We were wheeling and dealing in July plus there was the draft and the all-star festivities, so rather than try to cram them into the monthly recap they'll get their own post.
A transaction timeline:
July 4: Extended the contracts of AGM Peter Bendix 4 years and Pitching Coach Kyle Snyder 3 years.
They've done fine work, especially Snyder who's one of the best in the business.
July 13: We made this blockbuster prospect trade:
Trading the #6 prospect in the game for the #35 prospect (and throwing in a mid-level prospect to boot) doesn't seem like the greatest deal but we're taking the (fairly) sure thing here who is just about MLB-ready in exchange for the possibly insanely-great guy who's likely 4-5 years away and has more of a chance of flaming out. Gracia has the potential combination of 80 contact and 75 power so he could become a superstar but he's also an 18-year-old who's hit .150 in 98 DSL games so far and a 1B who will never provide defensive value. Chourio meanwhile is this:
He could play in the bigs right now given his current ratings and put up a 5.1 WAR season in AA last year. He's struggled this year in AA but I think that's more frustration and bad luck than anything else. But Chourio is the full package: contact, power, speed and defense and should become a star himself. For now we have hit at AA Montgomery since the OF at Durham is full as is the OF with the big club. But I already have him penciled in to take Randy Arozarena's spot in 2026.
July 21: Had to get this guy off the roster:
Eflin did not take well to the bullpen after losing his starter gig, and had a 6.40 ERA in the final year of what was an albatross-like $18M contract. Cincinnati offered me a fellow struggler in Sanmartin, but he's a lefty rated 50/60/55 as a starter (with 60 potential control) making the minimum who should only get a modest raise in arbitration next year. Sanmartin went to Durham where he's made a couple of good starts (of course so has Eflin for the Reds, which figures).
July 23: Looking to upgrade the team defense, I made this swap and brought back a guy I had wished I'd never traded in the first place:
Auer was our 5th-round pick in 2021 and developed as speed/defense guy with enough pop and contact to be a potentially valuable player. He was the prospect I traded last year to the Cubs to rent Zack Wheeler for the stretch drive last season. While Wheeler pitched well for us he didn't help us get deep in the playoffs and after seeing Auer put up 2.4 WAR for the Cubs in 90 games in his rookie season I had some major regrets. Wells meanwhile had earned himself a regular job against righties and hit 13 HR in 224 AB for us, but his defense in LF was brutal and overall our team defense has been poor (I made a position swap to address that as well which I'll get into in the monthly recap post next). So we gave up a little bit of offense to get this package:
Auer has elite wheels and in those 90 games with the Cubs had already stolen 30 bases to go with a 274/353/400 batting line. He's become our full-time RF which allows Arozarena to move back to LF where he's better, and the Arozarena-Siri-Auer OF is now one of the league's best defensively. So glad to have him back.
July 24: While we were shopping Wells and Gracia around I kept noticing this guy being made available by the Marlins:
Jose Devers is an intriguing guy the Marlins seemingly were hell-bent on dealing so I was happy to take him off their hands. He was good for 5.1 WAR in AAA off a 289/372/453 season with 16 HR and outstanding defense at 2B and he's hitting 291/390/412 this year so pretty much the same. The power's a bit of mirage as he's only rated 35 but he's 60 contact, 60 gap, 60 eye (with 70 potential) and 65 avoid Ks to go with 60 D at 2B (and 50 at SS). We had acquired Luisangel Acuna earlier this year and of course also traded for Masyn Winn, so where Devers fits into our plans for next year remains to be seen but he was too good to pass up. He's at Durham with Acuna at the moment.
July 28: Speaking of too good to pass up, the Mets offered me this deal:
A starting pitcher who's the #41 prospect in baseball for my OF who's lost his job, wasn't in my OF plans for next year and was due a bump to $3.8M in arbitration? Don't mind if I do.
Like the quote from Bendix here. Here's the skinny on Diaz:
Not sure he's going to be a Cy Young candidate but should at least be a decent 3/4 starter with the potential to be a #2. It's a little sad to say goodbye to Lowe (the last of the Lowes after trading Nate in 2021 and Brandon last month) but as mentioned he was surplus to requirements. We called up Alec Burleson (who didn't belong at Durham) to take his place on the roster as a backup OF.
So there you have it - five deals, most of which were with 2026 and beyond in mind with the one deal for Auer improving our club for this season. I've amassed quite a collection of good young talent in these deals and others made earlier this season (E.De La Cruz, Winn, L.Acuna) so the problem will be finding room for them all going forward as our existing prospects like Junior Caminero and Brock Jones are banging on the door as well.
And speaking of talent acquisition, we had the draft mid-month:
This year's draft class overall was kind of weak but we did grab some interesting guys.
Caminiti: He's not the son of the late Astros star Ken, but the high-schooler is a cousin. Intriguingly he's a two-way guy, a potential 55/60/50 starter and a 1B/OF with 65 contact, 55 power, and 50 eye potential as well as above-average corner OF defense. He'll do both and see how it goes; I'd rather he develop as a pitcher but it's nice to know he has the bat to fall back on.
Quelch: My favorite name, which sounds like someone's malapropism confusing "squelch" and "quash" (or "quench"). Anyway Quelch is an (old) college guy of 24, and has 65
current (not potential) power. That goes with 45 contact and a 40 eye so he still needs to hone his game in minors but he's starting at High-A Bowling Green where he already has 5 homers in 56 AB. If he gets that contact up to the potential 55 (and the eye to 45) he could be something really useful, especially with 65 speed and above-average corner OF defense (he's listed as a CF but only a 45 there).
Sabathia: Speaking of bloodlines we drafted C.C.'s kid, a hulking (6'4", 230) presence like his dad but a college first baseman from Georgia Tech. For a college product he's a bit raw but has 70 power potential with 50 contact and 55 eye ceilings but he's a bit far from those right now so he'll start in complex ball.
Pappano: A high-school starter with 55/45/45 potential, so nothing to get too amped up about but like Caminiti he has two-way ability with 60 contact/55 power potential and 65/55 potential in LF/RF.
Bishop: Another high school starter, he has 55/50/50 potential. No hitting ability though so he'll sink or swim based on his arm.
Meanwhile off the topic a bit here's an All-Star recap:
The American League All-Stars feature these players:
SP Matthew Boyd (HOU) - 10-2, 3.04 ERA, 112.2 IP, 1.18 WHIP, 8.5 K/9, 1.9 WAR
SP Luis Garcia (HOU) - 8-3, 3.25 ERA, 110.2 IP, 1.14 WHIP, 8.1 K/9, 2.0 WAR
SP Logan Gilbert (SEA) - 6-5, 2.25 ERA, 108.0 IP, 1.14 WHIP, 8.0 K/9, 2.9 WAR
SP Carlos Hernandez (KC) - 4-1, 2.07 ERA, 95.2 IP, 1.10 WHIP, 6.1 K/9, 1.2 WAR
SP Cristian Javier (HOU)* - 6-4, 3.42 ERA, 115.2 IP, 1.23 WHIP, 9.8 K/9, 2.1 WAR
SP Drew Rasmussen (TB) - 6-4, 2.33 ERA, 96.2 IP, 1.18 WHIP, 6.4 K/9, 1.7 WAR
SP Ethan Small (LAA) - 5-1, 2.08 ERA, 56.1 IP, 1.15 WHIP, 9.4 K/9, 0.5 WAR
RP Shane Baz (TB) - 5-0, 1.79 ERA, 60.1 IP, 0.86 WHIP, 9.8 K/9, 1.2 WAR
RP Deivi Garcia (MIN) - 4-1, 0.87 ERA, 51.2 IP, 0.72 WHIP, 8.7 K/9, 1.0 WAR
RP Mason Miller (OAK) - 6-3, 14 SV, 2.45 ERA, 69.2 IP, 1.21 WHIP, 7.1 K/9, 0.4 WAR
RP Nick Sandlin (KC) - 4-2, 9 SV, 0.94 ERA, 48.0 IP, 0.94 WHIP, 7.9 K/9, 1.4 WAR
CL David Bednar (TEX)* - 1-0, 30 SV, 0.51 ERA, 35.0 IP, 0.57 WHIP, 10.0 K/9, 1.7 WAR
CL Jhoan Duran (MIN) - 5-1, 24 SV, 1.47 ERA, 36.2 IP, 0.90 WHIP, 14.5 K/9, 1.3 WAR
C Alejandro Kirk (TOR) - .281/.353/.465, 260 AB, 13 HR, 126 wRC+, 1.7 WAR
C Shea Langeliers (OAK) - .273/.348/.469, 256 AB, 10 HR, 127 wRC+, 2.3 WAR
C Adley Rutschman (BAL)* - .272/.347/.430, 279 AB, 9 HR, 116 wRC+, 2.6 WAR
C Tyler Soderstrom (NYY) - .322/.375/.524, 267 AB, 12 HR, 149 wRC+, 2.0 WAR
1B Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (TOR)* - .309/.367/.574, 359 AB, 26 HR, 3 SB, 158 wRC+, 3.0 WAR
1B Jose Ramirez (CLE)* - .298/.352/.445, 346 AB, 13 HR, 7 SB, 120 wRC+, 1.2 WAR
2B Andres Gimenez (MIN)* - .312/.369/.474, 359 AB, 10 HR, 10 SB, 132 wRC+, 3.5 WAR
2B Trevor Story (BOS) - .260/.330/.483, 327 AB, 15 HR, 2 SB, 122 wRC+, 2.4 WAR
3B Alex Bregman (HOU)* - .294/.372/.460, 211 AB, 7 HR, 2 SB, 134 wRC+, 2.0 WAR (Injured)
SS Carlos Correa (MIN)* - .293/.366/.429, 331 AB, 8 HR, 5 SB, 120 wRC+, 3.6 WAR
SS Wander Franco (TB) - .328/.375/.536, 250 AB, 9 HR, 9 SB, 151 wRC+, 2.3 WAR
SS Gunnar Henderson (BAL) - .278/.360/.476, 334 AB, 16 HR, 7 SB, 131 wRC+, 2.7 WAR
SS Anthony Volpe (CWS) - .289/.358/.496, 343 AB, 15 HR, 9 SB, 137 wRC+, 3.6 WAR
LF Juan Soto (KC) - .257/.453/.480, 269 AB, 16 HR, 4 SB, 160 wRC+, 2.9 WAR
CF Byron Buxton (MIN) - .297/.360/.651, 175 AB, 18 HR, 173 wRC+, 2.2 WAR
CF Riley Greene (DET)* - .353/.405/.584, 351 AB, 16 HR, 3 SB, 172 wRC+, 4.6 WAR
CF Pedro Leon (HOU) - .282/.361/.464, 347 AB, 14 HR, 24 SB, 131 wRC+, 3.1 WAR
CF Julio Rodriguez (SEA)* - .329/.393/.525, 240 AB, 10 HR, 20 SB, 158 wRC+, 3.6 WAR
CF Esteury Ruiz (OAK) - .300/.356/.452, 343 AB, 11 HR, 31 SB, 127 wRC+, 3.2 WAR
CF Mike Trout (LAA) - .236/.307/.513, 343 AB, 27 HR, 1 SB, 122 wRC+, 2.6 WAR
RF Aaron Judge (NYY)* - .290/.403/.609, 307 AB, 29 HR, 178 wRC+, 5.0 WAR
RF Jose Ramos (LAA) - .285/.349/.538, 253 AB, 16 HR, 1 SB, 143 wRC+, 2.6 WAR
On the National League All-Star roster will be:
SP Corbin Burnes (MIL) - 8-6, 2.79 ERA, 135.2 IP, 1.11 WHIP, 10.2 K/9, 3.6 WAR
SP Bubba Chandler (PIT) - 9-5, 3.56 ERA, 111.1 IP, 1.24 WHIP, 12.4 K/9, 2.9 WAR
SP Connor Phillips (CIN) - 10-5, 3.04 ERA, 112.1 IP, 0.99 WHIP, 9.3 K/9, 2.7 WAR
SP Oliver Roque (CHC) - 6-4, 2.41 ERA, 89.2 IP, 0.89 WHIP, 12.2 K/9, 2.7 WAR
SP Spencer Strider (ATL)* - 7-6, 3.73 ERA, 111.0 IP, 1.11 WHIP, 11.2 K/9, 2.1 WAR
SP Julio Urias (MIA) - 6-9, 2.85 ERA, 129.2 IP, 1.06 WHIP, 8.1 K/9, 3.2 WAR
SP Kyle Wright (ATL) - 9-7, 5.28 ERA, 105.2 IP, 1.25 WHIP, 8.7 K/9, 1.7 WAR
RP Aaron Ashby (MIL) - 0-2, 1.89 ERA, 52.1 IP, 1.13 WHIP, 11.5 K/9, 1.2 WAR
RP Kyle Finnegan (MIA) - 0-1, 2.18 ERA, 45.1 IP, 1.21 WHIP, 9.7 K/9, 0.9 WAR
RP Evan Phillips (LAD)* - 4-3, 3.16 ERA, 31.1 IP, 0.83 WHIP, 8.0 K/9, 0.4 WAR
RP Carson Whisenhunt (SF) - 2-1, 3.46 ERA, 54.2 IP, 1.28 WHIP, 8.6 K/9, 0.5 WAR
CL Andrew Baker (PHI) - 2-4, 20 SV, 3.74 ERA, 33.2 IP, 1.22 WHIP, 15.0 K/9, 0.8 WAR
CL Josh Hader (SD) - 1-4, 26 SV, 1.18 ERA, 38.0 IP, 0.95 WHIP, 11.6 K/9, 0.7 WAR
C Sean Murphy (ATL)* - .268/.341/.507, 205 AB, 10 HR, 132 wRC+, 2.2 WAR
C Endy Rodriguez (PIT) - .239/.297/.440, 243 AB, 8 HR, 100 wRC+, 1.3 WAR
C Drew Romo (COL) - .265/.321/.385, 283 AB, 5 HR, 7 SB, 87 wRC+, 2.1 WAR
1B Pete Alonso (NYM)* - .237/.297/.471, 346 AB, 23 HR, 111 wRC+, 0.8 WAR
1B Freddie Freeman (LAD) - .316/.391/.493, 339 AB, 15 HR, 2 SB, 143 wRC+, 2.5 WAR
1B Luis Garcia (WSH) - .333/.376/.574, 204 AB, 11 HR, 153 wRC+, 2.3 WAR
1B Paul Goldschmidt (CHC)* - .301/.371/.583, 336 AB, 25 HR, 162 wRC+, 3.4 WAR
2B Jeff McNeil (NYM)* - .303/.355/.463, 294 AB, 10 HR, 131 wRC+, 1.7 WAR
3B Nolan Arenado (STL) - .264/.314/.482, 330 AB, 16 HR, 2 SB, 117 wRC+, 2.3 WAR
3B Nolan Jones (MIA) - .265/.326/.477, 321 AB, 18 HR, 6 SB, 124 wRC+, 2.5 WAR
3B Ronny Mauricio (NYM) - .304/.352/.540, 339 AB, 18 HR, 9 SB, 148 wRC+, 3.3 WAR
3B Austin Riley (ATL)* - .315/.380/.592, 343 AB, 26 HR, 1 SB, 167 wRC+, 3.7 WAR
3B Eugenio Suárez (COL) - .275/.326/.522, 295 AB, 20 HR, 1 SB, 122 wRC+, 2.4 WAR
SS Tim Anderson (AZ) - .303/.331/.490, 294 AB, 8 HR, 12 SB, 122 wRC+, 2.5 WAR
SS Vaughn Grissom (ATL)* - .322/.380/.472, 233 AB, 4 HR, 8 SB, 137 wRC+, 3.0 WAR (Injured)
LF Kris Bryant (COL)* - .280/.368/.561, 246 AB, 16 HR, 146 wRC+, 2.3 WAR
LF Tyler Gentry (CHC) - .279/.346/.515, 330 AB, 21 HR, 2 SB, 135 wRC+, 2.5 WAR
LF James Wood (WSH) - .258/.339/.509, 291 AB, 19 HR, 3 SB, 127 wRC+, 2.3 WAR
CF Michael Harris II (ATL)* - .352/.409/.528, 335 AB, 11 HR, 35 SB, 162 wRC+, 4.9 WAR
CF Alek Thomas (AZ) - .343/.415/.464, 274 AB, 4 HR, 1 SB, 147 wRC+, 2.3 WAR
RF Mookie Betts (LAD) - .271/.386/.498, 255 AB, 16 HR, 7 SB, 145 wRC+, 2.7 WAR
RF Zac Veen (COL)* - .290/.386/.530, 328 AB, 15 HR, 15 SB, 143 wRC+, 3.3 WAR
Wander was no surprise and Rasmussen was among the ERA leaders but Baz was a bit of a shock although he is having a great year in long relief.
We had a pretty epic Home Run Derby with Mike Trout edging out Aaron Judge 25-24 in the final round.
As for the game:
Sadly, Baz gave up the game-winning homer to young Washington star James Wood while Wander was 1-3 and Rasmussen pitched a scoreless inning.