Trade Ya

Athletes have the chances to make huge amounts of money by playing sports for their careers. But the fame and fortune that can be made does make a productive player or prospect expendable. And despite the movement of several big named NFL players, today happens to mark the end of  trading in another sport: baseball. Now 4:00 P.M. has passed, the carriage has turned into a pumpkin, and teams that were looking to add that extra bat or pitcher can no longer trade for that player. Today, we take a look back at the teams that won, lost, and confused us after baseball's trade show.

WINNERS


San Francisco Giants

The Giants may have won the world series with a lackluster offense a year ago, but their dominant pitching had taken a small step back. So this season, general manager Brian Sabean decided to improve on an offense that ranked 28th in the league in runs scored by trading for Carlos Beltran. Beltran had been having a good year for the New York Mets, for he hit .289 with 15 home runs and 66 runs batted in in 2011. This was a very good move for an offense that needed some punch. Beltran was regarded as the best available hitter on the trading block this year, and he could be on a playoff team for the first time since 2006. Carlos had very good numbers in the postseason, spotting a career .366 batting average with 11 homers and 19 runs batted in. And in 2004, Beltran tied Barry Bond's record with eight home runs for the Huston Astros during their postseason run. It is unclear if Beltran will be a Giant long term, but for now, San Francisco got the best player on the block.


Atlanta Braves 

The Atlanta Braves had a very good team before the deadline passed, but before the clock struck 4, the Braves got a little bit better. The Braves completed a deal that landed them Houston Astros' leadoff man Michael Bourn. Atlanta did have a solid hitting lineup before this deal went down, but their offense ranked 15th in all of baseball in runs scored. Bourn may not be known for his power, for he has just twelve home runs in six seasons, but Bourn had 154 stolen bases over the last three seasons. While the new Brave may lack the offensive capabilities of a Carlos Beltran or Hunter Pence, Bourn is the table setter that the Braves lineup has been lacking for five years. Plus, Bourn is two time gold glove winner who can boost Atlanta's 12th ranked fielding percentage. Atlanta did not need to make a splash in this year's trade market, but they did make a noticeable improvement to their team. 


Honorable Mentions: Milwaukee Brewers and Pittsburgh Pirates: 


Milwaukee had been a box of chocolates in the NL Central because one day they played great and the next day they stunk. Bullpen pitching was the brew crew's biggest problems, but they addressed that in a big way. The Brewers traded for Mets closer/reliever Francisco Rodriguez in order to sure up the end of their games. Rodriguez may not be the closer, but he has a 2.57 earned run average and nine strikeouts in seven innings. The Brewers starting pitching remained a problem before and after the deadline, but K-Rod put them above the rest of the NL Central.

The best story in baseball continued to get better at the trading deadline. The Pittsburgh Pirates traded for Padres outfielder Ryan Ludwick and first baseman Derrek Lee of the Baltimore Orioles. Pittsburgh added two bats to a team that needed offense like most of us need our morning coffee. Ludwick may be batting .238 this year, but his 11 home runs and 64 runs batted in should be an improvement to a team that ranks 26th in runs scored this year. And despite being stranded in Baltimore, Lee still hit .241 with 12 homers and 41 runs batted in. The Pirates need both Ludwick and Lee's averages to go way up, but with Andrew McCutchen at the top of the lineup, Lee and Ludwick will get their runs batted in.






LOSERS


Everybody who did not trade for Heath Bell

The San Diego Padres struck a deadline deal with the Texas Rangers just as the deadline had begun to end. But the deal did not include the player we all expected to move, Padres closer Heath Bell. Granted, the Rangers did not necessarily have to get Heath Bell to make it to the World Series. However, teams such as  Saint Louis, Cincinnati, Cleveland, and Tampa Bay all missed out on a great chance to land one of the best closers in the game today. The Rays, Reds, and Indians all contenders that rank in the bottom half of the league in saves at 27th, 28th and 22nd respectively. Heath Bell has 121 saves over the course of three years. Pretty sure he would have been able to help all of these teams improve in the ninth inning. Okay, maybe the Rays don't have much of a chance of getting in the playoffs against the AL Beast division, but Cincy, Saint Louis and Cleveland can all win their divisions. Instead, these teams choose to remain just short of being dangerous.



Saint Louis Cardinals

In a three horse race for the surprisingly competitive NL Central, one team was very absent during the trade deadline: the Saint Louis Cardinals. While the Brewers and Pirates both made moves to address their team's weaknesses, the Cardinals shipped off Colby Rasmus for nothing in return. Rasumus may have had an abysmal .246 batting average, but his 11 home runs and 40 runs batted in did have their place in the Cardinals everyday lineup. Yes Lance Berkman and Matt Holiday have done extremely well protecting Albert Pujols this year, and yes the Cardinals remain in the thick of the NL Central race. However, in what could be Phat Albert's last year in Saint Louis, the Cardinals needed to make roster moves to surround Pujols with talent
and convince him to remain a Cardinal. Due to the weaknesses that Milwaukee and Pittsburgh still have, the Cardinals should still be able to contend for a division title. But the lack of movement from the front office during a pennant race has to be concerning for Albert Pujols. And maybe it is now easier for Pujols to part ways with Saint Louis, but that remains to be seen.




HEAD SCRATCHERS




Cleveland Indians

The Cleveland Indians were in the middle of a race for the AL Central crown, and they felt compelled to make a big splash at the trade deadline. The Ubaldo Jimenez deal aside, the Cleveland Indians went out and traded for Cubs outfielder Koske Fukudome. 

Huh?

Just what does this move accomplish? It certainly does not make Cleveland better offensively. Fukudome has never hit 15 homers or driven in 60 runs in a season. That trend seems to be continuing this year, for Fukudome been hitting .273 with 3 homers and 13 runs batted in. Did the Indians make this deal to get someone with postseason experience if they make the playoffs? If they did, they got the wrong guy. Fukudome also does not have much playoff  success or experience. The former Cub has a batting average of .100 with four strikeouts in 10 at bats in his postseason career. Maybe Cleveland just wanted to add to their roster of overrated players, but Fukudome doesn't accomplish that either. This deal is truly a stumper. Good luck to you Cleveland, you are going to need it.

Boston Red Sox

Erik Bedard to the Boston Red Sox is not as bad as the Fukudome to Cleveland deal, but why did this deal need to happen at all. Sure the Andrew Miller experiment has failed and the Sox may be overcautious with the back injury to Clay Bucholz, but the Sox remain in first place in the toughest division in baseball without him. Boston's pitching has still been good. Jon Lester is healthy and dealing this season with a 11-4 with a 3.17 earned run average and 124 strikeouts. Josh Beckett has been his usual self in odd numbered years, going 9-4 with a 2.17 earned run average and 115 strikeouts. And maybe the rest of the starting pitching has been either hurt or bad, but adding Erik Bedard doesn't help mcuh. Bedard this year is just 4-7 and he gets hurt more consistently than he pitches. The Red Sox may have wanted to get a back of the rotation pitcher until Bucholz comes back, but Erik Bedard was the best they could do? We all shall see.

So another trade deadline has come and gone. Certain teams have found their glass slipper player while others will watch their pennant hopes run out at the stroke of midnight. But one thing is for sure, this pennant race is shaping up to be a good one, and these new faces in different places will help shape how the story of this season ends.