MLB: Tampa Bay Trades Archer
Chris Archer, two-time MLB All-Star, has been traded from the Tampa Bay Rays to the Pittsburgh Pirates. According to Ken Rosenthal, the Pirates will give up a pair of prospects: Tyler Glasnow and Austin Meadows. Archer was one of the biggest potential trade deadline deals, and it’s official that he’ll be in Pittsburgh for the stretch run. Although he currently has a 4.31 ERA, which isn’t his best, he’s proved in the past that he can be an ace and Pittsburgh is taking their chances that he’ll rediscover that magic and help them continue to play well. The Pirates are 55-52 on the season and are seven games back in the NL Central, behind the Chicago Cubs and Milwaukee Brewers.
Pittsburgh is also only 3.5 games back in the NL Wild Card race, trailing the Brewers, Arizona Diamondbacks, Atlanta Braves, and Colorado Rockies. The reason the Pirates decided to pull the trigger on this deal is because of how well they’ve been playing. They are 12-3 in their last 15 games, which included an 11-game winning streak and sweeps over the Cleveland Indians and Brewers. If that streak didn’t occur, I don’t see them making this deal (unless it was for future purposes). But now the Pirates’ front office has made it clear that they believe their team can make a push in the last couple of months. As for the Rays, they’re getting two prospects who have a lot of potential.
Glasgow has a 4.34 ERA over 34 appearances and a 1-2 record. Which is a major improvement from a 7.69 ERA last season. He hasn't quite lived up to the hype, but there is certainly still time to turn that around and Tampa Bay will look to right the ship. Meadows is the former No. 9 overall pick by Pittsburgh from the 2013 MLB Draft. He just made his MLB debut on May 8th this season and has already seen major league success with a .298 batting average to go along with five home runs and 13 runs batted in. He was named the NL Rookie of the Month in May. This is a deal that looks like it could be a positive for both organizations as they decide to make the biggest splash at the MLB’s trade deadline.
Photo Credit: Sporting News.
