Padres, Marlins most active at trade deadline
CHICAGO — San Diego acted boldly once again. Miami actually strengthened its roster. Mike Clevinger, Starling Marte, Archie Bradley and Todd Frazier were on the move. Lance Lynn and Dylan Bundy stayed put.
Baseball’s pandemic-delayed trade deadline was quite a day.
The contending Padres got Clevinger in a multiplayer trade with Cleveland, bolstering their rotation Monday in a rare deadline deal between contenders. The Marlins reeled in the dynamic Marte for their outfield. There was a lot of talk about pitchers Lynn and Bundy, but Lynn stayed in Texas, and the Angels held onto Bundy.
The trade deadline is normally July 31, but it was pushed back when the start of the season was delayed because of the coronavirus.
“It felt like a normal deadline in a lot of ways,” Cubs general manager
Jed Hoyer said. “Tons of activity and phone calls and things like that. I think that in the end, you know, with the Padres notwithstanding, I think that there probably wasn’t quite as much aggressiveness.”
Shooting for its first
playoff appearance since 2006, San Diego acquired Clevinger in its fifth big trade since Saturday. The cost was a package of young players that included outfielder Josh Naylor, right-hander Cal Quantrill and catcher Austin Hedges, adding to the Indians’ depth for their pursuit of the AL Central title.
The Padres also made a smaller deal right at the deadline, picking up reliever Taylor Williams from Seattle for a player to be named.
Miami is normally a seller at the deadline.
But the Marlins are in the postseason mix with a .500 record after dealing with a coronavirus outbreak, and help is on the way.
The Fish sent pitchers Caleb Smith and Humberto Mejia and a player to be named to the Diamondbacks for Marte, who is batting .311 in 33 games. Miami also traded Jonathan Villar to Toronto for a player to be named, but Isan Díaz is working out again and could return to the Marlins soon.
There were very few sellers with 16 teams heading to the playoffs, but the lastplace Diamondbacks also traded left-handed starter Robbie Ray to the Blue
Jays, Bradley to Cincinnati and fellow reliever Andrew Chafin to the Cubs. The struggling Rangers dealt Frazier and catcher Robinson Chirinos to the Mets, and sent lefty Mike Minor to AL West-leading Oakland.
While some contenders moved forward with their current roster, the Blue Jays made over their rotation with the additions of Ross Stripling, Ray and Taijuan Walker, who was acquired in a deal with Seattle on Thursday. The Cubs also got veteran outfielder Cameron Maybin from Detroit and lefty reliever Josh Osich in a trade with Boston.
The Dodgers, Yankees, Braves and White Sox were noticeably quiet. Of course, the loaded Dodgers, who traded Stripling to Toronto for two players to be named, don’t have much to worry about, sitting atop the NL West with the best record in baseball.