The 2019 MLB trade deadline came and went on Wednesday, and for a few minutes after the 4 p.m. ET cutoff, it looked like the summer would carry on without a blockbuster follow-up to the Trevor Bauer-Yasiel Puig trade the day before.
But then, at 4:13 p.m. ET, The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal sent a jolt through the baseball world with a four-word tweet, revealing that the Houston Astros had acquired All-Star pitcher Zack Greinke (10-4, 2.90 ERA) from the Arizona Diamondbacks.
TheNew York Post's Joel Sherman filled in the details:
The trade is huge for the American League West-leading Astros, who now boast a terrifying triumvirate of Greinke, Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole at the top of their rotation.