Red Sox get Peavy from Chisox
Published 2:53 am Wednesday, July 31, 2013
BOSTON (AP) — The Boston Red Sox acquired Jake Peavy from the Chicago White Sox in a three-team deal on Tuesday night that also sent shortstop Jose Iglesias to the Detroit Tigers.
The slick-fielding Iglesias provides a nice insurance policy for AL Central-leading Detroit in case Jhonny Peralta is suspended as part of baseball’s Biogenesis drug investigation.
Peavy is 8-4 with a 4.28 ERA in 13 starts this season. The 2007 NL Cy Young Award winner was considered the best starting pitcher on the market ahead of Wednesday’s non-waiver deadline.
With Clay Buchholz on the disabled list with a shoulder problem, the move gives Boston another proven starter for the stretch run in the tough AL East.
The Red Sox also got reliever Brayan Villarreal from the Tigers. They shipped Iglesias to Detroit and three minor leaguers to the White Sox as part of the deal.
Chicago also got prized prospect Avisail Garcia as part of the trade. Garcia, who turned 22 in June, hit .374 with five homers and 23 RBIs in 33 games for Triple-A Toledo, Detroit’s top minor league affiliate.
The outfielder, who was the Tigers’ minor league player of the year last season, was assigned to Triple-A Charlotte.
Peralta is among a group of players who have been linked in media reports to Biogenesis, a closed Florida anti-aging clinic that was accused by Miami New Times in January of distributing banned performing-enhancing drugs, sparking an investigation by Major League Baseball. The league could hand down multiple suspensions as part of the case in a matter of days.
The 23-year-old Iglesias hit .330 with a home run and 19 RBIs in 63 games with the Red Sox, who trail division-leading Tampa Bay by a half-game. He was the AL rookie of the month for June, when he batted .395 with six RBIs.
“We are excited to be adding a quality player to our middle infield,” Tigers general manager David Dombrowski said in a release. “He is a young player that will provide a lot of depth and has had success playing a variety of roles in the infield.”