MLB Notebook: Yankees, Dodgers play it too safe at the trade deadline

It will take some time, to be sure, to determine why it was that this July 31 trade deadline was such an anticlimactic dud.

Sure, Zack Greinke is a huge name and Nicholas Castellanos was a reasonably big one on the position player side.

But despite the conventional wisdom that big-name pitchers would get moved -- Madison Bumgarner, Noah Syndergaard,  Zack Wheeler -- they all ended up staying put.

Instead, what we got was a flurry of deals headed by set-up relievers and lefty specialists -- usually the sort of transactions that take place in August as part of wavier deals.

In the end, the traded deadline closely resembled the free agent market the last two off-seasons: lots of talk, very little action, and the biggest move (Greinke) happening at the very last minute.

Baseball used to benefit from the interest generated by the deadline speculation. Fans of contenders could dream of obtaining the missing piece to their team's puzzle while fans of teams long since eliminated could get excited about the prospects that might be available to help start a rebuild.

The elimination of the August waiver trading period this year was supposed to deliver some urgency to teams: trade now or forever hold your peace.

Instead, teams proceeded with the utmost of caution, with championship-caliber teams zealously protecting their prospects like they were their first-born. The New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers -- more than any others -- typified this steadfast refusal to make serious upgrades.

The Yankees haven't won a World Series since 2009, and that remains their only championship this millennium. In a city driven by titles and with a franchise which proudly markets its history like few others, you would think this would result in an aggressive approach at the deadline, especially with a need -- starting pitching -- so blatantly obvious.

Instead, the Yankees failed to upgrade their rotation, a condition that may well see them upended this October before reaching the World Series -- especially since Houston landed Greinke. (To be clear, the Yankees weren't in on Greinke because the pitcher had the New York as part of his no-trade list and because the Yankees reportedly were reluctant to deal for him given his social anxiety issues).

But there were other quality starters available, and GM Brian Cashman, as shrewd an executive as there is in the game, determined none was worth the asking price. Cashman decided it was better to take a shot at a championship with what they have then surrender a piece or two that could help the Yanks sustain their success in a few years.

The Dodgers behaved similarly. They've gone far longer than the Yankees without a World Series championship, with their last coming in 1988. They've won six straight division titles and two National League pennants in a row, which would, in theory, motivate them to make the move to put them over the top.

heir need wasn't the rotation so much as it was the bullpen, with real questions about Kenley Jansen's effectiveness and durability. But the Dodgers dug their heels in and wouldn't part with the likes of Gavin Lux or Dustin May.

So the Dodgers passed on chances to land Edwin Diaz or Felipe Vazquez or Kirby Yates.

Maybe the Dodgers, clearly the best team in the National League, will win it all without making any significant deals.

But it sure does seem that a lot of executives -- even those with big-market pedigrees and deep, deep pockets like the Dodgers and Yankees -- have begun to prioritize prospects over parades.

In that thinking, it's better to sustain a team's competitive window for a few years with cost-controlled players than it is to go for it and wind up with a trophy to show for your aggressiveness.

Too many executives are obsessed with stockpiling young players for the future -- at the expense of trying to win championships in the here-and-now.

Some of this is undoubtedly driven by analytics. For one thing, with everyone having access to (virtually) the same data, there's a sameness to the evaluation process and deviating from that group-think is risky.

For another, it's become an article of faith that the postseason is driven by randomness, and so, going all-in to get that piece for your roster doesn't guarantee anything. Sure, it may increase the likelihood of winning everything, but it for those in search of certainty, that's not enough.

Better to sit back, hope that the randomness of results tilts in your favor. And if not? Well, you held onto those blue-chippers, who will replace your aging, expensive veterans and do at a very low cost -- at least for the first few years.

Winning is hard. Only one team goes home happy at the end of every season.

But precisely because it's hard, that should up the ante for teams who get close and haven't won in a while. No one is advocating a reckless, devil-may-care approach to roster-building. That irresponsible and bound to doom your franchise to years of failure.

However, a look back at recent champions reveals some gambles that paid off with the ultimate prize. The Chicago Cubs sacrifice Gleyber Torres for Aroldis Chapman at the 2016 deadline. Think there are three people in Chicago who would undo that trade today?

The same goes for the Houston Astros in 2017, who bundled Daz Cameron, Jake Rogers and Franklin Perez to the Detroit Tigers for Justin Verlander, without whom the Astros wouldn't have won their first World Series 55 years into their existence.

Even if Cameron and Rogers and Perez all turn into perennial All-Stars -- a longshot, mathematically speaking -- no one in Houston will utter a single complaint.

Sometimes, it's just time. Sometimes, it's more important to celebrate a title rather than bask in the afterglow of a plaque from Baseball America for having the game's best farm system.

Both Cashman and Dodgers boss Andrew Friedman are accomplished executives who've overseen successful organizations and produced perennial playoff contenders. That's a testament to their creativity and decision-making, and they're to be commended.

But at some point, when you're as close as the Yankees and Dodgers are, isn't winning it all worth more?

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Meanwhile, making sense of the baseball landscape, post-deadline, here's a look at the winners:

HOUSTON: To the question: what do you get the team that had everything, Astros GM answered: Zack Greinke.

Just as the Astros did in 2017, right before the waiver-deadline on Aug. 31, when they nabbed Justin Verlander with literally seconds to spare, the Astros landed Greinke from Arizona on another buzzer-beater.

He joins Verlander and Gerrit Cole to give the Astros what is unquestionably the best Big Three in the game. Just trying beating them in a five- or seven-game series.

And if that wasn't enough, the Astros also re-acquired catcher Martin Maldonado and pitchers Aaron Sanchez and Joe Biagini to further fortify the pitching staff.

CLEVELAND: It cost them Trevor Bauer, but the Indians got themselves two big power bats -- Yasiel Puig and Franmil Reyes -- to go along with some prospects, including former Red Sox lefty Logan Allen whom the Sox dealt to San Diego four years ago in the Craig Kimbrel deal.

Cleveland's lineup needed a boost, and the deal provides it. As long as starters Corey Kluber, Danny Salazar and Carlos Carrasco are healthy soon to go with Shane Bieber and Mike Clevinger, the Indians should have sufficient pitching depth.

TAMPA BAY: The Rays, true to their nature, didn't do anything dramatic, but instead, made a series of smaller moves that will enhance depth.

First baseman Jesus Aguilar was having a down year in Milwaukee, but maybe a change of scenery will help. Reliever Nick Anderson was a perfect under-the-radar acquisition for the bullpen, with plenty of control remaining, too. And Eric Sogard is a valuable middle-of-the-infield piece capable of helping out at second or short.

OAKLAND: As usual, the A's made some stealthy moves, improving their depth without resulting in an inflated payroll. They got Tanner Roark and Homer Bailey as back-end starters, moves not dissimilar to last deadline when Billy Beane and Co. imported Mike Fiers and Edwin Jackson.

TOP THREE/THE LIST

As we now, the August waiver trade period is no more. When the Red Sox front office put their phones down at 4 p.m. last Wednesday, they did so knowing that, unlike past seasons, there would no opportunities to add to the roster in August.

With that in mind, for old time's sake, here are the three biggest August acquisitions from the past.

1) Dave Henderson: In August of 1986, the Red Sox needed shoring up at shortstop and some outfield depth, so Lou Gorman shipped out promising young shortstop Rey Quinones (and later, Mike Brown, Mike Trujillo and John Christensen) to Seattle and got Spike Owen and Henderson. Henderson then supplied one of the biggest homers in franchise history in Game 5 of the ALCS that October.

2) Mike Myers - Myers came to the Sox in August as a lefty specialist, and filled that role with some big outs down the stretch and made the deal totally worthwhile when he matched up with Hideki Matsui in the ALCS.

3) Tony Armas Jr. - Armas arrived as part of a deal that sent, among others, Mike Stanley to the New York Yankees in 1997. Armas never threw a pitch in the big leagues, but a little more than a year later, Armas was packaged with Carl Pavano to the Montreal Expos in exchange for Pedro Martinez. Perhaps you've heard of him?