Houston Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow had to get extremely creatively to close the deal for ace pitcher Justin Verlander.
Luhnow was displaced by Hurricane Harvey at the time of the August 31 non-waiver trade deadline, and was forced to stay at his in-laws’ house in Los Angeles. That meant he had to negotiate the complex Verlander trade from there.
Ben Reiter of Sports Illustrated relayed the story of how Luhnow dealt with Detroit Tigers general manager Al Avila from the dining room table at his in-laws — it had the best cell service. As an added complication, on the night of the 31st, with just hours to go to the deadline, the in-laws held a dinner party — one that Luhnow had no choice but to crash.
After his shower, Luhnow went back downstairs to reclaim his cell-friendly spot at the dining table, which was now set for the dinner party, to ensure that everything from the Astros’ side—forms, medical approvals—was in place. Avila called 25 minutes before the deadline. “Justin has not approved the deal,” he said. “It’s not clear which direction that’s going to go.”
The dinner guests were filling their plates with food from the kitchen buffet and settling in around Luhnow. “We’ve got four minutes left!” he shouted into his phone to his staff, drawing quizzical glances from the diners. “We’ve got to do this now!”
Luhnow eventually learned that the deal had received final approval at 11:59:58 PM ET, with one second to spare.
Verlander reportedly blocked the trade at first, so it’s quite clear why it went down to the wire. Those who attended the family dinner party will certainly have a story to tell as well.
