Missing: 2015’s star power. What’s it going to take to spice up this trade deadline?

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The trade deadline wasn’t always a thing. There had been deals here and there, although for a long period of time the trade deadline was set at June 15. The sport didn’t want the integrity of pennant races affected by rich teams buying veteran players from cellar dwellers to help out down the stretch.

The July 31 non-waiver date wasn’t established until 1986. One of the first big trades that people remember was the Detroit Tigers trading a Double-A pitcher named John Smoltz in 1987 to the Atlanta Braves for Doyle Alexander, who went 9-0 with a 1.53 ERA and helped the Tigers win the American League East. But that trade actually happened in August.

If there were two trades that changed the way front offices operate, it was the New York Mets trading David Cone to the Toronto Blue Jays in 1992 for Jeff Kent and Ryan Thompson. Cone was an impending free agent and helped the Blue Jays win the World Series. Except that trade happened in August as well, meaning Cone cleared waivers. Three years later, after he had signed with the Royals and later was traded back to the Blue Jays, Cone — once again heading to free agency — was traded on July 28 to the Yankees, helping them reach the postseason.

Jonathan Lucroy and Ryan Braun are two players who could be alter the playoff race if the Brewers decide to trade them. Jason Miller/Getty Images

Those two trades set in motion the idea of the hired gun, and it soon became expected that a team fighting for the playoffs would bolster its roster at the July 31 trade deadline. Not all trade deadlines are created equal, however, and last year’s was unprecedented not just in the star-level talent that changed hands, but the impact they ultimately had on pennant races in the postseason. …

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