The trade winds are swirling from Boston, Massachusetts to St. Louis, Missouri and all the way down to Atlanta,Georgia. This is just the beginning of the trade season as we know it in Major League Baseball. The St. Louis Cardinals and Atlanta Braves are looking to bolster their pitching rotation as the divisional races heat up. The Boston Red Sox on the other hand, are starting to look like a team that is looking towards next year and Jake Peavy is on the market.
The Boston Red Sox acquired Jake Peavy last year in a three team trade from the Chicago White Sox while making their run all the way to the 2013 World Series title. This year Peavy (1-7, 4.64 era) has not performed nearly as well as Boston had hoped for. That, coupled with the recall of Rubby De La Rosa (2-2, 2.51 era), makes the move to rid the Sox of Peavy and his salary inevitable.
So, why trade for Jake Peavy? First of all, he is an innings eater. Most outings you can count on Peavy to go six or seven innings. The 2007 Cy Young Award winner, has yet to be as dominant as he was in the National League. At this point, Peavy is more of an end of the rotation anchor, not an elite front line ace. He should also come at a fairly cheap price. Boston will not be looking to raid a franchise's depth, just to unload his salary and make room for youth.
Atlanta has been decimated by injuries to their starting rotation here in 2014. Kris Medlen and Brandon Beachy went down with Tommy John surgery before the Braves even got out of spring-training. Atlanta immediately went out and signed Ervin Santana to a one-year $14 million deal. As if the initial blows were not enough, Gavin Floyd then went down with an elbow injury that placed him on for the remainder of the year. Julio Teheran, Mike Minor, Ervin Santana, and Alex Wood are a formidable four, but journeyman Aaron Harang has been up-and-down all year. Adding another veteran to the rotation, even if just for depth, would be an attractive move to the brave front office. If Atlanta does make the move, do not look for them to rid themselves any of their top prospects. The Braves are also eyeing infield talent such as Ben Zobrist and David Murphy.
The most likely destination for Jake Peavy is St. Louis, Missouri. The Cardinals, as well as the Braves, are in the thick of their division race this year. Adding depth to the Cardinal rotation would be a big move in hopes of over taking the Milwaukee Brewers and holding off the Cincinnati Reds. The Cardinals will also be looking to add a bat to the outfield, as their offense has not been nearly as dominant as it was in 2013.
Where ever Peavy ends up look for it to be a move in the near future. Making room for guys like De La Rosa is a move they would like to see happen before the end of the week. Do not look for Jake Peavy to be on the Red Sox roster after the All-Star break. The Major League Baseball trade deadline is July 31st.