for “OF” Matt Kemp and cash considerations
July 31: New York Yankees trade LHP Andrew Miller to the Cleveland Indians for OF Clint Frazier, LHP Justus Sheffield, and RHPs Ben Heller and J.P. Feyereisen
July 31: Arizona Diamondbacks trade RHP Tyler Clippard to the New York Yankees for RHP Vicente Campos
July 31: Chicago White Sox trade LHP Zach Duke to the St. Louis Cardinals for OF Charlie Tilson
July 31: Seattle Mariners trade LHP Wade Miley to the Baltimore Orioles for LHP Ariel Miranda
Aug. 1: Minnesota Twins trade LHP Fernando Abad to the Boston Red Sox for RHP Pat Light
Aug. 1: Oakland Athletics trade OF Josh Reddick and LHP Rich Hill to the Los Angeles Dodgers for RHPs Grant Holmes, Francelis Montas, and Jharel Cotton
Aug. 1: Miami Marlins trade RHP Collin Rea back to San Diego Padres for Luis Castillo
Aug. 1: Cincinatti Reds trade OF Jay Bruce to the New York Mets for IF Dilson Herrera and LHP Max Wotell
Aug. 1: Milwaukee Brewers trade LHP Will Smith to the San Francisco Giants for C Andrew Susac and RHP Phil Bickford
Aug. 1: Tampa Bay Rays trade OF Brandon Guyer to the Cleveland Indians for OF Nathan Lukes and RHP Jhonleider Salinas
Aug. 1: Tampa Bay Rays trade LHP Matt Moore to the San Francisco Giants for IFs Matt Duffy and Lucius Fox and RHP Michael Santos
Aug. 1: Tampa Bay Rays trade IF/OF Steve Pearce to the Baltimore Orioles for C Jonah Heim
Aug. 1: New York Yankees trade OF Carlos Beltran to Texas Rangers for RHPs Dillon Tate, Nick Green, and Erik Swanson
Aug. 1: New York Yankees trade RHP Ivan Nova to the Pittsburgh Pirates for two players to be named later
Aug. 1: Pittsburgh Pirates trade LHP Jon Niese to the New York Mets for LHP Antonio Bastardo
Aug. 1: Pittsburgh Pirates trade LHP Francisco Liriano, C Reese McGuire and OF Harold Ramirez to the Toronto Blue Jays for RHP Drew Hutchison
Aug. 1: Milwaukee Brewers trade C Jonathan Lucroy and RHP Jeremy Jeffress to the Texas Rangers for OF Lewis Brinson, RHP Luis Ortiz and a player to be named later
Aug. 1: Minnesota Twins trade RHPs Ricky Nolasco and Alex Meyer and cash to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim for LHP Hector Santiago and RHP Alan Busenitz
Aug. 1: Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim trade RHP Joe Smith to the Chicago Cubs for RHP Jesus Castillo
Aug. 1: Houston Astros trade RHP Josh Fields to the Los Angeles Dodgers for IF/OF Yordan Alvarez
Aug. 1: Toronto Blue Jays trade RHP Jesse Chavez and cash to the Los Angeles Dodgers for RHP Mike Bolsinger
Aug. 1: Houston Astros trade RHP Scott Feldman to the Toronto Blue Jays for RHP Lupe Chavez