Meet the Mets
It was an active day around MLB at the trade deadline, but not for the Mets. Sandy Alderson and co. were silent, choosing to hold on to potential trade pieces like Bartolo Colon and Daniel Murphy (for now). They also did not part with prospects to acquire established big-league talent like Troy Tulowitzki or Carlos Gonzalez. Alderson explained the rationale in an interview transcribed by Adam Rubin, which can be summed up by this Alderson quote:
"...in actually acquiring other players as opposed to 'selling our own,' it always came back to our handful of top prospects. And we just aren't ready to move any of them at the moment."
Seems reasonable, although a lack of trades before the waiver trade deadline or this offseason would be disappointing. A poll at Rubin's blog shows that Mets fans are basically split on how they feel:
Matt Cerrone of MetsBlog is disappointed that the Mets weren't able to make a deal.
The Mets were off on Thursday and spent the day basking in the glory of the 11-2 smackdown they laid upon the Phillies on Wednesday. Our heroes begin a four-game series against the Giants at Citi Field tonight. The game times and pitching matchups are as follows:
Friday, August 1: LHP Jon Niese vs RHP Ryan Vogelsong, 7:10 pm ET
Saturday, August 2: RHP Jacob deGrom vs RHP Jake Peavy, 7:10 pm ET
Sunday, August 3: RHP Bartolo Colon vs LHP Madison Bumgarner, 1:10 pm ET
Monday, August 4: RHP Dillon Gee vs RHP Tim Hudson, 12:10 pm ET
The Giants are 58-50 and currently hold one of two Wild Card spots in the National League, but they've scuffled a bit lately, losing six out of their last seven games.
In minor transaction news, Taylor Teagarden cleared waivers and will head to Triple-A Vegas.
Greg Prince dreamed about the 2014 Mets World Series Champions DVD.
Remember the guy in the video Matt Harvey did for Jimmy Fallon last year who said Lucas Duda was his favorite player? (Click here to watch that point in the video) That guy must be loving life right now, the way Duda is mashing. (Hat tip to Reddit)
Around the NL East
Clayton Kershaw dominated the Braves and the Dodgers won 2-1.
The Phillies crushed the Nationals 10-4 but it was a Pyrrhic victory, as Cliff Lee left the game in the third inning with an arm injury and was later placed on the disabled list.
Johnny Cueto pitched seven strong innings to help the Reds beat the Marlins 3-1.
Here are the current NL East standings (via ESPN.com):
Around the Majors
MLB Daily Dish recapped every trade deadline deal. Here are some of the big ones:
- Tigers get David Price, Mariners get Austin Jackson, Rays get Drew Smyly, Nick Franklin, and Willy Adames
- Athletics get Jon Lester and Jonny Gomes from Red Sox for Yoenis Cespedes and a 2015 compensation draft pick
- Cardinals get John Lackey and Corey Littrell from Red Sox for Joe Kelly and Allen Craig
- Orioles get Andrew Miller from Red Sox for Eduardo Rodriguez
- Marlins get Jarred Cosart, Enrique Hernandez, and Austin Wates from Astros for Colin Moran, Jake Marisnick, Francis Martes, and a 2015 compensation draft pick
- Nationals get Asdrubal Cabrera from Indians for Zach Walters
- Brewers get Gerardo Parra from Diamondbacks for Mitch Haniger and Anthony Banda
Austin Jackson was removed in the middle of the 7th inning of the Tigers-White Sox game after his trade to the Mariners was completed. Tigers fans gave him a standing ovation; click here to watch video of the moment.
Albert Pujols' RBI single in the top of the 13th inning gave the Angels a 1-0 victory over the Orioles.
Eric Hosmer has a stress fracture in his hand and might miss a month, reports Andy McCullough.
This is a good tweet:
Once, writers on A's bus recalled where they were for famous HRs. For Joe Carter, voice from back said, "I was on 2nd base." It was Rickey.
— Howard Bryant (@hbryant42) August 1, 2014
Yesterday at AA
Nate Gismot asked "so what?" to the Mets standing pat at the deadline. So what? So let's dance!
Sydney Hunte recapped the day's trades.
Eric Slater provided a full list of Mets trade deadline deals.
Kevin Cassidy argued in favor of keeping Daniel Murphy. He makes a strong case and I agree.
In non-trade content, Pack Bringley continued the Top 50 Mets series with #29, Robin Ventura.
On this date in 1996, the Mets made seven errors in a 13-9 loss to the Pirates.