Every GM would love to be able to trade guys at exactly the right time. It doesn't usually work out that way. It's like trying to time the stock market.
One problem with these situations is that part of the code is that you have to lie your ass off. Barnes can't come out and say he was trying to drill Machado in the chest but the pitch got away.
The numbers are cruel though. With the Red Sox he has a cumulative fWAR of -2.2 and a bWAR of -1.7. 95 million for a guy who has been worse than a replacement player.
It's not the team's toughness I'm concerned about right now, it's the hitting, especially the pop. Our offense has been absolutely anemic. 1 guy with more than 1 home run - and that's Pablo of all people.
Having a pitch that's adversely affected by moisture in the air is not a good thing when your team plays about 100 of its games in Boston, Baltimore and New York.