The Arizona Diamondbacks trade OF Mike Greenwell to the Washington Senators for INF Freddy Garcia.
The Diamondbacks took one look at the approaching trade deadline and decided the appropriate response was total veteran liquidation.
Channeling their inner Chicago Cubs, Arizona essentially walked into the deadline room, flipped the table over, and announced:
“Not today, Satan.”
The latest veteran casualty? Mike Greenwell — who, inconveniently for Arizona’s rebuild, has been very good this season.
Washington: Buying a Real Bat
The Senators needed offense against right-handed pitching, and they found exactly that in Greenwell.
He’s currently hitting .311 with an .862 OPS, and while his reputation has always been tied to his ability to handle right-handed pitching, he’s actually been perfectly competent against lefties as well.
In other words, he’s not just a platoon bat — he’s a professional hitter.
Greenwell’s positional flexibility isn’t great, but Washington doesn’t need it to be. They just need his bat somewhere in the lineup.
At the moment, he’s a clear upgrade over Brad Fulmer, and he also provides a nice layer of insurance in case Kent Hrbek suddenly remembers he’s in the late stages of his career.
Best-case scenario? Greenwell slides into the top of the order, hitting first or second for a lineup that already has enough thump to drive him home regularly.
Worst-case scenario? He’s still a very good bat in the middle of the lineup.
And yes, he’s a free agent at the end of the year.
Washington does not care.
If he helps deliver a championship, he’ll be remembered as a hero. If not, it’s still a perfectly reasonable rental for a team chasing a trophy.
Arizona: Another Lottery Ticket
Meanwhile, Arizona continues its deadline purge of veterans, collecting younger pieces and hoping one of them eventually turns into something interesting.
This time the return is Freddy Garcia.
Garcia has an intriguing offensive profile for an infielder:
- Legitimate power
- Average contact
- Not much else
At the moment, he profiles mostly as a third baseman, but things get a lot more interesting if Arizona can somehow develop enough defensive ability for him to handle second base or shortstop.
So far, he hasn’t done much at the major-league level. But Arizona has one thing rebuilding teams always have plenty of:
Time.
Maybe Garcia develops into a useful infielder with pop.
Maybe he doesn’t.
That’s the nature of lottery tickets.
And as we’ve seen in similar deals involving the Cubs lately, trading a 2.2 WAR player for a prospect like Garcia might not look like ideal value on paper — but it reflects the current reality of the trade market.
Sellers are taking upside. Buyers are paying for certainty.
Big Picture
Washington adds a proven bat for a playoff push.
Arizona continues stripping the roster down while collecting young pieces with potential.
One team is chasing October.
The other is happily burning the present down in order to build the future.
Both are executing their strategy perfectly.
Trade Grades
Washington Senators: A+
They add a legitimate middle-of-the-order bat without sacrificing anything critical.
Arizona Diamondbacks: A-
Another veteran moved, another upside swing added to the rebuild.