Two AL Frontrunners Making Moves

By Zane Robidoux

Twitter: @zrobidoeee

The Red Sox and the Yankees have been two of the best teams in baseball all year. With the trade deadline less than a week away, everyone was beginning to wonder when Cashman and Dombrowski were going to start to make moves. Not to the disappointment of any fans, they delivered. I had covered who I think each team needed to make a trade for in an earlier article, but after the past couple weeks of injuries and performance inconsistency, both teams seemed to have made a much-needed and timely move. Let’s break them down. 

Red Sox Acquire SP Nathan Eovaldi for Minor Leaguer Jalen Beeks

The trade for Eovaldi could not have possibly come at a better time for the Red Sox. Starting pitchers Eduardo Rodriguez and Steven Wright have both hit the disabled list, and Rodriguez, the Sox number four starter, looks like he’s not going to be returning any time soon. 

Even when or if Wright comes back, he’s somewhat of a wild card, and you’re never sure what pitcher you’re going to get on the mound. Drew Pomeranz just returned from his DL stint, but pitched terribly in his return against the Orioles. Pomeranz didn’t even make it 5 innings, giving up 4 runs and two home runs against one of, if not the worst offense in the American League. 

With all this said, the Red Sox were in pretty dire need of someone who could potentially come in and be the immediate fourth arm in the rotation, especially with the playoffs coming up. Eovaldi will fill that role perfectly. 

His stats this season may scare a few people initially because of his 4.26 ERA. However, his ERA had been hovering in the high 3’s until two starts ago when he was knocked around for 8 runs in 2 innings. Other than that one start, he had been pretty good for the Rays this season since his return from the DL on May 30^th, with a 0.98 WHIP and a .225 BAA. Hes also the type of guy that will chew innings, with 6 of his 9 starts lasting at least 6.

He will bring relief to this Red Sox pitching staff and at the same time help out the bullpen a bit. Oh, and he can throw 100 MPH too, if you care about that kind of stuff. 

Yankees Acquire Closer Zach Britton for Minor Leaguers Dillon Tate, Cody Carroll and Josh Rodgers

The Yankees added an arm to their already impressive list of relief pitchers, but who said too many good players was a bad thing? With a late inning crew consisting of David Robertson, Dellin Betances and closer Aroldis Chapman, there was already a lot to be feared come late game against the Yankees.

Their relief core leads the MLB in ERA (2.76), Strikeouts (453), are second in WHIP (1.08) and have 30 saves. The only issues have been a bit of inconsistency, coming from both Betances and Chapman, and a pretty weak rotation, which would lead to more bullpen use.

But Britton brings a lot of talent to the table, and helps bolster the back end of the pitching staff. He has a 3.45 ERA this season, but has not allowed a run to score in almost a month now, dating back to a June 27^thappearance against the Mariners. 

With a recent increase in his velocity since returning from the DL with an achilles injury, he looks to be regaining his dominance from 2016, when he recorded 47 saves for the Orioles and didn’t give up a run after April. 

Adding his unhittable sinker to an arsenal that includes Chapman’s fastball and Betances’ curve makes the Yankees relief squad somewhat of a three headed monster. Better yet for them, it should make October a little less stressful come the late innings of a game. 

With the trade deadline 6 days away, more big names will be on the move, and I have a suspicion these two teams aren’t sold on their rosters quite yet. Keep an eye out for more activity in the AL East.