CarterHud

Photo from the KC Star

        The Oakland Athletics have acquired LHP Jake Diekman from the Kansas City Royals in exchange for OF Dairon Blanco and RHP Ismael Aquino.

        The A\’s could use bullpen help, and Diekman is a decent start. Diekman has a high ERA this year, but opponents are hitting just .212 against him, including righties at a .211 average. In his career, he has held opponents to a low .226 batting average. He\’s also had a K/9 over nine every year of his career, which means he has struck out more than one batter an inning, and aside from 2013, it\’s been over 10. This year, it is at a career high 13.6, which is very encouraging. He is a free agent after the season, though. Diekman has a lot of upside, though he currently has a career high ERA. They don\’t trade any top 30 prospects.

         Diekman, 32, has a 4.75 ERA with 63 strikeouts in 41.2 innings this year for the Royals. In his MLB career for the Royals, Texas Rangers, Philadelphia Phillies and Arizona Diamondbacks, Diekman has a 3.87 ERA with 446 strikeouts in 353.2 innings.

        The Royals are terrible, and will be dealing a lot, and everyone but Whit Merrifield is reportedly available. They have traded two rentals already, both to the A\’s, with Diekman following starter Homer Bailey for 18th best prospect Kevin Merrell (MLB Pipeline). Like Merrell, they get speed in return, in Blanco. They also get a young pitcher in Aquino. This marks the second consecutive July where Diekman has been dealt. The Rangers sent him to Arizona last year for Wei-Chieh Huang and Joshua Javier.

         Blanco, 26, has a .276 batting average with seven homers, 44 RBIs and 27 stolen bases in 334 Plate Appearances for AA Midland this year, his second minor league season since coming over from Cuba.
 
          Aquino, 20, has a 4.58 ERA with 20 strikeouts in 17.2 innings for the Arizona League A\’s. He has a 4.03 ERA with 103 strikeouts in 98.1 innings in three minor league seasons.

       The Chicago Cubs have acquired LHP Derek Holland and cash considerations from the San Francisco Giants in exchange for cash considerations.

       Holland is more pitching depth for the Cubs, which isn\’t ever a bad thing. He\’s an 11 year vet, and is just 32. He is having a terrible season, and was moved to the bullpen, but flew under the radar last year, his first in San Francisco. He also was a big part of the Rangers\’ runs to the 2010 and 2011 World Series. He might not even make a potential playoff roster, but for a swap of cash, it is a low risk. In two years in San Fransisco, his K rate has skyrocketed, currently at a 9.3 K/9.

        Holland, 32, has a 5.90 ERA with 71 strikeouts in 68.2 innings this year for the Giants in 31 games (7 starts). In his MLB career for the Giants, Texas Rangers and Chicago White Sox, Holland has a 4.51 ERA with 1134 strikeouts in 1360 innings.

        The Giants may or may not be sellers, but Holland nets them some cash, which could help them if they decide to buy at the deadline next week. He wasn\’t a starter any more, and was recently designated for assignment.

    The Toronto Maple Leafs have acquired D Jordan Schmaltz from the St. Louis Blues in exchange for D Andreas Borgman.

    Schmaltz is a former 1st rounder (2012) that hasn\’t panned out, but hasn\’t gotten a major chance yet. He had a career high 20 games last year, and was a healthy scratch almost the entire season. With the Leafs needing a right handed defenseman for their third pairing, Schmaltz fits the bill.

    Schmaltz, 25, scored two points, both assists, in 20 games this past season. In 42 NHL games, all for the Blues, Schmaltz has five points, all assists.

    The Blues don\’t need Schmaltz, as he was mainly a healthy scratch. They don\’t really need Borgman either. Borgman didn\’t play in the NHL last year, but did score 15 points in 39 AHL games. He also has potential, but isn\’t exactly very young.

     Borgman, 24, only played in the NHL in 2017-18, scoring three goals with eight assists for 11 points in 48 games.

From the Toronto Star

        The Vegas Golden Knights have acquired G Garrett Sparks in exchange for F David Clarkson and a 4th round pick.

        Both teams really need cap space, so this is a head scratcher for Toronto. Clarkson has a $5.25 AAV for one more year, though he can be put on LTIR for the season. Toronto was the team that signed Clarkson to his albatross of a seven year deal. It has now been traded three times, including at the expansion draft. Add Clarkson to Nathan Horton, who Toronto acquired for Clarkson from Columbus, and the Leafs have around $10.45 million in dead cap on LTIR. They only get a fourth rounder for taking on Clarkson, and trade their backup goalie, who\’s getting paid nearly at the league minimum. Michael Hutchinson and Michal Neuvirth, the latter recently signed to a PTO, will compete to backup Frederik Andersen.

         Clarkson, 35, hasn\’t played since 2015-16, scoring two goals with two assists for four points in 23 games for the Columbus Blue Jackets, and won\’t play in the NHL again. In his NHL career for the Blue Jackets, Leafs and New Jersey Devils, Clarkson scored 114 goals with 86 assists for 200 points in 570 games.

          The Golden Knights are currently over the salary cap, and while Clarkson could be put on LTIR, they get his contract out of the way. In return, they acquire Sparks, who can challenge Malcolm Subban as the backup, but could also be flipped. Sparks might even command something near the 4th round pick given up, if Vegas is lucky.

          Sparks, 26, had a .902 SV% with a 3.15 GAA in 20 games for the Leafs this year. In his NHL career, all in Toronto, Sparks has a .898 SV% with a 3.09 GAA in 37 games.

         The Edmonton Oilers have acquired F James Neal from the Calgary Flames in exchange for F Milan Lucic.

         Both players have four more years left on their albatross of a contract. Lucic has a $6 million cap hit, and Neal\’s is $5.75 million. So the trade already doesn\’t look great for Calgary, though $0.25 million won\’t hurt anyone. But the main losing point is that Neal is a better player than Lucic. While Neal will be 32 and Lucic 31, Neal scored 20 goals in his first 10 NHL seasons with four different teams, before collapsing in Calgary for one season. Him falling might have been more on the team and coaching staff rather than the player. The same could be said for Lucic, who did score 23 goals and 50 points in his first year in Edmonton, but has 16 goals and 54 points in the two years since. He\’s also one of the worst skaters in the NHL. The Oilers are desperate for skill, and Neal has more of that.

         Neal, who will be 32 when the season starts, scored seven goals with 12 assists for 19 points in 63 games for Calgary this year, but scored 25 the year before. In his NHL career for the Flames, Vegas Golden Knights, Nashville Predators, Pittsburgh Penguins and Dallas Stars, Neal has scored 270 goals with 244 assists for 514 points in 766 games.

         Lucic, 31, scored six goals with 14 assists for 20 points in 79 games for the Oilers this past season. In his career for the Oilers, Boston Bruins and Los Angeles Kings, Lucic has scored 198 goals with 303 assists for 501 points in 890 games.