As you know from reading up on the waiver process in August, when the Brewers and Cardinals claimed pitchers Jordan Lyles and Tyson Ross, respectively, on waivers, the Padres had a few choices: put together a trade with those teams, pull the pitchers back, or let them go for nothing.
Apparently, because the Padres are cheap as hell and the Brewers and Cardinals know it, those teams made no real offers in trade and the Padres opted to just let them go for nothing:
RHP Jordan Lyles has been acquired via trade waivers from the San Diego Padres. With his addition, the 40-man roster is currently at 39. pic.twitter.com/Hwow4braFv
— Milwaukee Brewers (@Brewers) August 5, 2018
The #STLCards announced today that they have claimed RHP Tyson Ross off waivers from San Diego. He will join the team in Miami.
The former National League All-Star was 6-9 with a 4.45 ERA (123.1 IP) and 107 strikeouts in 22 starts for San Diego this season. pic.twitter.com/nGo3LGKzmz
— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) August 5, 2018
Lyles, 27, is a moderately useful pitcher who has actually put up very good numbers this year in relief. He was making a whopping $750,000 this year, so the Padres save about $200,000 in this move. They also lose the $3.5 team option on Lyles for 2019, which the Brewers now get. Again: for nothing.
Ross, 31, has had a rough July, but he was surprisingly very good before that. He’s making just $1.75 million this year, so the Padres save about $500,000.
These aren’t impact pitchers, but each could help the Brewers and Cardinals be slightly more competitive in the final two months of the season. Heck, Lyles could actually be a decent bullpen arm for the Brewers, who are just a game behind the Cubs. Thanks, Padres.
The Cubs, if you were wondering, never had a chance at either of these guys (if they even wanted them), because they are lower in the waiver priority than the Brewers and Cardinals.