As the Major League Baseball (MLB) trade deadline approaches (August 2), trades between buyer and seller clubs are being made. One keyword in particular is being detected in recent trades. It’s “coming home”.
According to MLB.com, the Chicago White Sox, who are on a ‘fire sale’ in this trade market, sent right-handed reliever Kendall Graveman, 32, to the Houston Astros earlier today (29th) our time.
The needs (and desires) of the ‘defending champs’ Houston, who are looking to bolster their bullpen, and the White Sox, who are looking to sell off their veteran core due to underperformance, aligned.
In exchange for Graveman, Houston gave up catching prospect Corey Lee, 25, a first-round pick in the 2019 draft. Lee was Houston’s team’s No. 5 prospect, per MLB.com.
It’s worth noting that Graveman was a former Houston player. He was also traded to Houston from the Seattle Mariners on July 27, 2021, where he played for half a season. At the time, Graveman had posted a 3.13 ERA and seven shutouts in 23 innings in a Houston uniform before signing a free agent contract to join the White Sox.
For Houston, who needed to reclaim first place in the American League (AL) West, it was a gamble to sacrifice a first-rounder for Graveman, who has fond memories.
But Graveman wasn’t the only player to return home this trade deadline. The Los Angeles Dodgers and White Sox also returned a player from the other team to their respective families, as if they had made a promise.
On the same day, the White Sox traded right-handed starter Lance Lynn (36) and right-handed reliever Joe Kelly (35) to the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Dodgers’ counterpart was outfielder Tracy Thompson (32), right-hander Nick Nastrini (23), the team’s ninth-best prospect, and right-handed prospect Jordan Ledger (24).
The Dodgers, who are in first place in the National League (NL) West, sacrificed prospects to buy the White Sox’s “pieces” in order to bolster their starting rotation and bullpen.
While Lynn has struggled a bit this season, he’s been a calculated starter, finishing in the top six of the Cy Young Award voting three times since 2019. Kelly has also underperformed this season, but he’s a veteran bullpen with two World Series championships under his belt.
Kelly and Thompson are the two main returnees. Kelly played for the Dodgers from 2019-2021 and helped them win the 2020 World Series.
Thompson was a second-round draft pick of the White Sox in 2009 and made his big league debut in Chicago in 2015. He has since bounced around the organization, but it’s unclear if he’ll ever see the field in a White Sox uniform, as he’s currently on the 60-day disabled list.
The Dodgers took it a step further. They brought back Enrique Hernandez, 31, who played six years with the Dodgers from 2015 to 2020 and was affectionately known as “Kike.
In exchange for Hernandez from the Boston Red Sox, the Dodgers sent two pitchers to Boston – right-hander Nick Robertson (25) and right-hander Justin Hagenman (26) – in exchange for Hernandez, who has struggled offensively but plays mostly infield defense, as an infield utility.카지노사이트
It’s not uncommon for players to return to their hometown teams and suddenly be as good as they were before, such as Andrew McCutchen, 36, of the Pittsburgh Pirates this year, and Albert Pujols of the St. Louis Cardinals, who returned to his prime last year in his retirement season.
For fans, it’s fun to see a player they miss playing again, and it’s even more “beautiful” when the performance follows suit. It’ll be interesting to see if the homecoming effect extends to these traded players.