Image: Getty Images
Major League Baseball’s trade deadline officially passed on Tuesday at 6 p.m. ET. Obviously, the biggest storylines in the NL East surrounded the Mets’ catastrophic dismantling, the Phillies’ last-minute, All Star pickup, and the Marlins swapping players left and right, but every NL East team made season-impacting moves at the deadline.
How did your team do?
Atlanta Braves:
Sitting at 69-37, the Braves didn’t have many needs going into the deadline. Ronald Acuna Jr., 25, has been making his case for NL MVP this season with a .335 BA, 25 HR, 51 SB, and sitting in the 98 percentile or higher in Average Exit Velocity, HardHit%, xwOBA, and xSLG. Matt Olson, 29, is also on a tear, hitting 37 home runs through 116 games, leading the National League. Not to mention, the Braves signed many of their young stars to long-term deals, so could the Braves get even better?
While the Braves didn’t make any huge splashes, they did go out and bolster their bullpen by acquiring Pierce Johnson and Brad Hand. Johnson, 32, is 1-6 with a 6.00 ERA over 43 appearances (39 innings) for the Rockies this year. While the ERA is stifling, his home vs. away stats raise some eyebrows.
Home: 25 app., 23.2 IP, .292 BA, .384 OBP, .531 SLG, 6 HR, 25.7% K rate, 7.23 ERA
Away: 18 app., 15.1 IP, .292, .387 OPB, .431 SLG, 1 HR, 38.7% K rate, 4.11 ERA
The Braves hope his departure from Coors Field will bring his ERA down and create a solid right-handed setup man in their bullpen.
Hand, 33, is having one of his worst seasons statistically, posting a 4.54 ERA in 35 2/3 innings (40 appearances). Nonetheless, His 26.1% strikeout rate is his best line in three seasons. Also, Hand has kept lefties to a .143/.276/.204 batting line with 20 strikeouts in 59 plate appearances. The Braves hope to revamp Hand away from Coors Field, like Johnson, and create a solid lefty middle relief option in their bullpen.
They also swapped Taylor Hearn for Nicky Lopez. Lopez, 28, has largely been a defensively-minded fielder, but he did bat .300 in 2021 over 500+ plate appearances.In case an injury situation does arise, he will surely act as a decent depth piece.
Overall Grade: B
Philadelphia Phillies:
The reigning NL Champs are having an underwhelming season to this point, sitting at 59-50 and 11.5 games back from the Braves in the NL East.
Bryce Harper, 30, missed the first month of the season, and while he’s batted .295 since he’s been back, he has a disappointing 5 home runs. Kyle Schwarber, 30, is having the opposite season, powering 27 HRs but batting .180 to this point in the season.
Trea Turner, 30, is having a severe off-year, batting .235 with 115 strikeouts and tallying 13 errors, second highest in his career with almost half a season to go. The Phillies have gotten good production from Nick Castellanos, Alec Bohm, and Brandon Marsh, but the Phillies need to do something at the deadline to maintain their spot in the NL Wild Card race.
The team added right-handed starter Michael Lorenzen from the Tigers, who should prove to help back of the Phillies rotation. Lorenzen, 31, has a solid 3.58 ERA this season in 105.2 innings, and he is already making his mark in Philly, pitching 8.0 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, and 5 K in his first start as a Philly. Lorenzen won’t have this stat line every time he gets on the mound, but he is sure to provide long outings in the 4-spot of the starting rotation.
The Phillies also made a quieter move, trading for Rodolfo Castro. While Castro, 24, is only hitting .228 this season, he does have 6 HR and is an upgrade over Josh Harrison as a depth infielder.
These moves do not scream winning the NL East, but they are modest enough to keep the Phillies in the hunt.
Overall Grade: B
Miami Marlins:
The Marlins were active in the trade deadline but appeared to be swapping out players rather than adding to their lineup. At 58-52, they are just 0.5 games out of the Wild Card, but did they do enough to secure their spot?
The Marlins started the deadline by acquiring Jorge López from the Twins for reliever Dylan Floro in a swap of change-of-scenery relievers. Both pitchers have pitched well in previous years, but are having down years. Lopez, 30, has a 5.09 ERA this season, a sharp increase from his 2022 self where he posted a 2.54 ERA in 67 games (1.68 with Orioles). The Marlins hope the change from snow to sun will turn Lopez into his old form.
The Marlins did not stop there with right-handed relievers. They also traded for Mets closer David Robertson a day later. Robertson, 38, was brought in by the Mets this season to be the main setup guy for Edwin Diaz before Diaz went down for the season at the World Baseball Classic. Interestingly enough, Robertson owned the role of closer and is having one of his best seasons, accumulating a 2.68 ERA, 15 saves, and an impressive 1.02 WHIP.
However, the Marlins gave up a lot for the reliever. The Mets received prospects Marco Vargas and Ronald Hernandez, currently ranked the No. 9 and No. 22 prospect in the Mets organization. Time will tell if this trade works out for the Marlins, but two top 30 prospects for a 38-year-old reliever seems steep to the naked eye.
The Marlins also decided to bulk up their offensive power by trading for infielder Jake Burger while sending lefty Jake Eder, Marlins’ No. 6 prospect, to the White Sox. While Burger, 27, brings significant power to the Marlins lineup, hitting 25 homers for Chicago in 88 games, Eder was a steep price to pay for him. Similar to the Robertson deal, the Marlins are hoping the deals will pay off now, lifting them to the playoffs.
Finally, the Marlins installed Josh Bell in Garrett Cooper‘s place, swapping the first basemen in different deals. This deal was the most surprising, given Cooper, 32, has more home runs, RBIs, and has a higher batting average than Bell, but Bell, 30, does bring a lefty bat to a largely righty lineup.
It’s tough to say if any of these deals will substantially help the Marlins. Miami gave up a lot of key prospects and didn’t appear to add any real firepower.
Overall Grade: C
New York Mets:
What in the world…
The Mets made unprecedented moves during the trade deadline, shifting 180 degrees from going all in for the World Series to selling their main assets. The Mets saw Eduardo Escobar (Angels), Max Scherzer (Rangers), Justin Verlander (Astros), David Robertson (Marlins), Dominic Leone (Angels), Mark Canha (Brewers), and Tommy Pham (Diamondbacks) depart. While many Mets fans will be upset with the departures for a long time, the front office pulled off a multi year rebuild in six days to put themselves back in contention for 2025.
In return for their stars, the Mets received some very highly touted prospects. Luisangel Acuna, the little brother of Ronald Acuna Jr., slots in as the Mets’ No. 2 prospect after the Max Scherzer trade. The middle infielder is batting .311 this season and is capable of playing shortstop, second base, and even outfield. He is projected to be MLB-ready by 2024.
The Mets also stole the Astros’ top prospect, OF Drew Gilbert, and No. 4 prospect, OF Ryan Clifford, who come in as No. 4 and No. 6 in the Mets farm system. Gilbert was drafted 22nd overall in the 2022 MLB Draft and has been raking in the minors. With a .313 BA last season and a .274 BA this season, he is sure to be manning the Mets outfield for a long time when his number is called.
Clifford was taken a little lower than Gilbert (11th round) but has quickly moved up in the farm system rankings. He is currently hitting .294 this season in A and A+ and already went 2-3 in his Mets debut. Look for the pair of outfielders to start alongside Brandon Nimmo in the coming years.
As mentioned above, the Mets fleeced the Marlins in the David Robertson trade, acquiring INF Marco Vargas and C Ronald Hernandez. Vargas, 18, has quickly moved up prospect rankings, hitting .283 this season in rookie ball. He has a good batter’s eye, the ability to recognize pitches, and makes a lot of hard contact according to MLB.com. He has the ability to hit 15-20 homers a season.
Hernandez, 19, joins an organization with a plethora of catchers, but given his age and the fact he is hitting .298 this season in rookie ball and very sound behind the plate, throwing out 33% of base stealers last season, there will be a spot for him on the team in the coming years.
The Mets also received RHP Justin Jarvis (No. 15), Coleman Crow (No. 16), and Landon Marceaux (No. 25), and they nabbed middle infielder Jeremiah Jackson (No. 22).
While the moves have a long way to go before they pay off, Steve Cohen and Billy Eppler added seven top 30 prospects in six days, bolstering their farm system in a huge way for the foreseeable future.
Overall Grade: A-
Washington Nationals:
After sending their prized superstar Juan Soto to the Padres last season for a haul of prospects, the Nats were not expected to seriously compete in the NL East this season. Nonetheless, there have been some rising stars in the organization that could have been trade candidates to keep bolstering their farm system.
The talk of the town discussed third baseman Jeimer Candelario, first baseman Joey Menses, outfielder Lane Thomas, and even relief pitcher Kyle Finnegan being shipped out. However, the Nationals made just one trade, sending Candelario to the Cubs for lefty DJ Herz and shortstop Kevin Made.
Candelario, 29, is batting .258 this season with 16 HR and 53 RBIs. Not to mention, he provides solid defense in the hot corner that should entice a sizable return for his services. The Nats were only able to muster a Single-A shortstop in Made and a Double-A pitcher in Herz, both of whom were top-20 prospects in the Cubs system.
Made and Hertz slide in at No. 16 and 17 respectively in the Nats farm system, but you have to wonder, could they have gotten more for the highly touted infielder? And why didn’t they move Finnegan who is a free agent after this year?
Overall Grade: D
M-SABR 
Leave a comment