No blockbusters, but O'Dowd pulls off two solid moves to shore up the bullpen.
It was a quiet trade deadline for the Rockies… and honestly, I’m glad they didn’t get sucked into the overpayment that usually happens this time of year. Usually, some team with either too much money (NYY, BoSox, et al) or a team with a slim to zero chance of a deep post-season run gives away the farm (literally) on a rental player. The trade deadline hype is too much to handle, and in my opinion one of the silliest non-events sports has to offer (The MLB draft being a close second).
The Rockies did exactly what a team of their position and market-size should do at the trading deadline – quietly strengthen the team in areas it needs the most help, and give away as little as possible to do it.
The first thing was they finally called it quits on Jason Hirsh. He had so much upside early on, and everyone wanted him to be the second coming of Randy Johnson with that tall frame and blazing speed – but the injuries just ate at him and ate at him, and he never could make it back to the bigs. So they sent him on to the Yankees for the proverbial “Player to be named later” – basically, anything they get in return is gravy, and now the rehab is the Yanks problem.
The Rockies gave up an average bullpen arm to the Indians to get Rafael Betancourt. Now Betancourt isn’t the guy he was a couple years ago, but a couple years ago he was one of the top setup men in baseball. He may not be at that level, but he’s better than the average minor leaguer the Rocks gave up, and he’s ready to come out of the bullpen today and fill the gap left by Corpas and Buchholz’s injuries.
To complete the moves to shore up the bullpen, today O’Dowd and company pulled off a deadline deal for Joe Beimel from the Nationals for two Minor League pitchers — Triple-A right-hander Ryan Mattheus, who recently underwent right elbow surgery, and Class A right-hander Robinson Fabian. So they sent a triple-A pitcher with rehab ahead of him and a single-A right hander to add a major league level left-handed arm to the bullpen – I love this move. What makes this move even sweeter is that the Nats wanted Eric Young Jr – who wouldn’t! But management held steady and didn’t feel like they didn’t to give up too much for this guy, who is a guy they wanted in the offseason as well. The Nationals blinked first, and went ahead on the deal without taking EY, who will most certainly make an impact when rosters expand in September. Hopefully the team is still in contention by then.
Add to the mix the Chacin callup and the potential recall of Herges, we could be looking at a solid bullpen again. As always with this team, it’s not about whether they have the parts, it’s about whether all the parts perform to their potential at the same time. If they do, they have a chance to make a serious run. If not, they’ll continue to get steamrolled by good teams like the Mets and Dodgers. Either way, I’m just excited at the prospect of coming back from an August vacation and looking at a September of meaningful baseball. It will make for a much better mood come football season.
