The St. Louis Cardinals acquired a pitcher, but it wasn’t Jon Lester. It wasn’t David Price. It was Justin Masterson, now formerly of the Cleveland Indians. In exchange for Masterson, the Tribe will receive James Ramsey, an outfield prospect, who was playing at Double-A Springfield.
This deal has been reported by a number of outlets, but here’s who is credited with the scoop…
The Indians are trading Justin Masterson to the Cardinals
— Peter Gammons (@pgammo) July 30, 2014
This season, Masterson is 4-6 with a 5.51 ERA and 1.653 WHIP. In his last outing, he was shelled by the New York Yankees for five runs in only two innings. After that outing, Masterson was placed on the disabled list to a cranky knee. He is due to return this week.
While his 2014 numbers are rather unsightly, Masterson had performed at a fairly good clip over the three previous seasons. During that time (2011-2013), he amassed a 37-35 record with a 3.86 ERA and 1.313 WHIP. In two of those three years, he sported a record over .500. He also hurled more than 200 innings in two of those years.
Masterson is due to be a free agent after this season.
With Ramsey, the Indians get a player that currently boasts a slashline of .300/.389/.527 with 13 home runs and 36 RBI. For his short minor league career, Ramsey’s career numbers are .266/.368/.434 with 30 HR and 101 RBI. St. Louis selected Ramsey with the 23rd overall pick in the 2012 draft.
With this deal, the chances of the Cardinals acquiring Lester or Price now seem remote.