I’m not going to mention the reprehensible piece of garbage who won the 2020 National League Cy Young Award during the peak of the sticky-stuff era by name, but I’m going to reference the concept that brought him to the Cincinnati Reds during the summer of 2019.
On July 31st of that year as the trade deadline loomed, the Reds found themselves punching around at 50-56, within earshot of the the division lead just 6.5 games out. They weren’t really going to go for it that year, but they wanted to a) get a little bit better without destroying their farm system, if possible, and b) make any kind of strategic addition for the 2020 season if they thought the price out there was correct.