The baseball soap opera is over. The trade deadline. Some deals were made, while others were not. It's after 4:00 PM EST. Some last minute trades pulled through. More may come. I've waited to the last second to publish this to make sure every move would be included. If anything else comes in, I will be sure to edit. I've already have edited as many times as I refreshed MLBtraderumors.com.
Leading off, Manny Ramirez was not traded to the Marlins in a three way deal. In the deal, the Marlins would receive Manny and cash. The Red Sox would receive Jason Bay and John Grabow. Jermey Hermida would go to the Pirates. Manny approved the trade, but the deal became dead.. twice. The deal was off and on until the very last minute of the deadline.
However, that didn't mean Jason Bay would stay put. At least it looked that way for a while. Jason Bay was almost traded to the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for prospects Reid Brignac and Jeff Neimann.
However, the Rays didn't want to give up those prospects, and the deal did not fall through. It's a shame for the Rays, because it could of been a steal. The Pirates were looking for 4 prospects for Bay, and the Rays would of only gave up 2. They must really see something in those 2 prospects.
Hold your horses. Bay and Manny are involved in a trade that is official, according to Sports Illustrated. The Pirates and Red Sox are involved, but not the Marlins. Instead, its the little engine that could.. the Dodgers.
The Dodgers will get Manny Ramirez. The Red Sox will get Jason Bay. The Pirates will get Andy LaRoche and Bryan Morris from the Dodgers. They will also get Brandon Moss and Craig Hansen from the Red Sox. The Red Sox will also pay part of Manny's remaining salary on his contract.
The Red Sox gave up a lot for just Bay. Bay's a good player and all, but they gave up one of the best outfielders in the game and 2 prospects, and only got Bay in return.
Raul Ibanez was almost traded to the Toronto Blue Jays. Seattle had second thoughts, and back out. It would have been a 2-for-1 exchange, involving major league players.
No Manny doesn't mean the Marlins would stop looking for more players. All Phillies fans can take a deep breathe now. Not just because it means no Manny for the Fish, but also because we don't have to worry about the Phillies acquiring Arthur Rhodes. The Marlins took care of that by acquiring the lefty in exchange for prospect Gabby Hernandez.
The White Sox acquired future Hall of Famer, Ken Griffey Jr. from the Cincinnati Reds. The Reds will receive Danny Richar and Nick Masset in return.
Griffey being traded was bound to happen. But to the White Sox? The White Sox already have Carlos Quentin and Jermaine Dye at the corners in the outfield. Nick Swisher plays first base and center field. Jim Thome is the DH. Paul Konerko, who is struggling, plays first base. So, where are the White Sox going to play Griffey? They need to find a place to put the future Hall of Famer without sitting some of their other star players. The chances are Griffey moves back to center field. With Konerko struggling, another idea is move Thome to first base and DH Griffey.
All the teams had different interest in different players, but no other deals worked out.
As for Pat Gillick and the Phillies, looks like they "Stand Pat" again. Look for a Front Office Blog post in the future.
Ken Griffey Jr. decided to sign with his former team, the Seattle Mariners just days after he denied signing with the Atlanta Braves.
Bay went 1-3 with 2 walks. But that 1 hit was the biggest hit of the night. The game was tied at one in the 12th inning. Bay hit a two out triple off the the top of the Green Monster. Two batters later, Jed Lowrie hit a little bleeder up the middle. A do or die play, the pay was not made, and Bay scored the winning run. Bay scored both of the Red Sox two runs as they beat the Oakland Athletics, 2-1.