With the MLB trade deadline on the horizon, there is a chance for teams to land star players to bolster their rosters. Ahead of this year's deadline, there aren't likely to be any major trades. But around a decade ago, the Houston Astros nearly pulled such a blockbuster off.
During an interview with Chandler Rome and Tyler Stafford on the Crush City Territory podcast, former Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow revealed the story behind the team's pursuit of, at the time, Washington Nationals superstar Bryce Harper.
"Bryce Harper. That deal was done. Players agreed to." Luhnow said. "The only thing left was ownership approval. And the ownership said no, even though they had kind of pre-cleared the deal. That was huge, and would've changed a lot of stuff, for sure."
Not only were the Astros talking with the Nationals for Harper, but a deal was, essentially, completed. As Luhnow mentions, the ownership has the final say, and they backed out of the deal despite being interested in it before its final terms came to fruition.
It's a major miss, as Harper has been one of the best hitters in baseball throughout his entire career. Of course, the Astros might've only had Harper for half a season, since he was a rental and would hit the open market in the offseason.
But, with how great the Astros were in 2018, winning 101 games, they might've been able to get further than they did, losing to the Boston Red Sox in the ALCS. If they had landed Harper, he might've bolstered the 2018 squad to the World Series and to face the Los Angeles Dodgers for the second year in a row.
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While such a scenario didn't happen, it's still very interesting that the Astros were so close to having one of baseball's best players on their roster. Harper is putting together a Hall of Fame career, and he could've spent, even if briefly, time in Houston.
What makes this sting even more is that the players Houston was planning to send to Washington haven't amounted to much in their professional baseball careers. This potential blockbuster would've been a steal.
The five players Houston was going to send were Randy Ceser, Abraham Toro, Josh James, JB Bukauskas, and Kent Emanuel. Only Toro has carved out a solid MLB career, as the other four haven't had the career that would've made the Astros regret such a deal.
While missing out on Harper stings, the Astros were fortunate enough to win the World Series the previous year, and ironically, four years later, over Harper's new team, the Philadelphia Phillies.
Luhnow's story of this trade falling through is unfortunate. Having one of the game's best players on the roster, even if for only half a season, would've made for a fun time in Astros history.
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