Trade Analysis: Gerrit Cole to the Houston Astros

Some big news in from the Hot Stove, finally! The Astros have agreed to a deal with the Pirates for Gerrit Cole, sending infielder Colin Moran, pitchers Joe Musgrove and Michael Feliz, and minor league outfielder Jason Martin back to Pittsburgh.

Let’s start with the obvious: it’s pretty easy to see why the Astros wanted to do this trade. They spent all of last year poking around for spare pitching, and while Justin Verlander was no-doubt a big pick-up, it never hurts to have too much pitching. And Cole isn’t just any pitcher, a former All-Star and #1 pick who’s received Cy Young support. He slots into a rotation with Justin Verlander, Dallas Keuchel, Lance McCullers, and one of Collin McHugh, Charlie Morton, and Brad Peacock.

The Astros’ bullpen was probably weaker than their rotation at this point (as you no doubt realized if you saw any part of their postseason performance), but an extra starter lets them move two of McHugh, Morton, and Peacock into that bullpen, which is a big pick-up, plus in the event of injuries like they had in 2017, they’ll make for much better fill-ins. And with Keuchel a free agent after next season, it makes sense to try and maximize their chances in the short term.

I’ve seen some people imply that this trade was something of a robbery, though, and I think that’s not totally accurate, either. I can see where one would get that idea from, though. Just look at all those descriptors I used in the second paragraph, then look at the players the Pirates got in exchange. None of them are exactly top prospects or anything, and that’s the type of thing that we normally look for in these type of deals.

Cape Cod League Update: The 2013 MLB Draft

As you may remember, a year ago, I was working in the Cape Cod League, attending games and covering the numbers and players. Well, with the arrival of this year’s draft, some of those players are now entering into major league systems. Going through the first twenty rounds (this should cover most of the the draftees, although if I missed any to that point, I apologize), here are the Cape League Class of 2012 alumni moving on to the pros:


Player: Colin Moran

Pick: Round 1, Pick 6

Position: 3B

Cape League Team: Bourne Braves

College: University of North Carolina

Major League Team: Miami Marlins

I didn’t see Bourne as much as some other teams, but I did do a write-up of Moran’s summer in my team review.


Player: Marco Gonzales

Pick: Round 1, Pick 19

Position: LHP

Cape League Team: Falmouth Commodores

College: Gonzaga

Major League Team: St. Louis Cardinals

Gonzales was only at the Cape for a few games, but he was solid while there (10 innings, 2.70 ERA, 0.900 WHIP, 13/0 K/BB ratio).



Player: Eric Jagielo

Pick: Round 1, Pick 26

Position: 3B

Cape League Team: Harwich Mariners

College: Notre Dame

Major League Team: New York Yankees

Jagielo was one of the members of the Harwich Mariners’ Murderers’ Row last season, ultimately finishing second in the league in home runs. I also wrote about him in the team wrap-up. As a side note, I tried to talk to him after a game to write a player profile, but I missed him while talking to someone else. This doesn’t really help now, but I want to bring it up either way.



Player: Phil Ervin

Pick: Round 1, Pick 27

Position: CF

Cape League Team: Harwich Mariners

College: Samford

Major League Team: Cincinnati Reds

Another Harwich Mariner, Ervin cooled off after his unbelievably hot start, but still had a good season overall. His write ups can be found with Jagielo’s



Player: Aaron Judge

Pick: Round 1, Pick 32

Position: CF

Cape League Team: Brewster Whitecaps

College: Fresno State

Major League Team: New York Yankees

I didn’t go to many Brewster games, but I saw Judge’s first game, which I mentioned in their team article. The man has serious power.



Player: Sean Manaea

Pick: Competitive Balance Round A, Pick 1 (34 overall)

Position: LHP

Cape League Team: Hyannis Harbor Hawks

College: Indiana State

Major League Team: Kansas City Royals

Manaea had the best summer of anyone in the league, winning both the top pitcher and top prospect awards. I covered him not only in my Hyannis review, but also in an entire profile.



Player: Aaron Blair

Pick: Competitive Balance Round A, Pick 3 (36 overall)

Position: RHP

Cape League Team: Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox

College: Marshall

Major League Team: Arizona Diamondbacks

Blair was the ace of the runner-up Red Sox, as well as the first player that I profiled.

2012 Cape Cod League Standouts: Bourne Braves

Just as the Orleans Firebirds were the number four seed in their division that upset the top seed in round one but lost in the semifinals, so too were the Bourne Braves. They finished in a tie with the Hyannis Harbor Hawks at 17-27 and won the tiebreaker by going 4-2 against them during the season. The Braves made the most of their opportunity in the postseason, taking the team with the best record in the entire CCBL, the Cotuit Kettleers. The eventual champion Wareham Gatemen ended their run the round after that, though, by sweeping them.