(Chicago) On Tuesday’s major league baseball trade deadline, the New York Mets continued to dismantle one of the most expensive rosters in sports history by signing Justin Verlander to the Houston Astros.
After taking about $35 million to trade Max Scherzer the day before, the Mets have parted ways with Verlander this time around in return for outfield prospects Drew Gilbert and Ryan Clifford.
The 40-year-old Verlander signed a two-year contract worth 86.7 million in December. He recorded the 250th win of his career on Sunday, and 61 of those came in an Astros uniform.
“General manager Dana Brown and his team have worked hard on this trade,” Astros owner Jim Crane said. It’s always difficult to give up hope, but I think they are convinced that it was the right decision. We needed a starter. »
Verlander was acquired from the Detroit Tigers by the Astros during the 2017 season, helping the Houston squad win the World Series.
Verlander won a third career Cy-Young Trophy and a second World Series with the Astros in 2022 before becoming a free agent.
“We knew Justin had a no-trade clause and I think we had a strong feeling that if the opportunity arose, we would be one of the few destinations [where he would agree to be traded],” Crane said.
The Astros have won the American West Division title in five of the past six seasons, but are currently trailing the Rangers by half a game.
After trading Scherzer to Rangers on Sunday, general manager Billy Eppler insisted he would not dismantle his underperforming team, which at one point had a projected salary bill of 365 million.
The Mets absorbed part of Scherzer’s salary to acquire top prospect Luisangel Acuna.
Shortly before the Verlander trade, the Atlanta Braves added another veteran left-hander to their bullpen by acquiring Brad Hand from the Colorado Rockies.
The Rockies got right-hander Alec Barger, who was 3-2 with a 3.29 ERA at the AA level at Mississippi.
The 33-year-old Hand is improving the bullpen for the Braves, who have reinstated southpaw A.J. Minter after a stint on the disabled list.
Hand was 3-1 with a 4.54 ERA with the Rockies this season. He posted a 2.80 ERA in 55 games with the Philadelphia Phillies in 2022.
The Braves, who lead the East Division of the National, also had to deal with the losses of left-hander Dylan Lee and right-handers Jesse Chavez and Nick Anderson.
The Phillies made a move on Tuesday by acquiring Detroit Tigers right-hander Michael Lorenzen for minor league infielder Hao-Yu Lee.
The 31-year-old Lorenzen was selected in the All-Star Game this season as the Tigers’ color bearer. He is 5-7 with a 3.58 ERA in his best year since being converted from reliever to starting.
The Phillies are a long way behind the Braves for the top of the NL East Division, but they are embroiled in a tight race for draft teams.
The Miami Marlins did too, and they got first baseman Josh Bell from the Cleveland Guardians. They ceded Jean Segura and Kahlil Watson.
The Los Angeles Dodgers have acquired left-handed pitcher Ryan Yarbrough from the Royals. To achieve this, they sent Devin Mann and Derlin Figueroa to Kansas City.
Also in the Nationals West, the Arizona Diamondbacks got Tommy Pham from the Mets for Jeremy Rodriguez and some cash.
The Baltimore Orioles led the American East Division by a game and a half heading into Tuesday’s games. To fortify their position, they secured right-handed pitcher Jack Flaherty from the St. Louis Cardinals in return for prospects Cesar Prieto, Drew Rom and Zack Showalter.
Flaherty, 27, has spent his entire seven-season career with the Cardinals. He’s 7-6 and averaging 4.43 in 20 games this year.
In the same section, the Yankees improved their bullpen with Keynan Middleton and Spencer Howard. Both pitchers played for the Chicago White Sox and Texas Rangers, respectively.
