Kuzul

Alex Rodriguez left a monumental milestone on the table when he and the New York Yankees agreed to part ways.

The polarizing star ended his Yankees tenure with 696 career home runs. While he wasn’t going to pass Babe Ruth for third on the all-time leaderboard in 2016, he could have joined the Bambino, Henry Aaron and Barry Bonds in the exclusive 700 club.

Whether by coincidence or design, the Yankees pulled the plug before that could happen.

He may return with another team to chase an illustrious mark next year, but his spokesman ruled out Rodriguez playing again this summer. That accolade is on hold, but there are other moments to watch over the season’s final weeks.

Let’s look at some milestones and records players and teams can earn down the stretch. 

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Tepidness isn’t a trait fantasy baseball managers can exude during the final weeks of a championship run.

There’s no time to keep waiting for disappointments to turn the corner. The trade deadline has passed in most leagues, so gamers now have limited methods to fortify their rosters.

Anyone searching for a spark will have to rummage the waiver wire for unheralded gems. 

This week’s top-10 list features a wide assortment of options, including far more catchers than usual. Since the finish line is in the periphery, a couple of starting pitchers will return to the column because of favorable matchups this week.

As always, every player is available in at least half of Yahoo Sports leagues. Some will pass the halfway line soon, so don’t procrastinate.

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The best-laid plans of fantasy baseball players will often go awry. 

Because of MLB‘s long season and amount available data, baseball requires more skill and less luck than fantasy football, its more popular cousin. Yet even expert gamers must realize that most outcomes are out of their control.

Draft day plays a huge role in determining the champion, but this is a game of attrition. Which team avoided injuries more than the others? Who hit the waiver wire first whenever a hot pickup surfaced? Most importantly, who stays active and keeps grinding until October?

These final weeks separate the diehard warriors from the casual managers who already grew frustrated or bored. The weather’s nice. The gridiron is beckoning, and six months is a long time to spend fixating on a game.

Increasing the difficulty level on climbing the standings, most trade deadlines have passed or will within the week. While the waiver wire offers assistance, few marquee upgrades remain available in competitive leagues.

But hey, continuing to show up in late August and September is half the battle. Just reading a fantasy baseball column shows readiness to fight for a title. So let’s prepare.

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So this is why everyone preaches patience when drafting closers.

“Don’t draft a relief pitcher early” has become fantasy baseball’s slightly less stern version of “Never take a kicker until the final round.” They’re at the mercy of a manager’s ideologies and his team producing save opportunities. 

Also, closers change all the time.

There’s a high turnover rate near MLB‘s trade deadline, which especially caused chaos this summer. Last week‘s waiver-wire column discussed Dellin Betances, Tony Watson, Kelvin Herrera, Jake Barrett and Edwin Diaz, but there are three more movements to document.

The Houston Astros reversed course by bequeathing the ninth innings to Ken Giles, whom everyone expected to serve as their closer all along. With the announcement made Tuesday, fantasy gamers have had ample time to skyrocket his Yahoo Sports ownership rate above the 50 percent barrier. 

It’s too late to tout Giles, but two more new closers remain available in over half of Yahoo leagues. Before the revolving door settles down, some gamers have one last chance to snatch a major upgrade for free.

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Although the MLB non-waiver trade deadline passed on Monday afternoon, the trading window hasn’t yet fully closed.

Teams can still arrange trades by placing players on revocable waivers. If someone clears, he’s eligible to get dealt in August. If a franchise doesn’t want to outright relinquish the rights to a claimed player, it can pull him back and negotiate with that team during a 48-hour window.

The process hinders stars from switching clubs, but contenders can still locate solid pieces for their playoff aspirations. Last year, waiver acquisition Addison Reed became a vital late-inning reliever during the New York Mets’ World Series run, and he boasts a 1.97 ERA as their setup man this season.

Danny Valencia, Mike Napoli, Chase Utley and Fernando Rodney also changed teams last August, so don’t turn off the hot stove just yet. While the majority of players waived will get yanked back, some interesting names could stir the pot. It’s not all for show, as a few veterans still have a strong chance of going elsewhere before September 1, when a player must be on a team to hold postseason eligibility.

Let’s sift through some predictions for a less eventful, yet still noteworthy waiver period.

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Monday’s MLB non-waiver trade deadline didn‘t disappoint, as 18 deals transpired on the final day.

Front offices once again treated the deadline the same way a college student treats a paper’s due date. Some trades slipped under the closing door right as all exchanges halted at 4 p.m. ET. Yet those who didn‘t complete their summer shopping still have an available back channel.

Waiver trades present a last-ditch hope in August. The process stifles blockbusters, but clubs can still maneuver players who go unclaimed. Or they can pull back a claimed player and negotiate an agreement with the franchise who staked a bid.

After procrastinating general managers conducted a swarm of activity right before the non-waiver deadline, let’s take a look at rumors floating around in the aftermath. 

White Sox Waiting for Winter to Shop Aces

The Chicago White Sox stayed relatively quiet before the deadline. While they traded left-handed reliever Zach Duke to the St. Louis Cardinals, they refrained from making any blockbuster moves.

Given the lack of impact starters available, teams would have lined up for the opportunity to acquire Chris Sale or Jose Quintana. Yet both All-Star southpaws will keep pitching in the Windy City until they can reassess the situation this winter.

According to USA Today’s Bob Nightengale, the team believes suitors will intensify their efforts to land one of the aces during the offseason:

Earlier in the day, Nightengale reported growing discussions between the White Sox and Boston Red Sox, who have a loaded farm system but a barren rotation. Per MLB.com’s Phil Rogers, they were still reluctant to move blue-chip prospect Yoan Moncada.

It turns out Red Sox team president Dave Dombrowski was also hesitant to part with Andrew Benintendi, per the Boston Herald‘s Jason Mastrodonato:

This is the same man who traded four prospects for closer Craig Kimbrel last winter, so perhaps the White Sox are on to something. Besides, there’s no rush to trade either hurler. Due to multiple club options, as documented by Cot’s Baseball Contracts, the White Sox can retain Sale through 2019 and Quintana until 2020.

Sale, who started the Midsummer Classic, is undoubtedly the bigger name. The 27-year-old owns a career 2.95 ERA and 10.07 strikeouts per nine innings (K/9), but those marks have regressed to 3.17 and 8.61 in 2016.

Nevertheless, his name wouldn’t have fervently frequented the rumor mill if not for him slashing the club’s uniforms last week.

Quintana, meanwhile, has quietly surpassed his teammate’s season with a 2.89 ERA and 3.6 WAR, per FanGraphs. He’s a legitimate American League Cy Young Award candidate as long as voters don’t foolishly place any significance into his 8-8 record.

They can keep Quintana over the next four years for $35.35 million, a major bargain for a premium starter. Regardless the time of year, he and Sale are highly valuable pitchers who will require huge returns.

Jim Johnson and Daniel Hudson Nearly Get Traded

Plenty of relievers changed homes over the past few days, but two sensible trade candidates stayed put for now.

According SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo, the Atlanta Braves’ Jim Johnson and Arizona Diamondbacks’ Daniel Hudson were both close to getting shipped out of town:

One would expect the worst team in baseball to barter spare parts for cheaper, younger minor leaguers with higher upside. Atlanta instead acquired Matt Kemp, an expensive veteran with eroding skills.

Per David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Braves general manager John Coppolella explained his decision to keep Johnson and other possible trade chips. 

“We spoke with multiple teams on multiple players,” Coppolella said. “We didn’t find the right type of value that we felt necessitated a move, so we were happy to hold. It’s important to us that we have a strong finish to this season.”

Johnson recently won National League Player of the Week honors for converting four saves, but the Braves couldn’t capitalize on the good will. The well-traveled ground-ball specialist has notched a 1.82 ERA since June 1, making him a sensible waiver trade candidate for a contender who needs bullpen depth.

Arizona might have a tougher time finding a taker for Hudson, whose ERA skyrocketed to 6.69 after relinquishing 25 runs over the past two months.

On Thursday, MLB.com’s Steve Gilbert said the Diamondbacks were on the verge of trading Hudson. The following day, he allowed three runs without recording an out.

Hudson will have to string together some bounce-back outings for Arizona to orchestrate a waiver trade. At this rate, he’s in danger of getting waived outright.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Fantasy baseball’s biggest Major League Baseball trade deadline winner isn’t eligible for waiver-wire recognition.

Days after dealing Aroldis Chapman to the Chicago Cubs, the New York Yankees continued to gut their dominant bullpen in favor of elite prospects. Baseball fans woke up Sunday morning to news of them sending Andrew Miller—who was next in line for saves behind Chapman—to the Cleveland Indians for a package led by minor league outfielder Clint Frazier and pitcher Justus Sheffield.

Anyone constructing rest-of-season reliever rankings should now catapult Dellin Betances to No. 1.

The lone remaining stud in New York’s three-headed monster will take his 2.50 ERA, 0.99 WHIP, 1.27 fielding independent pitching (FIP) and 45.0 strikeout percentage into the closer’s role. He was far too valuable as a seventh-inning dynamo to rot away on the waiver wire, but anyone should have grabbed him immediately after the Miller trade (or probably the Chapman transaction) where available.

He’s already owned in 82 percent of Yahoo Sports leagues, and that number should keep rising until he’s on a team in every league with at least one active owner. Nevertheless, this week’s top free agents are still littered with relievers available in at least half of Yahoo leagues. 

Monday’s non-waiver deadline and a couple of non-related promotions and injuries have created an array of talent to cover as the calendar turns to August.

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As Monday’s MLB trade deadline approaches, a frantic hot stove led to some transactions while setting up intense action during the final hours.

The Washington Nationals started the weekend by announcing the acquisition of closer Mark Melancon, who has notched a 1.80 ERA since joining the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2013. Days after the Chicago Cubs paid a premium for Aroldis Chapman, Washington snagged an All-Star reliever at a far more reasonable price.

Later in the day, a team 25 games behind in the National League East standings oddly acquired an expensive veteran. Made official late Saturday night, the Atlanta Braves will receive Matt Kemp from the San Diego Padres for Hector Olivera.

Plenty of players—including one attached to another NL East competitor—continue to frequent the rumor mill. With less than 48 hours remaining to strike a deal, let’s take a look at the latest trade chatter.

Jay Bruce

Like Kemp, Jay Bruce is drawing interest for his power bat in spite of poor defense and a career-low 6.8 walk percentage. Yet the Cincinnati Reds slugger has already belted 25 homers with a .559 slugging percentage, and whoever obtains him can exercise a $13 million club option for 2017.

On Friday, ESPN’s Jayson Stark floated the possibility of a three-team deal sending Bruce to the Los Angeles Dodgers, who rank in the bottom 10 of team slugging percentage. While Stark later squashed the three-team blockbuster, he and Fox Sports’ Jon Morosi both kept the door open for Bruce joining the Dodgers:

The market has intensified after the 29-year-old homered in five straight games, increasing the chances of the Reds receiving a satisfactory offer. On Thursday, per the Cincinnati Enquirer‘s Zach Buchanan, general manager Walt Jocketty said he won’t move Bruce just to look busy. 

“If the value isn’t there for a player, it just doesn’t make sense to trade a guy for the purpose of trading him,” Jocketty said. “Financially, we can hold on to him.”

Per MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon, the New York Mets have also emerged as a serious candidate:

At this time last year, the Mets nearly landed Bruce for starting pitcher Zack Wheeler, who has yet to return from Tommy John surgery. They instead acquired Yoenis Cespedes, who has since hit 39 homers in 149 games, but they don’t have as much minor league depth to leverage this year. Down 7.5 games in the NL East, they’re also likely fighting for a wild-card spot at best.

Further complicating matters, Bruce is an odd fit on a Mets roster already featuring two left-handed corner outfielders (Michael Conforto and Curtis Granderson) and no true center fielder. He makes much more sense for a Dodgers outfield ravaged by injuries, and they have plenty of young talent to spare.

One of the most commonly discussed trade candidates isn‘t a lock to leave Cincinnati, but now is the perfect time for the Reds to convert Bruce into a premium prospect or two.

Derek Norris

The Padres, who have already flipped Kemp, Melvin Upton Jr., Fernando Rodney, Drew Pomeranz and Andrew Cashner, now have their sights set on shipping Derek Norris out of San Diego.

According to Fox Sports’ Ken Rosenthal, the starting catcher should start packing his bags:

In his second season with the Padres, the 27-year-old is hitting .193/.253/.360 with an atrocious 63 weighted runs created plus (wRC+), which grades an average offensive contributor at 100. As Norris dives deeper into an offensive tailspin, Austin Hedges is annihilating Triple-A pitching in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League.

Norris’ once-double-digit walk rate has mysteriously vanished, and his strikeout rate has soared to an unflattering 29.6 percent. Yet despite his struggles, Norris’ glove makes him a desirable target for the Texas Rangers and other clubs who miss out on Jonathan Lucroy.

The backstop will also spend the next two years in arbitration, a process that typically doesn‘t properly compensate defense, so he’s an intriguing buy-low candidate. Although the Padres have Hedges waiting and backup Christian Bethancourt as another alternative, the Padres shouldn’t give a young, cheap catcher away for cheap.

Sonny Gray

As the Oakland Athletics fight for fourth place in the American League West, they look poised to sell more aggressively than anyone at the deadline. Yet aside from officially shipping speedy outfielder Billy Burns to the Kansas City Royals on Saturday, they have not yet leveraged their trading chips into a fresh start.

Josh Reddick, Danny Valencia, Rich Hill and Ryan Madson remain top names to watch until Monday afternoon. Oakland could still move those veterans, but starter Sonny Gray is “going nowhere,” according to Jon Heyman of Today’s Knuckleball.

A year removed from posting a 2.73 ERA, the 26-year-old righty has nearly doubled that mark at 5.43. While he continues to spawn strikeouts and ground balls at similar levels, he has already matched last year’s 17 home runs allowed in nearly 100 fewer innings. 

His hard-hit rate has fattened from 25.1 to a career-worst 34.1 percent, and he’s missing fewer bats with a subpar 8.0 swinging-strike percentage. This version of Gray is far from a franchise ace, and that’s precisely why Oakland won’t entertain any low-ball offers.

The San Francisco Chronicle‘s Susan Slusser also claimed that there’s no merit to any speculation of a blockbuster leading up to the deadline:

If the Athletics were ever to trade Gray, they should have entertained the thought when his value peaked last year. Behind his stellar ERA lurked a less-outstanding 7.31 strikeouts per nine innings and a 3.45 fielding independent pitching (FIP).

He probably won’t factor prominently in another Cy Young Award race, but Gray remains too valuable of a young, cost-controlled starter to abandon during his first rough patch.

All advanced statistics courtesy of FanGraphs unless otherwise noted. Salary information obtained from Cot’s Baseball Contracts.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Days before August 1’s MLB trade deadline, two All-Star pitchers have already changed leagues.

The Boston Red Sox kicked off the summer activity by acquiring Drew Pomeranz from the San Diego Padres. While it was hardly a surprise to see them locate another arm, teams typically don’t find 27-year-olds under team control.

After weeks of asking whether the New York Yankees are buyers or sellers, they offered a hint by sending Aroldis Chapman to the Chicago Cubs for a loot of talent. Top shortstop prospect Gleyber Torres alone is a great return for a two-month reliever rental, but the Bronx Bombers also got back Adam Warren and two other prospects for their troubles.

Chapman to the Cubs shouldn’t have stunned anyone, as the National League Central leaders were on the market for a left-handed reliever. The return, however, was more than even Yankees general manager Brian Cashman could have reasonably expected.

Are there any more surprises on the horizon before Monday? It wouldn’t truly be a surprise if anyone knew, but let’s try to play psychic anyway and predict some abrupt moves that could occur this week.

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A proactive fantasy baseball manager already has an eye ahead to August 1’s MLB trade deadline.

The moves are bound to create new opportunities by way of playing time and role improvements. Nobody can predict every impact deal, but now is the time to anticipate possible shake-ups before the competition acts first.

This particularly applies to a relief pitcher in line for saves if the closer gets peddled by next week. Tyler Clippard has already become the beneficiary of such a move, and someone else could emerge if the Arizona Diamondbacks flip him as well.

Besides, the waiver wire isn’t flooding with talent otherwise. This list breaks the normal practice of not mentioning the same player more than once, as the circumstances have changed enough to warrant another look.

The following players are available in over 50 percent of Yahoo Sports leagues, so give them a look during July’s final week.

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