MLB Trade Deadline: Top 25 midseason deals of all-time

1. Indians acquire Andrew Miller, July 31, 2016

One of two major deals involving dominant relief pitchers at the 2016 trade deadline, the Cleveland Indians sent four players – J.P. Feyereisen, Justus Sheffield, Ben Heller and Clint Frazier – to the Yankees for Andrew Miller.

Miller was outstanding for the Yankees, posting a 1.77 ERA and 2.00 FIP across two seasons. He saved 45 games in 104 appearances in pinstripes, and even finished in the top 10 of the 2015 AL Cy Young vote. But with New York out of the playoff race, Miller was expendable. The trade has worked out for both sides, and the 31-year-old played a big role in the Tribe winning the American League pennant.

In 26 appearances with Cleveland in the regular season, Miller posted a 1.55 EA and 1.53 FIP with 46 strikeouts in 29 innings. In the postseason, Miller made 10 appeaances, and allowed three earned runs with 30 strikeouts in 19.1 innings.

The deadline deal between New York and Cleveland marked the fourth time Miller had been traded in his 12-year career, and the Indians became the sixth MLB club he pitched for. A former top prospect, Miller spent the majority of his first six seasons in the major leagues as a starter. From 2006-11, he posted a 5.96 ERA and 4.77 FIP in 96 appearances, including 66 starts for the Tigers, Marlins and Red Sox.

But the Red Sox finally pulled the plug on the 6-foot-7 lefty as a starter, and moved Miller to the bullpen, where he has thrived. Since 2012, Miller has a 2.05 ERA and 2.10 FIP in 337 appearances, all out of the bullpen.