MIAMI _ The Miami Marlins waited until the final minutes, but closed out the MLB trade deadline with a bang Wednesday, dealing Trevor Richards and Nick Anderson to the Tampa Bay Rays for highly touted outfield prospect Jesus Sanchez and reliever Ryne Stanek.
Seeking bullpen depth for a playoff push, the Rays (61-48) landed two strong right-handers in the in-state swap. In trading Richards and Anderson, Miami continued adding hitting depth to the upper levels of its organization. The 42nd overall minor league prospect, Sanchez brings a strong, left-handed hitting profile to the Marlins.
The 21-year-old outfielder began the season in Double-A, slashing .275/.332/.404 (116 wRC+) with 11 doubles and eight home runs in 316 plate appearances. Sanchez was promoted to Triple-A three weeks ago, playing in 18 games for Durham. During that stretch, he hit .206/.282/.317 (52 wRC+) with one home run and two doubles.
The deal capped off a hectic final stretch to the MLB trade deadline. Less than two hours earlier, the Marlins traded Zac Gallen to the Arizona Diamondbacks for shortstop prospect Jazz Chisolm. In acquiring Sanchez and Chisolm, Miami added two more left-handed hitters to the organization.
Miami also landed left-handed hitting first baseman Lewin Diaz from the Minnesota Twins in the Sergio Romo trade. In addition, Miami's first two draft picks in June _ JJ Bleday and Kameron Misner _ are both lefties.
"Left-handed bats are at a premium," Marlins president of baseball operations Michael Hill said. "Organizationally, we felt we were very right-handed. When you look at our prospects, aside from Isan Diaz, (we have) Lewis Brinson, Monte Harrison _ those guys are all right-handed at the upper levels.
"We wanted to create a little balance to our future lineup _ our championship lineup _ and add as much impact to the organization as we could."
Stanek provides the Marlins with a hard-throwing, versatile bullpen arm. The 28-year-old commands a fastball that averages 97.5 mph, 11th-best among players who have thrown at least 250 pitches. Stanek has made 41 appearances this season, including 27 as an opener. This season, he's posted a 3.40 ERA and 1.15 WHIP.
The right-hander is currently on the injured list with right hip soreness, but will begin a rehab assignment shortly with High-A Jupiter. Hill said he'll make a couple of appearances before joining the Marlins.
Richards heads to Tampa Bay after two seasons with Miami. The former independent league pitcher started 45 games for the Marlins over the past two seasons. This year, the 26-year-old right-hander posted a 4.50 ERA in 23 appearances (20 starts). He was moved to the bullpen on Friday amid a tough seven-game stretch in which he recorded a 7.36 ERA.
Acquired from the Minnesota Twins this offseason for Brian Schales, Anderson has been one of the bright spots in the Marlins bullpen. A late bloomer, the 29-year-old rookie was a strikeout machine, notching the sixth-best K rate among NL relievers with at least 30 innings.
