BOSTON -- It’s mid-July, which would normally mean the rumor mill would be spinning rapidly with the MLB trade deadline fast approaching. Of course, with the beginning of the season pushed back four months due to the coronavirus pandemic, that won’t be the case this summer.
But there will be a trade deadline -- on Aug. 31 -- and it’s safe to say it will be like no other in baseball history. Teams will have to consider a series of unique factors about dealing during the shortened season and even consider some ethical questions about whether it’s fair to trade players and have them uproot their lives in the middle of a global pandemic.
So far, teams have largely been hesitant to make deals in the three weeks since the transaction freeze was lifted on June 26. Only two deals -- both involving the Padres -- have been completed, with San Diego acquiring infielder Jorge Mateo from the Athletics on June 30 and sending outfielder Franchy Cordero to the Royals for left-hander Tim Hill earlier this week.
The Red Sox, who have a clear need in their starting rotation, continue to look for upgrades from the outside. The club made one external addition this week, signing former Diamondbacks starter Zack Godley, but has found that the market for player movement has been significantly depressed by the effort to get the season underway safely.
“So much of our focus, and I think not just at the Red Sox, but all 30 clubs in this industry, has been on making sure that we are up and running and ready to roll in a safe and comfortable environment given that we’re playing in the midst of a pandemic,” said chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom. “That has been our top priority and I think it has been the top priority for all 30 clubs. That has meant that we haven’t had the normal late spring trade conversations that I think you would usually see at this time, a week out from Opening Day.”
It remains to be seen whether or not that focus will shift in the first couple weeks of the season, and will likely come down to how individual general managers and front offices approach things. By Aug. 17 -- two weeks before the trade deadline, teams will have played less than 25 games, meaning any action could come closer to the end of the month.
Former Red Sox president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski, who has never been afraid to make a deal he likes, believes baseball is due for an active deadline in late August. He thinks more teams than usual will view themselves as championship contenders at the trade deadline, leading to more competition for pieces that could help down the stretch.
“I do think there are going to be trades made,” Dombrowski said on MassLive’s The Fenway Rundown podcast. “I think that some clubs that fall down quickly, and fall out of it -- and there might not be many, because with a 60-game season, anything can happen and there’s only going to be 30-some games played before the trading deadline -- but there’s a time for separation. I think more clubs will have a chance to feel that they can get in. Once you get in, anything can happen. I do think there will be trades made, and probably quite a few of them.”
Teams may have to tame their collective aggressiveness as they consider the ethical implications of uprooting a player and his family in these strange times and could theoretically be hesitant to trade with teams that play in coronavirus hotspots. On Friday, Bloom said the Red Sox had internally discussed the fact that deal-making will be more complicated than usual this summer.
“Anytime you do anything, you always have to have some consideration for the person and what you’re putting them through, recognizing that this is also a business and everybody knows, within that, what could happen,” he said. “I don’t think we’re doing our jobs if we don’t factor that in. It obviously changes some things. It doesn’t mean, necessarily, that we’re hesitant. It just means we’ll look at this a different way, take different considerations into account, make sure we’re treating guys humanely. It has not been something that anybody has raised to me but it’s something we all need to have some empathy for what that could feel like, if you had to do that in the middle of a season, and make sure we’re factoring that in as appropriately as we can.”
Considering Major League Baseball’s rules will allow any player to opt out at any point during the season, every player effectively has a no-trade clause in 2020. The caveat, of course, is that opting out in late August would cost a player his prorated salary for the final month of the season.
“I feel for the families, of course, and what people are going through at this time,” Dombrowski said. “I don’t think I’d run into that type of problem. You’re only talking for a short time period, too, you’re basically talking about a month. I would think that the families in this case... everybody has had a chance to opt out. I think the way the rules are written, probably, if someone didn’t think it was good for their family, they could still opt out under that type of scenario.”
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Dombrowski endorses Roenicke hire
Bloom was the one who had the unenviable task of finding a manager to replace Alex Cora with a month to go before spring training, but it sounds like Dombrowski would have made the same decision as his replacement and hired Ron Roenicke to manage the Red Sox. Dombrowski hired Roenicke as Cora’s bench coach before the 2018 season, choosing him over former Dodgers and Rockies manager Jim Tracy.
“Ron Roenicke is an outstanding baseball man and person, too,” Dombrowski said on The Fenway Rundown. “I have to admit I’m a bit prejudiced, I’ve gotten to know Ron very well. I have the utmost respect for him. He’s fantastic. I don’t think they could have made a better selection under the situation, or probably under any situation.”
Dombrowski and Roenicke, who are a month apart in age, both began their careers in professional baseball in the late 1970s. Dombrowski was impressed by the manager in their two seasons together in Boston.
“People forget they were still coming off the suspension of Alex and all the investigation taking place, so the stability of what Ron added, and adds… it’s also a situation where he’s just such a good baseball man,” Dombrowski said. “Well-respected throughout the game. He has been basically through all types of circumstances. I think a great choice and I think he’ll do a great job for them.”
Dombrowski also praised Bloom, who replaced him in the big chair last fall.
“A very well-respected individual in the game,” Dombrowski said. “Very smart. Of course, Tampa Bay is respected for what they did. I didn’t really know Chaim as much as others in there because most of my dealings were with Erik Neander, it so happens, their general manager. Almost every conversation, which were numerous, throughout my time period, was with Erik. But I got to know Chaim some and there’s no question that I was impressed with him. The industry has been impressed with him. He’s in a position where he’s ready to be a general manager and he has a great opportunity to do so.”
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10 observations from the last week in baseball
1. It will be hard to find a better baseball story in 2020 than Daniel Bard’s comeback with the Rockies. Colorado announced Bard will be on the Opening Day roster over the weekend.
2. The Red Sox seem likely to take Zack Godley on their Opening Day roster. They gave him an opt-out clause after the first week of the season.
3. With only a few days left before they have to set their 30-man Opening Day roster, there aren’t many questions left for the Red Sox to answer. Two spots are really open: one in the infield (likely coming down to Jonathan Arauz vs. Yairo Munoz) and one on the pitching staff (Godley vs. the other bulk/long relief options).
4. If Godley makes the team, the Red Sox will have a tough 40-man roster decision (or two) to make. They currently have one open spot (that’ll be for Brian Johnson), then must clear a spot for Jonathan Lucroy (Phillips Valdez looks like a DFA candidate) and then would have to choose between a few options (likely Yoan Aybar, Marcus Wilson, Mike Shawaryn and Kyle Hart) if they wanted to add Godley.
5. I’m still not sold on Ryan Weber, but the Red Sox are counting on him to be their No. 3 starter. And that is shocking, even after months of hearing people in the organization give him continued votes of confidence.
6. Tough break for the Blue Jays not being able to play in Toronto this season. One would think, with all the COVID-19 spikes in Florida, that Buffalo will be the most likely spot for them this year.
7. Still a bit surprising the Red Sox left first baseman Triston Casas -- their consensus No. 1 overall prospect -- off their 60-man player pool.
8. Despite four positive coronavirus tests at the beginning of camp, the Red Sox will be pretty healthy entering the season. It sounds like Eduardo Rodriguez, Darwinzon Hernandez and Josh Taylor will all be ready to pitch by the end of the first week.
9. Dombrowski was expansive on a variety of topics on this week’s podcast. Be sure to subscribe to the show on Spotify and iTunes.
10. It has been a long, difficult journey.... but Opening Day is just four days away. Something for everyone to be excited about.
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Will MLB trade deadline be slower than normal this season? Dave Dombrowski, Chaim Bloom weigh in | Chris Coti - MassLive.com
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