Trade Deadline Chat

Andy (Fort Washington, PA): MASSIVE deadline for the Yankees and Cashman. I'm not worried that the perceived infield logjam with Didi, Mateo and Gleyber Torres will work itself out, but how does the new future outfield of Judge, Frazier and Rutherford piece together? Can either Frazier or Rutherford stick at CF? Does bringing in the more dynamic Frazier allow the Yankees to trade Judge and the swing and miss in his game? Also, what's happened to Dillon Tate that made him fall from 4th overall pick a year ago to traded for a 40 year old rental today? Thanks!
Kyle Glaser: Wow, what a crazy deadline everybody. They all seem crazy, but this one especially seems like one of the most wild ones towards the end of the day as I can remember. Regarding the Yankees, they probably had the best deadline of any team as far as prospect acquisition was concerned. (Rangers to me had the best deadline in terms of ML talent acquired). Regarding the Yankees OF, it will be Judge in RF, Frazier in CF, Rutherford in LF. Rutherford can stick in CF, but Frazier is much better there. A lot of teams at the draft had Rutherford in LF long-term anyway. Trading for Frazier doesn’t do anything in regards to trading Judge. They are both such high upside guys in the high minors, you keep them both and play them side-by-side. Regarding Tate, you can read our trade breakdown in trade central for more info, but short version is his velo has dropped from 92-96 to 87-90, his slider has no bite and his curveball has been the equivalent of a looping HS pitch. He injured his hamstring and hasn’t been the same since, and the Rangers were clearly concerned enough they felt it best to cut bait rather than risk holding onto him for another year and have his trade value be zero.

Patrick (Greensboro, N.C.): So who improved their farm system more: the Padres or the Yankees?
Kyle Glaser: Yankees, by far. The guys they acquired are by and large higher upside, greater positional diversity, and all at higher levels with less risk.

Marc (New York): Do the Brewers have the deepest/best farm system in baseball??
Kyle Glaser: No. They made huge strides today picking up Bickford, Ortiz and Brinson, but the Braves, Nationals, Phillies and probably even the Yankees now all rate above them.

Brian (Greensboro, NC): Are the Braves making a mistake by not moving Teheran to either Texas or BoSox for highly ranked position prospect(s)?
Kyle Glaser: No. Pitching is the most valuable commodity in the game today and the highest cost to acquire. The Braves are doing just fine with position prospects in their system (Swanson, Albies, Ruiz, Peterson) that they didn’t HAVE to move Teheran unless they were absolutely blown away. We’ll never really know if Texas or Boston offered their big prospects, but there was no reason to move Teheran unless it was an unbelievable offer, which clearly they didn’t get

Niel (Dallas): name your top 5 prospects who were moved at the trade deadline
Kyle Glaser: We’ll have a full ranking tomorrow, but – counting ONLY players traded within the last 3 days or so (so no Espinoza) – I’d preliminarily go Frazier, Torres, Brinson, Bickford, Holmes

Anthony (Yankees Farm): So is Dillion Tate a total lost cause? Or did he suffer an injury that's responsible for all of this?
Kyle Glaser: Tate strained his hamstring in April and that was the start of his troubles. Since then he hasn’t been able to get his high leg kick fully back in his delivery, and clearly its affecting him. There are some other issues there – lack of competitiveness on the mound and flat plane on his fastball have been two criticisms of him – but it will be intriguing to see what he gets back to once he overcomes the affects of his injury. I wouldn’t call him a lost cause, it’s still only his first full season and he has a lot of room for growth

Tiffythetitan (Oakland, CA): Is there an explanation as to why the Giants always seemingly overpay for players? Is it because teams know they will when it comes down to the deadline and/or because despite pumping out major leaguers the perception of their farm system remains poor? I can't put my arms around the Will Smith trade. Susac and Bickford??? I must be missing something.
Kyle Glaser: Honestly, that was our reaction here in the office too. Bickford was regarded by many California League managers as the best pitching prospect to come through the entire league this year after just five starts, while Susac is a quality player who has just been blocked. He would be an upgrade as a starter for a lot of teams behind the plate. The Giants scouting department deserves the benefit of the doubt at this point (3 of 5 WS titles gets you that), but this was definitely a head scratcher that was an overpay in the eyes of many, including some who were a little down on Bickford after a subpar Futures Game performance

Nick (Phoenix, AZ): Kyle, with the Mets trading Dilson Herrera (instead of Brandon Nimmo) for Jay Bruce - an already crowded Mets outfield just got a little more jampacked - what gives!!?? Also- sounded like Dilson Herrera was the heir to 2nd base for the mets next season - what happens now?
Kyle Glaser: Hi Nick. Bruce has a team option for next year, so the Mets could very easily decline it if he fails to perform. By keeping Nimmo they give themselves further insurance if (when?) Cespedes opts out and Granderson’s decline continues. Conforto and Nimmo are two building blocks, more so than Herrera for all his talents. With a deep pool of MIF prospects in the minors – headlined by Rosario, Cecchini and Reynolds – they can move one of them over to 2B and absorb Herrera’s loss easier than they would have Nimmo. I think the Mets did very well on this one

Nick (AZ): How did the Rangers acquire Lucroy without giving up Joey Gallo? My brain is in a pretzel over this.
Kyle Glaser: Good negotiating on their part. The trade deadline is as much about front office’s persuasive argument skills and playing poker as anything. That said, Lewis Brinson and Luis Ortiz are nothing to sneeze at, and we still have to see who the PTBNL is. I think the Rangers have to be happy because they acquired two big pieces in Beltran and Lucroy and still hung on to Gallo, Yohander Mendez (as we know so far) and other quality players. They had a nice deadline, in my opinion.

Dan (Philadelphia): What are your thoughts on Hellickson not being dealt and how the Phillies and Klentak valued the return he would have brought back today versus the potential compensation pick/risk of Helly accepting the QO?
Kyle Glaser: This was a seller’s market for pitchers, so the Phillies could afford to demand a high price and, if no one met it, were totally fine keeping Hellickson. The thing is the Phillies are in a good spot. If they offer Hellickson and he declines, they get a high pick. If they offer and he accepts, they keep a pretty good pitcher as their young team continues to grow. I think the Phillies were right not to deal Hellickson unless they were blown away, and clearly they weren’t

Tyler (San Diego): Would love to hear your take on the Colin Rea situation. Isn't it usually the responsibility of the team receiving the player to perform a physical so they are comfortable acquiring the player? Why would the Padres agree to take Rea back? Just Preller trying to build rapport and reputation for fair dealing, especially given that he wasn't too keen on trading Rea in the first place?
Kyle Glaser: Got a lot of questions on this situation, so I’ll try and sum all the answers up into this one. Its important to note the Padres had publicly stated throughout this season they were trying to manage Rea’s workload and were worried about him holding up with a large innings increase. It was a San Diego media story throughout the year the Padres never shied away from. So, when Rea broke down after his first outing, knowing SD had concerns in the past, there was a very real chance MLB was going to step in and force some sort of compensation to make up for San Diego trading “damaged goods” as Miami would have argued. The Padres and Marlins were proactive and handled it themselves, rather than having MLB come in and arbitrate any dispute, which is always the prefereable way to go about it. And for what its worth, I actually think this tilts it in the Padres favor a bit, pending Rea’s injury of course. It means for Andrew Cashner they got a major league starter (Cosart), one of baseball’s best relievers when healthy (Capps) and a top 100 prospect (Naylor). That’s a lot for a guy in Cashner who has been a below average major league starter for the better part of two years and is about to get very expensive. Rea was the only ML-ready 20 something arm the Padres had in their entire organization right now, so keeping him makes it that much sweeter.

Brian (Greensboro, NC): Do the Marlins still actually have a farm system or just fillers in the minor leagues?
Kyle Glaser: Fillers. They have surpassed the Angels as having the worst farm system in baseball after this deadline. That said, the Marlins are also in the playoffs if the season ended today, which is kind of the point of the whole thing. They’d gladly take a playoff berth over a highly-ranked farm system, and no one should blame them

Sam (Texas): By picking up Beltran and Lucroy, does Gallo get sent back to minors?
Kyle Glaser: Not necessarily. The Rangers have some roster finagling to do, especially with Fielder out for the year now. Even if Gallo does get sent down, he’ll be back up Sept. 1

Ted (Green Bay): How would you rerank the Brewers farm system after today's trades and what players would be in the teams top 5 in no particular order?
Kyle Glaser: They were a top 10 system before the season, now they are a top 5. I’m not 100 percent comfortable ranking 1 thru 5 right now (still need to sort out all the new faces in new places and take into account 2016 draftees) but they’re definitely in the elite category now

Mark (HB): The Angels are just sitting around doing nothing, even though they have a handful of tradeable pieces (Santiago, Smith, Shoemaker, Escobar) considering their system is the worst in baseball, wouldn't it make sense to add some talent in hopes of a minor rebuild looking towards the 2018 season when Heaney and Ricards (assuming he eventually needs surgery) return?
Kyle Glaser: The Angels eventually did move Santiago and Smith after this question was submitted, but the overall point still stands. Trading Santiago and packaging promising reliever Alan Busenitz on top of it for Ricky Nolasco and Alex Meyer doesn’t make a whole lot of sense unless they believe they can fix Meyer…and banking on your ability to fix a guy is not always the smartest move, particularly when you’re talking about moving a quality starter and usable relief prospect for a reclamation project.

Joe (Ohio): I know he isn't technically a prospect but what is your take on Dilson Herrera?
Kyle Glaser: He’s a good enough young player, but not a must keep. If that’s the cost for a potential impact bat like Jay Bruce, you make that move every time

Nick (AZ): Kyle, who should have gotten traded that didn't?
Kyle Glaser: The Padres holding on to Derek Norris doesn’t make much sense to me. Neither does the Angels holding on to Yunel Escobar.

jeff (atlanta): Is it just me or was the matt kemp trade kind of odd? two teams in extreme rebuilds trading older players doesn't seem to get either team anywhere.
Kyle Glaser: It makes sense for the clubs involved. The Padres end up saving around $30 million by dealing Kemp (with the way the contracts were structured) and reportedly will DFA Olivera immediately, so for them it was purely about the money, and the deal makes sense from that perspective. For all the internet hate about Kemp, he’s still on pace for 30+ doubles, 30+homers, 100+ RBI this season and is still hitting 25-plus HR annually. The Braves don’t have that kind of righthanded power anywhere in their organization right now, minors included, so for them its a gamble that the offense he provides them will overshadow his defensive flaws and give them someone to anchor the middle of their order as all their young kids come up. Given his power track record, this season included, its not the craziest idea in the world

Julius (Houston): Astros? What gives???
Kyle Glaser: You have to remember the Astros pretty much emptied out their farm systems depth with their trades for Kazmir, Gomez and Giles last year. The few upper-tier guys they have left – Reed, Musgrove, Bregman – are all ready to help them now. When you don’t have the farm system depth to match an offer like the ones the Yankees got for Chapman or Miller, its better to hold onto your top guys than trade them for a second-tier option.

Greg (Durham): Was keeping Teheran a mistake. Braves FO thinks they are way closer to winning than they are. Dansby and Albies won't make up for the lack of bats in the organization
Kyle Glaser: There was no reason to trade Teheran unless they got blown away. The only package that actually happened they could or should have considered him for was what the Yankees got for Andrew Miller – two Top 100 guys and two others close to the majors. Teheran is locked up contractually and doesn’t start getting expensive until 2019. The Braves are wise to hold on to him until they are absolutely blown away. No reason to rush it

eric (Milwaukee): Can a recent draftee be a PTBNL ala what happened in the Lucroy trade?
Kyle Glaser: No. The amended “Trea Turner Rule” as it has become known states draftees from that year can not be traded until the day after the World Series. It also explicitly states that players from the most recent draft can not be used as a PTBNL in trades that same summer. So the PTBNL will not be anyone from the Rangers 2016 draft class.

chet casper (indianapolis, indians): will Sox trade Sale today and to whim and for what
Kyle Glaser: We’ll finish up with this one. This was asked before the deadline today. My answer would have been “No.” Even with his recent…um…disagreement with the team’s uniform situation, Sale is still too talented a pitcher to be traded, even for top prospects. There are maybe 5 players in the major leagues you could say Sale would be worth trading for, and no team was going to give up the huge amount of talent in terms of big leaguers and prospects it would have taken to get Chicago to move Sale. This may change as Sale gets older, and we’ll see what happens the rest of this season as we go into the winter, but it was always a far-fetched scenario that Sale would actually get moved midseason. That will do it folks. Thanks for chatting, and remember to check out our Trade Central Index for a full breakdown of every deal and every player involved