3 trade deadline disasters that prove the Reds were right to stand pat

2. Reds avoided disaster by not making a trade deadline deal for Jack Flaherty.

Jack Flaherty, just like Rich Hill, was on a division rival prior to the trade deadline. A long time member of the St. Louis Cardinals, Flaherty was dealt to the Baltimore Orioles early last month and things looked really good during his first start.

The 27-year-old struck out eight batters in six innings during his Baltimore debut and allowed just one run on four hits. Did the Reds make a mistake not upping the ante in order to land the one-time Cardinals' ace?

No, not really. While Flaherty pitched well during his first game with the O's, it's been tough sledding of late. In the four games since his August 3rd start against the Toronto Blue Jays, Flaherty has gone more than five innings just once and owns an 8.35 ERA and 6.15 FIP in 18.1 innings pitched.

Flaherty has allowed the opposition to absolutely cut loose over his last four appearances. Opposing batters are hammering Flaherty to the tune of a .296 batting average against and an OPS-against of .939. Flaherty has also watched five balls leave the yard, allowing 17 runs in just over 18 innings.

So what did Baltimore give up in order to snag Flaherty for the final two months of the season? Infield prospect Cesar Prieto, and pitchers Drew Rom and Zack Showalter were dealt to St. Louis. Prieto and Showalter are both now ranked among the Top 20 prospects in the Cardinals farm system according to MLB Pipeline.