MLB Week in Review (July 24-30)
The trade deadline is fast approaching and there has not been an avalanche of moves but there have been some major ones.
The Toronto Blue Jays made a big splash in the middle of the week pulling off a trade with the Colorado Rockies that nobody saw coming.
The Jays received long-time Colorado fan favourite Troy Tulowitzki and pitcher LaTroy Hawkins in exchange for Jose Reyes and three minor leaguers.
Nobody saw the trade coming and for many it was a good trade for the Jays but not the trade they needed as they continue to try to find pitching help.
They got that help late in the week when they traded young pitcher Daniel Norris and two prospects for All-Star David Price of the Detroit Tigers.
The Jays weren’t the only team to make some noise as the Phillies went about trading away some of their top pitchers.
Reliever Jonathan Papelbon had been requesting a trade for most of the year as he wanted to pitch for a contender and take on his old role as closer.
The Phillies granted his wish when they traded him to Washington Nationals. The Phillies also traded one of the men constantly in the trade rumours leading up to the deadline.
There were plenty of teams interested in Cole Hammels with offers coming in from throughout the league.
The Texas Rangers won the bidding battle though as they acquired Hammels in what seemed like a step in the right direction for the Phillies.
They are finally committing to the rebuild in getting some prospects for some aging players.
All of these trades were big moves leading up to the trade deadline but one trade made headlines more than any other.
That trade made headlines mainly because it was all but done until it fell through. The New York Mets were looking for some offensive help to push them into the postseason.
The Milwaukee Brewers were ready to sell of veterans to get some prospects for the future. Both were looking to make a trade and they seemed to have hammered a deal out.
The Mets would get Carlos Gonzalez to increase their offensive power and the Brewers would get two young players in Zack Wheeler and Wilmer Flores.
The trade seemed good for both teams but then strange things began to happen especially in New York.
Just after the trade was announced one of the main parts of the trade in Flores remained in the game.
It is an uncommon thing as usually when players are traded they are removed from the starting roster as they are told that they have been traded.
Flores remained in the game and received a standing ovation when he went up to bat. He didn’t realize why he had received the ovation until later when he was told he had been traded and then was sent out on defence.
Flores had been with the team since he was 16 years old and after being told he was traded he got emotional on the field.
It was all a weird situation as the emotion of leaving a city that had been his home for years was seen in full force.
After that emotional display Flores came into the dugout to realize that the trade was not happening after all.
Social media had gotten ahead of the game on this trade as they had reported that the trade was all but done when in reality there may have been some things to go through before the deal was finalized.
Whether it was health concerns over an aging Gonzalez or concerns over the recovery of Wheeler who had just come off of Tommy John surgery clearly something wasn’t right.
Media got a hold of the deal and took control while the two teams were still hammering out a deal.
It is a sign of the times where trades are revealed before the players or the managers even know that something has happened.
Social media was the main reason why things got weird on Wednesday and a number of players thought they were going to have to uproot their lives only to learn that nothing like that was going to happen.
That is the trade deadline though as the news and rumours continue to swirl until the last day in what could be a bigger trade deadline than ever before.
Extra Innings
(More on this week in baseball)
Another Blow for BoSox
Mookie Betts has been one of the few bright spots in the Boston Red Sox season as he has proven to be a great asset to the team but now that bright spot is gone for at least a week as he recovers from a concussion suffered this week
Second Suspension
Jenrry Mejia is not necessarily a major name in the MLB but he is the latest to fall under the new rules for PED suspensions after failing his second drug test and receiving a 162-game suspension
Computers Taking Over
One of the most debated calls in the MLB could be undergoing a facelift as the electronic strike zone will be tested in the California Independent League with the MLB looking on closely to see how well it may work in the major leagues
Key Series:
New York Mets 2 – 1 Los Angeles Dodgers
– The Mets are making a run at the postseason and this time it seems serious with a devastating rotation as they tried to prove it against the NL West leading Dodgers as they took two games helping them to get closer to the division lead
San Francisco Giants 3 – 0 Oakland Athletics
– The Giants are trying to take over the lead in the NL West as they continue to get closer nearing the end of the season and did well to close the gap in taking three games from the Athletics to win the Battle of the Bay
Cincinnati Reds 2 – 1 St. Louis Cardinals
– The Cardinals remain one of the best teams in the league but the Reds attempted to make some ground on the division as they took two of three games from the league leaders giving them some hope heading into the postseason race
New York Yankees 2 – 2 Texas Rangers
– The Yankees continued to attempt to increase their lead in the AL East but against the Rangers could not get much further ahead splitting the series as the Rangers attempt to make a run at their own division
Upcoming Series:
Los Angeles Angels vs. Los Angeles Dodgers [July 31/August 1/2]
– The Freeway Series gets underway for another year as the Dodgers and Angels have plenty to lose when they face-off with the Dodgers trying to hold onto the lead in their division and the Angels trying to gain the lead back in their division
Pittsburgh Pirates vs. Cincinnati Reds [July 31/August 1/2]
– The Pirates have made a run putting themselves in a good spot to potentially go to the postseason again and they take on the Reds who are trying to put together one last push of their own as the season starts the postseason run
Houston Astros vs. Texas Rangers [August 3/4/5]
– The battle for Texas has been a good one this year and both teams have plenty to play for as they enter another series with the Astros holding the lead and the Rangers trying to make some ground in the division battle
Minnesota Twins vs. Toronto Blue Jays [August 3/4/5/6]
– The Blue Jays are rebuilt after the trade deadline with a new ace pitcher and more offensive power as they look to make their last two months great ones starting with taking on the Twins who are holding on to a wild card spot that they want
The Sport Addiction 