Who is your favorite trade deadline acquisition in Red Sox history?

With the commerce deadline only a matter of days away, the OTM crew wish to take you on a visit down Reminiscence Lane. Who, would you say, is the very best participant that the Red Sox acquired at (or round) the commerce deadline? Or your favourite? Your standards for the selection could differ—that’s OK, as a result of come what may we’re speaking about guys who helped our favourite crew.

Let’s get into it.

Jason Varitek and Derek Lowe

That is kinda dishonest because it’s two guys, however come on now: this seems like a straightforward one for me.

I anticipate that I’m going to see a few of my OTM colleagues level out a few of the different worthy contenders for this honor: your Nathan Eovaldis (Jalen Beeks, your contributions won’t ever be forgotten), your Steve Pearces (even in the event you consider that WS MVP ought to’ve gone to David Worth), your Jason Bays, and many others. All worthy selections, to be honest!

However how are you gonna decide towards a battery that was an enormous a part of a curse-breaking crew in trade for a reliever?

I used to be only a 12 months outdated on July 31, 1997, when the Seattle Mariners agreed to ship a lanky righty and a catcher out of Georgia Tech out to Boston in trade for 1995 All-Star Healthcliff Slocumb. I couldn’t inform ya how good he was primarily based off of an in-person expertise. What I can inform you is that Slocumb had a really strong 1996 marketing campaign with the Purple Sox (168 ERA+ and 88 strikeouts throughout 83.1 innings), although his ‘97 numbers with our favourite membership was….properly, the 5.79 ERA in 46.2 innings tells you the story.

The Mariners had legit playoff aspirations in 1997, and any crew within the hunt might nearly at all times stand to bolster their bullpen. Boy, oh boy, are we fortunate that Seattle fell into that field.

In return for Slocumb’s providers, the Purple Sox bought a mixed whole of 43.6 bWAR, 5 All-Star alternatives, and one captaincy patch. The commerce bought us somebody who threw and caught the identical no-hitter in April of 2002, whereas it bought Alex Rodriguez a swift knock to the top and the Oakland Athletics a fast “suck it” upon their elimination within the 2003 ALDS. Above all else, Varitek grew to become a world champion twice over and Lowe received all three series-clinching video games for a very powerful crew on this franchise’s historical past.

It’s no query: that is the very best haul we’ve ever gotten at or across the commerce deadline.

— Fitzy Mo Peña

Hansel Robles

I’ve a mushy spot for the 2021 crew. I’ve written earlier than about how I moved to Cambridge in September 2021 and spent practically each evening at Fenway Park from the day I moved till the tip of the season. I used to be truly getting paid like an actual grownup, might stroll to Fenway Park in about 25 minutes, and the crew was successful towards all odds.

Hansel Robles was introduced in to bolster the bullpen on the deadline, and harm greater than he helped at first. In 13 appearances in August his ERA was over seven. In September he turned a nook. Over his ultimate 14 appearances of the common season, he didn’t permit a run. He secured two saves within the ultimate sequence of the season, serving to the Purple Sox clinch a Wild Card spot. My associates and I used to joke that you possibly can inform in the event you have been getting good Hansel or dangerous Hansel primarily based on the primary pitch of the outing. In September 2021, dangerous Hansel by no means confirmed up.

Writer’s Notice: His playoff efficiency left one thing to be desired, however I used to be ingesting for lots of that. The entire run is form of an adrenaline-fueled blur for me.

— Jacob Roy

Nathan Eovaldi

I’ve written about my gratitude and love for Eovaldi before. In solely his second begin for the Purple Sox, he pitched an amazing sport towards the Yankees (again after we have been each vying for the highest of the division). For me, it was love at first sight. This sport coincided with my marriage ceremony anniversary…as a newly single particular person. I used to be in the midst of a divorce that I didn’t ask for or need and watching Eovaldi are available and take down the Yankees felt like a private victory. Contemporary begins for everybody! That he later was so masterful over six innings—of reduction, keep in mind—in that unimaginable 18-inning World Series sport towards the Dodgers, despite the fact that he took the loss…gah! I nonetheless get choked up.

— Maura McGurk

Dave Roberts

Picture by Brad Mangin/MLB Pictures through Getty Pictures

Everybody needs to take a look at the 2004 commerce deadline because the 12 months Theo Epstein grabbed a primary baseman that was so direly wanted by a crew that may find yourself successful the World Sequence for the primary time in 86 years. Or, if it’s not that, it’s that the shortstop debate and the Nomar drama. That’s legitimate, certain, however Theo acquired a veteran participant who had wheels on him and used him to do precisely what his profile urged he was finest at: stealing bases.

Humorous sufficient, although he was utilized in 101 at-bats down the stretch, Roberts solely stole 5 bases within the common season, however everybody within the ballpark and on this planet knew what he was there to do within the backside of the ninth in that fateful ALCS Recreation 4. And he did precisely that. This crew wouldn’t have received this sport, not to mention the World Sequence, if not for that stolen base. Full cease. Dave Roberts will probably go to the Corridor of Fame as a supervisor for the magnitude of success he has achieved as supervisor of the Dodgers, however his plaque may also say his solely World Sequence as a participant was as a member of the Boston Purple Sox.

The opposite piece of this that made Roberts’ pickup so particular was the participant the Purple Sox, or moderately, the PawSox, despatched to L.A., or moderately, to the Triple-A Las Vegas 51’s. Henri Stanley by no means ended up enjoying a Main League sport, however he was the right leadoff man in Triple-A. He hit .299 in 2004, was growing his energy as of that deal, and was on the faster on the basepaths, although not sufficient to steal bases. This analytics aggregator article from earlier that season touts him as Johnny Damon Lite. I liked watching Stanley bat earlier than some guys that may ultimately make some marks on future Purple Sox groups equivalent to Kelly Shoppach, Cesar Crespo, former third base coach Carlos Febles, and a man you will have heard of earlier than, Kevin Youkilis. To go to McCoy in 2004 was a magical expertise, and it was partly because of the magic of Henri Stanley.

A product of Clemson College, Stanley ended up a participant agent, together with to former Roberts-managed pitcher Yu Darvish. Roberts admits to Darvish inquiring about Stanley at least once when he pitched for the Dodgers in 2017. Sadly, Stanley by no means had a lot as a cup of espresso within the bigs, which stinks as a result of in in the present day’s sport, he completely would have a house at the least SOMEWHERE along with his profession OPS within the minors topping .850. He was thrilling to observe, which made the deal for Roberts much more tantalizing to an 11-year-old child who was about to see his crew do the unthinkable towards their rival, because of what would go down as his favourite commerce deadline acquisition ever.

— Dean Roussel

Rick Aguilera

The 1995 Purple Sox in all probability shouldn’t have been pretty much as good as they have been. I imply, significantly, what sort of baseball crew depends on an unknown knuckleballer plucked off the waiver wire to be their ace? However, by some means, there they have been, main the American League East in July, as they’d for a lot of the season. That’s after they traded for Minnesota Twins nearer Rick Aguilera.

I had by no means heard of Rick Aguilera till just a few weeks earlier than he was traded to the Sox. However in these weeks he had change into a very powerful baseball participant on this planet, the man the Sox had to get in the event that they have been going to shore-up the pen for a pennant chase. And that, to me, is what could make the commerce deadline so enjoyable. Abruptly, in any other case unremarkable gamers are thrust into the highlight and given the chance to change into heroes to a complete fanbase who didn’t even their names in the beginning of the season.

Rick Aguilera, in contrast to the man Dean wrote about, didn’t change into a Purple Sox hero. However he was nails down the stretch, saving 20 video games and placing up an ERA+ of 184 earlier than returning to the Twins the very subsequent season. He was like some magical drifter who got here and lived with us for just a few months, taught us the that means of life, after which slung his bindle over his shoulder at some point and walked off into the sundown.

Aguilera would later name the commerce the bottom second of his profession — he apparently actually, actually didn’t need to go away the Twins — and it was additionally an extremely awkward commerce, since he was traded in the midst of a Twins-Purple Sox sport and was instantly requested to file a save towards guys who had been his teammates like 5 minutes earlier than. Nevertheless it was cool for us. So, thanks, Rick. Sorry you hated these three months in Boston a lot.