Astros: Josh Reddick is the latest to speak out about trade deadline
Josh Reddick offers a few thoughts on the Astros trade deadline lack of moves.
The Astros players are mad as heck, and they are not going to take it anymore. Not sure if that is the case, but a couple of Astros players have been vocal about the trade deadline. While the team was rumored to be active, there were not any impact trades made.
As the trade deadline approached, some experts from around the country wondered how the team would react. Would not adding an impact player at the deadline affect the team morale of the team?
The team is 2-7 in August but was this team already in a mini slump in the last eight games of July. They went 4-4 during that stretch leading up to the deadline. After the deadline had passed, the Astros went on to demolish the Rays 14-7 on the last day of July. There were some issues in that game as the bullpen gave up five runs in three innings. The team hit well, so people assumed that the team was okay not making a deal.
Disappointed players?
First, it was Dallas Keuchel who said, “disappointment is an understatement.” Jeff Luhnow said he was also disappointed on after the deadline passed. They had a few deals they said were close but only came away with Francisco Liriano. No matter what happened, nothing got done. As a fan, I was disappointed as well, but Luhnow doesn’t have only 2017 to think about.
Luhnow has a plan of continued winning like the Braves did for 13 seasons of making the playoffs. In the Astros front office eyes, this is not the last time the team will make the playoffs. They did not make an impact trade during last year’s trade deadline either. It’s worse this year because the slump happened to start right after the deadline.
I say all this to present the case that Keuchel is not alone. While others may feel let down by the front office, not too many people will come out and be vocal about it. Josh Reddick, the first year Astro, did that exactly on MLB Radio yesterday.
“deep down we were all kind of down in the dumps when we didn’t make a move”- Reddick on @MLBNetworkRadio
One move to make them a better team.
My biggest take away from what Reddick had to say was that they have a good team, but the players were hoping for a move to make them great. If you have a chance to make your team better, you do it.
While Reddick’s comments weren’t entirely negative, they do show that the players did care. At the end of his quote, he said that they couldn’t dwell on the fact that they didn’t add that impact player. They have faith in the team they have, and they need to break out of this slump now.
Fans are frustrated right now, we all get where you are coming from. The Astros were so good for a long time this year, has the train fallen off the tracks. Teams go through slumps, the 2015 Astros went through a 22-28 stretch at one point, before bouncing back and making the playoffs. The front office didn’t make the move we all wanted.
Next: The Astros have looked better in 2017
To use a quote from several years ago by Astroscounty, “One day the Astros will win again and we will laugh and laugh.” Hopefully, this slump will pass Astros fans; this team is still really well built. This discontent shall pass, and hopefully, the players will play ball. Let’s go Stros.
***Stats from Baseball-Reference***