TBNL: More trade activity, HOF speeches

Trade deadline activity continued.

While normally I’d write about every single trade that happens between now and the deadline, I’m going to save myself (and you) a little time and skip the more minor deals (namely the small ones for nothing more than cash considerations). The specific amounts involved in these deals are rarely disclosed, but I recently learned where the typical range falls.

Teams receive a $50,000 fee when a player is lost via waivers, so there is little incentive to trade a player for anything less. MLB also caps the limit allowed in these situations to $100,000. So, while cash considerations might appear frequently in the transactions log, they are usually between $55,000 and $100,000.

It’s a little less exciting now, isn’t it?

KC adds an outfielder

Entering the weekend, Kansas City left fielders ranked 26th in MLB in OPS (.606) and Royals right fielders ranked dead last (.502). Any chance the team can reach the postseason is rapidly slipping away, but there’s no way the Royals were going to get very far without improving the production from their corner outfielders.

KC looked to do that on Saturday, acquiring Randal Grichuk from the Diamondbacks for right-hander Andrew Hoffmann.

Grichuk, a 12-year veteran, no longer has the defensive versatility he once possessed and struggles against right-handed pitching. He’s batting .240/.277/.457 (99 OPS+) in 188 PA this season, but is a .252/.299/.468 (104 OPS+) hitter for his career.

Hoffmann was a 12th-round pick by the Braves in 2021. He (and two others) was traded to the Royals a year later in exchange for a Competitive Balance pick (#35 overall) in the 2022 Draft. The 25-year-old has a 4.55 ERA and 422 strikeouts in 391.1 IP in the minor leagues. He made his MLB debut in late May, appearing in three games.

Yanks add another infielder

Adding Ryan McMahon on Friday would address the lack of production and poor defense at third base. Brian Cashman’s work was not done with that one move. It couldn’t have been expected that he’d add another infielder barely 24 hours later. Admittedly, I like this move more than the McMahon pickup.

New York acquired Amed Rosario from the Nationals on Saturday, with Washington receiving right-hander Clayton Beeter and minor league outfielder Browm Martinez.

Rosario can handle shortstop, second base, and even backup in the corner outfield in a pinch. He’s a .273/.308/.399 (95 OPS+) hitter with six teams over a nine-year career and he’s always handled left-handed pitching well, which has made him a popular trade target at the deadline (now traded for the third year in a row in July).

Beeter was the Dodgers’ 2nd-round pick in the Covid-shortened 2020 Draft out of Texas Tech. Two years later, Los Angeles traded him to the Yankees for Joey Gallo. Control issues and shoulder trouble have moved Beeter to a relief role full-time at this point and he’s made just five appearances in the Yankees bullpen over the last two seasons. Martinez, an 18-year-old outfielder in the Dominican Summer League, has slashed .320/.426/.419 in 209 PA since the start of the 2024 season.

Struggling Braves pick up an arm

It’s been a rough season for the Braves. The team is unusually near the bottom of the NL East while half its pitching staff is on the injured list. Grant Holmes became the latest casualty, landing on the IL on Sunday due to elbow inflammation. Atlanta promptly added an arm who had been designated for assignment just days ago.

The Braves acquired Erick Fedde from the Cardinals for a player to be named later. St. Louis is covering the $2.7 million remaining on his contract this season.

Fedde has also struggled this year, posting a 3-10 record and 5.22 ERA (85 ERA+) over 101.2 IP. He has, generally, been solid since returning from a stint in the KBO and should at least give the Braves a reliable rotation option the rest of the season.

Elsewhere, around the sport …

• The Hall of Fame Induction speeches on Sunday from CC Sabathia and Ichiro Suzuki were, in a word, fantastic. CC spoke at length about family and the women in his life who had helped him reach baseball’s highest honor. Ichiro was even better, giving his speech in English with a ton of humor and humility.

• Mike Trout homered against the Mariners on Sunday to reach the 1,000 RBI mark for his career. Trout is the third Angels outfielder to reach the mark with the team, following Garret Anderson and Tim Salmon.