The majority of MLB teams end up in or opt for limbo at the Trade Deadline, making a few low-impact moves to either sure up their rosters' depth or add some farm system pieces for the years ahead. The Houston Astros are not one of those teams. Here's Why The Astros Front Office Gets An A+ At The Trade Deadline.
Fearsome Twosome
If and/or when the Astros make the playoffs this year, there will be no better 1-2 rotation punch on the American League side than Dallas Keuchel and Scott Kazmir. Keuchel has been a stathead's dream this year, pitching to a 2.32 ERA with a sub-1 WHIP, a K/BB just a tick under 4.0 and a 5.1 WAR which matches his 2014 mark with two months still to go in the season. Enter Kazmir was has been comparable to Keuchel, posting a 2.10 ERA, 1.04 WHIP and a extremely economical approach and picky approach which limits his fly balls and thus his home runs.
We'd take this duo over anyone other than perhaps Greinke/Kershaw, and that's saying something with the questions that marked this rotation before the deadline (and we haven't even addressed Mike Fiers, a more-than-serviceable mid-rotation pickup)
Carlos Gomez Is Better Than People Think
His fantastic 2013 season may be a slight outlier, but Gomez remains a legit threat at the dish and one of the undersung defensive maestros of the MLB's center fielder crop. Houston got a year and two months of a two-time All Star at a relatively negligible $10 million-plus, and they didn't have to mortgage the farm to get him. The New York Mets' loss is the Astros' gain, especially considering that Gomez slots like a square peg in a square peg into a young lineup that seems to be moving forward at an exponential rate.
The Future Is Now
As recently as last September, a vocal contingent of Astros fans were groaning about the team's long-form rebuilding plan with the same depressed tinge that Philadelphia 76ers fans are displaying right about now. However, credit the Astros for understanding just how special this season has been both for the franchise's growth and for a reinvigorated fan base, attacking the trade market both smartly and aggressively to fill key holes and fortify the here and now in the team's chase for an AL pennant (and more).
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