How former Colorado Rockies are doing on new teams post MLB Trade Deadline

It has officially been a month since the Rockies did what some might consider the unthinkable for the Colorado Rockies, and that was be sellers at the MLB trade deadline.

The Rockies moved on from veteran players on the roster such as Mike Moustask, Randal Grichuk, C.J. Cron, Pierce Johnson, and Brad Hand and in exchange, they were able to build to their young farm system which currently ranks at number 18 in all of baseball per MLB.com

Following these transactions, I figured it was time to check in on our former friends and see what they have been up to. For some of these veterans, they discovered a change of scenery is always great. For others, not so much.

1. Mike Moustakas

Just moments after suffering a brutal 25-1 loss to the Los Angeles Angels in late June, it was announced that the Rockies made a move that resulted in Moustakas being moved over to the clubhouse just next door in Coors Field.

Moustakas was traded from the Rockies to the Angels for RHP Connor Van Scoyoc.

Since his departure, Moustakas has now found himself in an everyday role for the Angels as the team's third baseman due to another Anthony Rendon injury.

It has been reported that Moustakas has quickly found himself loving being apart of the Angels and has even found himself as a leader in the clubhouse.

Despite a disappointing slash line of .241/.265/.412 as an Angel, Moustakas has been one of the more productive hitters in Los Angeles. He currently has eight home runs, eight doubles, 27 RBI's and 45 hits.

2. Pierce Johnson

Pierce Johnson was traded by the Rockies to the Atlanta Braves just about a week before the deadline and since then, life has been great for the former Colorado closer.

Johnson has pitched in 14.1 innings for Atlanta and has started to regain his confidence and find his stride once again. Johnson has a 1-1 record, an ERA of 0.63, 20 strikeouts, and four holds.

While pitching with the Rockies, it was obvious Johnson was constantly issuing walks to opposing batters. After making what I assume is a few mechanical adjustments, those issues have gone away and he only issued three walks to hitters since joining Atlanta.

Johnson was traded by the Braves to the Rockies for RHP Victor Vodnik who has pitched in six games with the AAA Alburquerque Isotopes and has an ERA of 4.50.

3. C.J. Cron & Randal Grichuk

On July 30. the Rockies made their second deal of the year with the Angels. Colorado sent outfielder Randal Grichuck and first baseman C.J. Cron back to the team that originally drafted both of them in 2009 (Grichuk) and 2011 (Cron).

In exchange, Colorado received pitchers Jake Madden and Mason Albright for the two hitters. Madden was ranked as the number eight prospect in the Angels farm system. He currently is ranked as the 23rd prospect, right behind Albright who is ranked at 22.

Since being traded to the Angels, life has not been so kind to Cron. The veteran first baseman has struggled in his second stint with the Angels. Cron's slash line has severly diminished since the trade. Currently, he is slashing .217/.280/.283 with the Angels and has only hit one home run, and has provided five RBI's.

It appears that Cron's back spasms have also followed him to Anaheim as he has only played in 14 games with the Halos.

For Grichuk, his time with the Angels has arguably been even worse then his teammate.

Grichuk has played in a majority of games with the Angels and has found himself in an everday role as a starting left fielder. However, he has performed underwhelming to say the least. After slashing .308/.365/.496 with the Rockies, he's now slashing .168/.220/.347 with the Angels and has four home runs, eight RBI's, four doubles and one triple.

To make matters even worse, Grichuk was part of another blockbuster move by the Angels earlier this week. Except in a mor negative spotlight... The team announced they were waiving Grichuk and four other starting veteran players as they have fallen out of playoff contention and are now focused on attempting to resign MVP candidate Shohei Ohtani. Grichuk would end up becoming the only veteran part of this group to go unclaimed and remains a part of the Angels roster.

To say the Rockies have won this trade is an understatement. Since being traded, Cron and Grichuk have underperformed and it has led to the Angels falling completely out of playoff contention in 2023. General Manager Bill Schmidt deserves a lot of credit for this move as the Rockies are thin on pitching and they were able to snag two young promising prospects from the Angels organization for two veterans who have completely fallen off since being traded.