Let’s do some time traveling, back to late July 2007.
Because it was vital in forming my thoughts about relief pitching at the trade deadline.
Going into the day of that year’s deadline, the Red Sox had the majors’ best record at 64-41. The Yankees not only trailed Boston by eight games in the AL East, they were third in the race for what back then was just one wild card, four games off the pace.
It was understood entering July 31 that the Rangers would be trading their closer, Eric Gagne, and either the Red Sox or Yankees would be landing him. The 2003 NL Cy Young winner with the Dodgers had missed most of the 2005 and 2006 seasons after needing elbow surgery. He was not pitching to the form he once had with Los Angeles when he converted an MLB-record 84 straight save chances. But he seemed to still be a very high-level reliever.
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