BOSTON – Major League Baseball pitchers and relievers were traded like penny stocks at the E-Trade kiosk on Wednesday, the trading deadline for players to be swapped under new rules for player movement adopted just this year.
Most notably, the Houston Astros acquired ace Zack Greinke from the Arizona Diamondbacks for a bevy of top prospects and promising farmhands. Greinke is (10-4) with a 2.90 ERA and 0.95 whip in 23 starts (146.0 IP). He is 35 years old and was a 2002 first round back by the Kansas City Royals.
The Astros were buyers at the deadline and improved their depth dramatically.
The other key acquisition on deadline day was made by the Atlanta Braves as they acquired closer Shane Greene from the Detroit Tigers and Mark Meloncon from the San Francisco Giants.
In all there were 35 transactions made on July 31 alone that involved pitchers.
Last night’s game winner at the Tampa Bay Rays at Boston Red Sox, LHP Adam Kolaric, was dealt to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Boston team GM and Baseball Operations President Dave Dombrowski remained quiet at trade deadline time, opting to watch the reliever trade-frenzy around him and stand pat with a bullpen that is suspect, at best. The Sox (and Rays) bullpens were tested mightily on Tuesday night as 14 pitchers were utilized in the 6-5 Tampa Bay victory. Only three other MLB games in 2019 saw 14 (seven by each team) utilized.
