Dodgers' deal for pitcher caps busy MLB deadline day
The Los Angeles Dodgers made their final splash minutes before the trade deadline arrived Tuesday, acquiring ace right-hander Jack Flaherty from the Detroit Tigers and outfielder Kevin Kiermaier from the Toronto Blue Jays.
The Dodgers sent two prospects to the Tigers — catcher Thayron Liranzo and infielder Trey Sweeney — and shipped veteran left-hander Ryan Yarbrough to the Jays in a one-for-one deal.
Flaherty, 28, provides necessary relief to a Los Angeles starting rotation marred by injuries. Flaherty is 7-5 with a 2.95 ERA through 18 starts this year, recording 133 strikeouts to go along with just 19 walks in 106 2/3 innings.
Kiermaier, 34, was in his second season with the Blue Jays following a 10-year run with the Tampa Bay Rays. He is batting just .195 through 81 games this season, with four home runs and 18 RBIs.
The four-time Gold Glove Award winner is a career .246 hitter with 94 homers, 370 RBIs and 131 stolen bases in 1,124 games.
Yarbrough, 32, was 4-2 with one save, a 3.74 ERA, 25 walks and 39 strikeouts in 67 1/3 innings over 32 relief appearances for the Dodgers this season.
Los Angeles added Flaherty and Kiermaier to its trade deadline haul that already included right-handed pitcher Michael Kopech and infielder/outfielders Amed Rosario and Tommy Edman.
–Phillies add LHP Tanner Banks, ship Gregory Soto to Orioles
The Philadelphia Phillies modified their bullpen during Tuesday’s trade deadline by acquiring Tanner Banks from the Chicago White Sox and sending fellow left-hander Gregory Soto to the Baltimore Orioles.
Philadelphia traded away minor league infielder William Bergolla in the Chicago deal and acquired right-handed pitching prospects Seth Johnson and Moises Chace in the Baltimore swap.
Banks, 32, was 2-2 with a 4.13 ERA across 41 appearances (one start) for the White Sox this season. He converted two of his six save opportunities and tallied 55 strikeouts against 15 walks over 48 innings.
Soto, 29, went 2-4 with a 4.08 ERA in 43 relief appearances for the Phillies this season. He is 13-28 all-time, posting a 4.23 ERA in six seasons for the Detroit Tigers (2019-22) and Phillies (2023-24).
–Orioles add Eloy Jimenez, Trevor Rogers in other moves
Baltimore’s biggest move of the day came when it acquired outfielder/designated hitter Eloy Jimenez from the White Sox in exchange for minor league left-hander Trey McGough.
In 65 games this season for the major-league-worst White Sox, Jimenez was hitting .240 with five home runs and 16 RBIs. He finished fourth in Rookie of the Year voting in 2019 and won a Silver Slugger Award in the COVID-shortened 2020 season.
Jimenez is a career .270 hitter with 94 home runs and 291 RBIs across 501 games, all with the White Sox.
The Orioles also landed left-hander Trevor Rogers from the Miami Marlins in exchange for infielder/outfielder Connor Norby and outfielder Kyle Stowers.
Rogers, 26, was 2-9 with a 4.53 ERA through 21 starts this season with the Marlins. An All-Star in 2021, Rogers is 15-32 with a 4.23 ERA in 80 starts since making his debut with Miami in 2020.
–Yankees acquire relievers Mark Leiter Jr., Enyel De Los Santos
The New York Yankees spent trade deadline day bolstering their bullpen, acquiring relievers Mark Leiter Jr. from the Chicago Cubs and Enyel De Los Santos from the San Diego Padres.
The Yankees landed the right-handed Leiter from Chicago in exchange for two prospects, infielder Ben Cowles and right-hander Jack Neely.
Leiter, 33, was 2-4 with a 4.21 ERA in 39 relief appearances this season with the Cubs. The right-hander struck out 53 batters and walked 13 in 36 1/3 innings.
Since returning from the injured list on July 9, Leiter has retired all 23 batters he has faced over seven relief appearances, recording 14 strikeouts during that stretch (7 2/3 innings).
New York later added De Los Santos, also a right-hander, and minor league righty Thomas Balboni Jr. from the Padres in exchange for minor league outfielder Brandon Lockridge.
De Los Santos, 28, was in his first season with the Padres and went 1-2 with one save and a 4.46 ERA over 44 appearances (40 1/3 innings). For the Guardians in 2022-23, he went a combined 10-2 with a 3.18 ERA in 120 relief appearances.
–Astros land lefty reliever Caleb Ferguson from Yankees
The Houston Astros acquired Caleb Ferguson from the Yankees in exchange for minor league right-hander Kelly Austin and international bonus pool money, the teams announced Tuesday.
Ferguson, 28, was 1-3 with one save, 41 strikeouts and a 5.13 ERA over 33 1/3 innings in 42 appearances, all in relief.
He is 19-12 with six saves and a 3.66 ERA in 243 career games (14 starts), playing five seasons with the Dodgers before being traded to New York in February.
The move came one day after Houston acquired left-hander Yusei Kikuchi from the Blue Jays in exchange for right-hander Jake Bloss, outfielder Joey Loperfido and minor league infielder Will Wagner.
–Royals acquire Paul DeJong, Lucas Erceg
Rare buyers at the trade deadline, the Kansas City Royals acquired shortstop Paul DeJong from the White Sox and right-handed reliever Lucas Erceg from the Oakland Athletics on Tuesday.
The Royals sent right-handed pitcher Jarold Rosado to the White Sox and right-handed pitchers Mason Barnett and Will Klein and outfielder Jared Dickey to the A’s to complete the trades.
DeJong switched dugouts on Tuesday afternoon before the Royals’ game at Chicago. He’ll leave the club with the worst record in baseball to join an American League Central and wild-card contender.
DeJong, who turns 31 on Friday, was in his first season with the White Sox, batting .228 with a team-high 18 home runs and 41 RBIs.
Erceg, 29, sported a 3.68 ERA with a 2-3 record and three saves through 38 appearances for Oakland in his second big-league season. Since debuting last year, he is 6-7 with a 4.32 ERA in 88 contests.
–Padres add closer Tanner Scott, former All-Star Martin Perez
The San Diego Padres landed left-handed closer Tanner Scott from Miami as part of a six-player deal on Tuesday.
Right-handed pitcher Bryan Hoeing also heads to San Diego in exchange for left-hander Robby Snelling, right-hander Adam Mazur and infielders Graham Pauley and Jay Beshears.
Scott, 30, was a bright spot on a last-place Marlins team, earning his first All-Star nod this year. He was 6-5 with a 1.18 ERA and 18 saves across 44 appearances in his third season in Miami.
Hoeing, 27, is 1-2 with a 2.70 ERA this season across 16 games, including two starts. He has a 5.48 career ERA across parts of three seasons with Miami through 57 games (10 starts).
The Padres later added former All-Star Martin Perez to their rotation, acquiring the left-hander from the Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for minor league left-hander Ronaldys Jimenez.
Perez was an All-Star in 2022, when he finished the season 12-8 with a 2.89 ERA and 169 strikeouts for the Texas Rangers. He is 2-5 with a 5.20 ERA in 16 starts, with just 63 strikeouts and 32 walks in 83 innings this year.
–Pirates acquire Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Bryan De La Cruz
The Pirates acquired outfielder Bryan De La Cruz from the Marlins and utility player Isiah Kiner-Falefa from the Blue Jays.
The Pirates dealt infield prospect Garret Forrester and right-handed pitching prospect Jun-Seok Shim to Miami for De La Cruz, and they sent infield/outfield prospect Charles McAdoo to Toronto in the Kiner-Falefa deal.
Kiner-Falefa, 29, was batting a career-best .292 with seven home runs and 33 RBIs in 82 games in his first season with Toronto. He has appeared as a second baseman, third baseman, shortstop, outfielder and emergency pitcher this season alone.
De La Cruz, 27, led the Marlins with 18 home runs and 51 RBIs while batting .245 in 105 games this season. He is one homer away from tying his career high set last year.
–Diamondbacks acquire Marlins 1B Josh Bell
The Arizona Diamondbacks acquired first baseman Josh Bell from Miami in exchange for cash considerations or a player to be named later.
Bell, 31, was placed on waivers on Saturday while making $16.5 million in the final season of a two-year contract he signed with the Cleveland Guardians. Arizona will pay the remaining $2.5 million owed to Bell this season, per media reports.
Bell is batting .239 with 14 home runs, 49 RBIs, a .305 on-base percentage and a .394 slugging percentage through 104 games this season.
–Mets deal for A’s starter Paul Blackburn
The Athletics traded their longest-tenured player, right-handed starting pitcher Paul Blackburn, to the New York Mets.
New York is sending right-handed pitching prospect Kade Morris to Oakland in return.
Blackburn, 30, was a 2022 All-Star and began the 2024 season with 22 1/3 scoreless innings across four starts before finally surrendering his first run. He was just activated from the 60-day injured list last week after recovering from a stress reaction in his right foot that caused him to miss more than two months.
He is 4-2 with a 4.41 ERA in nine starts this season, picking up just 38 strikeouts over 51 innings.
–Rangers acquire LHP Andrew Chafin from Tigers
The Tigers dealt left-handed pitcher Andrew Chafin to the Rangers on Tuesday ahead of the deadline.
Texas sent right-handed pitching prospects Joseph Montalvo and Chase Lee to the Tigers in exchange for the veteran reliever.
Chafin, 34, joins the defending World Series champions as they attempt to make a playoff push. Despite entering Tuesday three games below .500, the Rangers are just 3 1/2 games out of the AL West lead.
Chafin pitched to a 3.16 ERA in 41 relief appearances for the Tigers this season, with a 3-2 record and one save in four save opportunities. He has fanned 50 batters and walked 16 in 37 innings.
–Guardians trade for Giants RHP Alex Cobb
The Guardians acquired right-hander Alex Cobb from the San Francisco Giants on Tuesday in exchange for left-handed pitching prospect Jacob Bresnahan and a player to be named later.
Cobb, 36, has not pitched in a major league game this season following offseason surgery on his left hip. In six rehabilitation starts since June 30, he is 1-1 with a 3.93 ERA, seven walks and 24 strikeouts in 18 1/3 innings at three minor league levels.
He was a National League All-Star in 2023, when he was 7-7 with a 3.87 ERA, 37 walks and 131 strikeouts in 151 1/3 innings over 28 starts.