Winners And Losers From MLB Trade Deadline

The time of year has come and gone. The trade deadline in Major League Baseball has passed by, and while some teams stayed quite, others made some big splashes. In total, there were 12 trades made, with the Boston Red Sox being involved in four of those deals. Also, in those twelve trades, 37 total players were moved to new teams and cities. All of this was done by teams either building towards a playoff push for this season or, depending on how you really look at it, building for their future. Big name players got moved in some deal, while others stayed put. So with all that was done, even stuff that wasn't done, lets take a look at who won and who lost during the deadline.

Winners:
Oakland Athletics
We already know that the A's are the best team in baseball, sitting atop the AL West at 66-41. They got better when they added Jeff Samardzija and Jason Hammel from the Chicago Cubs earlier this month. The deal cost the A’s two top prospects, but the move obviously improved Oakland’s rotation drastically. The Athletics’ most significant splash came Thursday, though, when the team acquired left-hander Jon Lester and outfielder Jonny Gomes in exchange for outfielder Yoenis Cespedes. While Oakland could miss Cespedes’ bat to some extent, Lester, who is a noted big-game pitcher at his peak, represents a perfect pickup for a team with World Series aspirations.  I know its a big loss of the bat with Cespedes gone, but it really helps bolster that pitching staff which has struggled slightly as of late.

Detroit Tigers
They are the top team in the AL Central and are a heavy favorite to come out of the American League. They do have plenty of offensive punch, but their pitching could have used a bit of a bolster. Well they got one in a big way in the wake of the Lester trade. It was in a three team deal with the Mariners and Rays. Seattle acquired Austin Jackson, while the Rays acquired Nick Franklin, Drew Smyly and Willy Adames. What did the Tigers get out of all this? Some guy named David Price. Price comes in with an 11-8 record, a 3.11 ERA and 189 strikeouts. What was given up for the Tigers was a reasonable price (no pun intended) and it gives the Tigers the last three AL Cy Young winners in their rotation: Price (2012), Justin Verlander (2001) and Max Scherzer (2013). Detroit is now a bigtime contender in the American League, as if they weren't contenders as it is.

St. Louis Cardinals
This is a team that is always near the top in the National League Central, which they are once again, two games behind the Brewers to this point in the season. The offense could have used a bit of an upgrade, but they had more of a need in starting pitching behind Adam Wainwright, especially given the uncertainty surrounding Michael Wacha’s health. Well the Cardinals addressed the need, picking up John Lackey from Red Sox for Allen Craig and Joe Kelly. Put both Lackey and Justin Masterson in behind Wainwright, it gives the Cardinals stability in their starting rotation, something they really need. Now with a hopefully stable pitching staff will help get the Cardinals over the hump in the National League Central.

Boston Red Sox
This year is pretty much a lost cause for the Red Sox, as they sit in last place in the AL East at 48-60 as of today. But with the moves they made at the deadline, the future looks really bright for the Red Sox. It is rare that a team will get rid of two of its top pitchers and still come out a winner but that's what happened in Boston. You knew that Lester wasn't going to get a new deal so they sent him off, with a chance to resign him in the offseason. The Red Sox went into negotiations looking for major league talent that could help them contend next season. Yoenis Cespedes, Allen Craig and Joe Kelly all fit that criteria. Boston has started to take steps in the right direction to get back to contention next year, now they just have to build off it in the offseason.

Losers:
Tampa Bay Rays
The rumor mill has been firing forever as to what was going to happen with David Price, who was on borrowed time with the Rays for a while now. The belief among many was that when Price was finally delt, there would be a nice prize brought back in return. Well that backfired bigtime. The Rays acquired mid-rotation starter Drew Smyly, infielder Nick Franklin and shortstop Willy Adames. That’s a pretty underwhelming haul for one of the game’s premier starters, who also happens to be under contract for another season. I know the Rays are still somewhat alive in this playoff race, but they got nothing back for their best pitcher, which is really going to hurt their playoff chances for this year.

Philadelphia Phillies
The fighting Philles have been quite once again this year at the deadline, which is starting to become a big problem. The Phillies, who are bogged down by aging, high-priced veterans, are having a hard time getting out from underneath their problematic financial commitments. It doesn’t help when the general manager starts blaming other teams for not offering enough. Talk about a bad situation all around. If the Phillies want to be able to contend again in the NL East, they need to try and start getting younger. I know they still have Ryan Howard, Jimmy Rollins and Chase Utley but they are all in their late 30's and aren't the players they once were. Phillies General Manager Rubén Amaro, Jr. really needs to take a long look at his roster and decide what to do with the team in the offseason if they want to get back in the race next year.

Those were really the big winners and losers from the trade deadline. But lets not forget about the local teams here in New York, the Mets and Yankees.

New York Yankees
The Yankees knew they had needs at starting pitching, but they weren't able to pull the trigger and get another pitcher into that banged up starting rotation. General Manager Bryan Cashman did make two moves before the deadline though. He was able to pick up Stephen Drew was acquired from the Boston Red Sox with $500,000 for Kelly Johnson. Then, he picked up Martin Prado from the Arizona Diamondbacks for minor league slugger Pete O’Brien and either cash or a player to be named. The moves are going to help the offense a little bit, which has been inconsistent this year behind that banged up pitching staff. It wasn't a big power bat, but it should still help the offense of a team that is three games back in the American league wild card race. Are they a better team right now? A little bit yes but as we all know talk is cheap. Now the Yankees have to put it all together and make that big push over the final two months of the season.

New York Mets
Another trade deadline come and gone with the Mets staying quite. It has been well documented that the Mets have glaring holes in the ballclub, but according to General Manager Sandy Alderson, the asking price was too high. It would have meant that the team would have to fork over some of their top pitching prospects, something that is clearly a non-starter with this GM in advance of 2015, when the Amazins are expected to be downright dangerous on the mound. The Mets still have an outside shot at getting into the playoffs this year, just five and a half out of the last wild card spot right now. They could have used some help on offense but the asking price was too much. Rumor had it going into the deadline that the Mets were going to be quite, and they were. I'm not sure if this is a good thing or not. I'm not sure the Mets have enough pieces here to get into the playoffs let alone be a .500 ball club. They have been playing better as of late, but the question is will it be enough to get them over the hump?