The trade deadline is an end point, not a starting line. The trade market always picks up steam in the days and weeks leading up to the deadline — typically culminating in a flurry of deals on deadline day — but teams are allowed to make in-season trades well before the deadline.
Most early season deals are pretty small and involve spare parts, but there were some notable early deals this season. These five stand out.
April 7: Quinn Priester to the Brewers
At the time of the trade, Priester was pitching for the Red Sox Triple-A affiliate, but he had almost 100 innings of Major League experience and jumped straight into the Brewers rotation, where he’s been excellent. The last 10 times Priester has pitched, the Brewers have won.
April 26: Kody Clemens to the Twins
Clemens had been DFA by the Phillies and was purchased by the Twins. He’s since become an important role player at first and second base, putting up the best numbers of his career and proving especially valuable against right handers.
May 29: Alexis Díaz to the Dodgers
This trade might not have much of an impact, but Diaz was an All-Star only two years ago (he’d been so bad this season that the Reds had him in Triple A before the trade). A recent All-Star being traded in late May is always notable, and the trade could be significant if the Dodgers end up needing Diaz to pitch meaningful innings in the second half.
June 13: Andrew Vaughn for Aaron Civale
The Brewers had just called up Jacob Misiorowski to take Civale’s place in the rotation. Civale asked for a trade and got one almost immediately, going to the White Sox for underperforming Vaughn. It wasn’t a big deal until earlier this month when Vaughn was called up by the Brewers and became instantly productive, playing an important role in their climb to contention.
June 15: Rafael Devers to the Giants
This might stand as the biggest trade of the year. Devers was upset at the Red Sox for moving him off third base, and the relationship grew so sour that the Sox traded him for a couple of pitchers and a couple of prospects. The Giants playoff odds have actually gone down since the trade — Devers hasn’t hit nearly as much in San Francisco — while the Red Sox’s playoff odds are just slightly higher than at the time of the deal.