Mike Clevinger Headed to the Padres in Nine-Player Deal

It’s hard to believe we’re already here, but Major League Baseball’s trade deadline is once again upon us, and while this season’s deadline was expected to be quieter than in years past due to the shortened season — teams had just five weeks to evaluate their rosters, and there are already only four weeks remaining until the postseason — there was still a healthy amount of last-minute deals made as teams look to make their final push for this year’s expanded playoff field.

Most notable of those was a nine-player deal between the Cleveland Indians and the San Diego Padres that will send righty Mike Clevinger to the Padres along with outfielder Greg Allen and a player to be named later in exchange for catcher Austin Hedges, first baseman/outfielder Josh Naylor, RHP Cal Quantrill, shortstop Gabriel Arias (the Padres’ No. 7 prospect), infielder Owen Miller (their No. 11 prospect) and LHP Joey Cantillo (No. 9 prospect).

On some level, it makes sense that the Indians would be looking to offload their ace: Clevinger ruffled some feathers in the Cleveland clubhouse earlier this month when he reportedly lied to his teammates about breaking coronavirus protocol with rotation-mate Zach Plesac on the road in Chicago earlier this month. However, while he admitted he thought being traded was “inevitable,” Clevinger said on a conference call with reporters that he didn’t think the move had anything to do with his night of partying.

“As ugly as things got for a minute, that’s such a good group of guys,” he said. “We pulled it together. My relationships were already starting to be rebuilt. I guess they were never fully lost. I think it was more disappointment. Like a friend let you down, not like a friend really screwed you over. They would never kick me to the curb. The texts I received from the guys on the team, even some of the ones who were really mad, just show it. I don’t think I ruined my legacy with them. I understand why they were disappointed. I understand the distraction that I caused knowing what could have came out of that. No bad blood.”

The massive deal with the Indians is only one of many the Padres were able to pull off recently; leading up to the deadline this weekend, they also acquired catcher Austin Nola and right-handed relievers Austin Adams and Dan Altavilla from the Seattle Mariners as part of a seven-player deal, traded reliever Gerardo Reyes to the Los Angeles Angels in exchange for catcher Jason Castro and picked up reliever Trevor Rosenthal from the Kansas City Royals in exchange for outfield prospect Edward Olivares and a player to be named later.

Beyond those, these are all the major trades from today’s deadline:

Toronto Blue Jays acquire veteran leftie Robbie Ray (and cash considerations) from the Arizona Diamondbacks in exchange for Travis Bergen
The Oakland Athletics look to bolster their rotation by acquiring LHP Mike Minor from the Texas Rangers along with cash considerations in exchange for two players to be named later and international slot money
Miami Marlins acquire outfielder Starling Marte from the Diamondbacks in exchange for pitchers Caleb Smith, Humberto Mejia and Julio Frias
The Marlins also trade veteran infielder Jonathan Villar to the Blue Jays in exchange for Griffin Conine, the son of “Mr. Marlin” Jeff Conine
The Cubs add two lefties to their bullpen, acquiring Andrew Chafin from the Diamondbacks and Josh Osich from the Boston Red Sox, each for one player to be named later. They also pick up outfielder Cameron Maybin from the Detroit Tigers.
The Philadelphia Phillies acquire right-hander David Phelps from the Milwaukee Brewers in exchange for three prospects
The Red Sox send outfielder Kevin Pillar (and cash) to the Colorado Rockies in exchange for a player to be named later and international bonus pool money
The Cincinnati Reds acquire outfielder Brian Goodwin from the Los Angeles Angels and reliever Archie Bradley from the Diamondbacks
The New York Mets acquire catcher Robinson Chirinos and third baseman Todd Frazier from the Rangers in exchange for a player to be named later, as well as right-handed reliever Miguel Castro from the Baltimore Orioles