- Joined
- May 8, 2002
- Posts
- 1,238,315
- Reaction score
- 59
The Boston Red Sox have looked like contenders as of late, and now they're trading like one. In a deal with the Washington Nationals, the AL East team acquired 25-year-old infielder Curtis Mead and sent away a valuable young pitcher in Connelly Early.
Mead is in the middle of a breakout season with 17 dingers and 48 RBI, and this comes after he's been dealt a ton -- to the Phillies in 2019 for a pitcher named Cristopher Sanchez (what a deal that was for Philly!), to the White Sox for Adrian Houser and to the Nats for Boston Smith. Now? He's a big upgrade to the Red Sox lineup. But was the cost too high?
Let's dive in with the details and the trade grades for each side here:
Nationals get: LHP Connelly Early
Red Sox get: IF Curtis Mead
The Red Sox pitching staff? Stellar. Sonny Gray, Ranger Suarez and others have been so good. The lineup? It needed a boost despite terrific seasons from Willson Contreras and Jarren Duran. Enter Mead, who will give an injection of power from the right side of the dish.
It's a REALLY good acquisition... but will the Red Sox regret dealing a young pitcher like Early so soon, even though he's on the IL with an injured elbow? That's where I get nervous about this one. Early could turn out to be an absolute stud, and if Mead doesn't keep up his breakout year? Lots of regrets could be ahead. GRADE: B
How's THIS for a story: The Nats didn't give up much to grab Mead and now they swap him for a terrific young starting pitcher. THAT's how you make a deal when you're a rebuilding franchise like the Nationals. You make this deal 100 times out of 100 and high five after the phone call makes it official. When healthy, Early could be a front-line starter. GRADE: A
This article originally appeared on For The Win: Curtis Mead trade grades: Who won Red Sox and Nationals trade?
Continue reading...
Mead is in the middle of a breakout season with 17 dingers and 48 RBI, and this comes after he's been dealt a ton -- to the Phillies in 2019 for a pitcher named Cristopher Sanchez (what a deal that was for Philly!), to the White Sox for Adrian Houser and to the Nats for Boston Smith. Now? He's a big upgrade to the Red Sox lineup. But was the cost too high?
Let's dive in with the details and the trade grades for each side here:
Red Sox and Nationals trade details
Nationals get: LHP Connelly Early
Red Sox get: IF Curtis Mead
Red Sox trade grade
The Red Sox pitching staff? Stellar. Sonny Gray, Ranger Suarez and others have been so good. The lineup? It needed a boost despite terrific seasons from Willson Contreras and Jarren Duran. Enter Mead, who will give an injection of power from the right side of the dish.
It's a REALLY good acquisition... but will the Red Sox regret dealing a young pitcher like Early so soon, even though he's on the IL with an injured elbow? That's where I get nervous about this one. Early could turn out to be an absolute stud, and if Mead doesn't keep up his breakout year? Lots of regrets could be ahead. GRADE: B
Nationals trade grade
How's THIS for a story: The Nats didn't give up much to grab Mead and now they swap him for a terrific young starting pitcher. THAT's how you make a deal when you're a rebuilding franchise like the Nationals. You make this deal 100 times out of 100 and high five after the phone call makes it official. When healthy, Early could be a front-line starter. GRADE: A
This article originally appeared on For The Win: Curtis Mead trade grades: Who won Red Sox and Nationals trade?
Continue reading...
