Deadline roundup: Norris, Kennedy dealt

The non-waiver Trade Deadline has come and gone, and while it was quieter than it has been in some years, a few significant deals did get done on Wednesday. Here's our final check on this year's Deadline dealing, with help from MLB.com's reporters.

Norris to O's: No player has looked surer to be dealt, for a longer time, than Astros right-hander Bud Norris. And yet with the minutes ticking away, Norris was still Houston property late on Wednesday afternoon.

Finally, shortly before the Deadline, the Astros and Orioles completed a trade. Baltimore received Norris and an international bonus slot in exchange for outfielder L.J. Hoes, lefty pitching prospect Josh Hader and a Competitive Balance Draft pick in 2014.

The move completes a busy stretch for the O's, who also added Scott Feldman and Francisco Rodriguez to their pitching staff. Baltimore didn't get the frontline starter it craved, but adding that kind of depth is a nice consolation prize.

Additionally, Norris cannot be a free agent until after the 2015 season, so the Orioles got a piece to plug into their rotation for the next two-plus seasons.

Padres get their man: The standings suggest that the Padres shouldn't be buyers, but San Diego's move on Wednesday was not a typical buy. More accurately, the Padres bought rather than renting, and that makes all the difference.

The D-backs dangled veteran starter Ian Kennedy, and their division rivals were all too happy to bite, as San Diego brought in the right-hander for lefty reliever Joe Thatcher, relief prospect Matt Stites and a Competitive Balance Draft selection. Arizona feels it is dealing from a position of strength, with surplus starting depth thanks to the imminent returns of Brandon McCarthy and Trevor Cahill from injury.

San Diego, meanwhile, has designs on contending next season, but it needed a starting pitching boost to make that happen. Enter Kennedy, who two years ago finished fourth in the National League Cy Young Award balloting.

Kennedy should benefit from moving from a hitters' park to a pitcher-friendly ballpark. Also, as with Norris, Kennedy is under team control for the next two seasons, satisfying San Diego's primary requirement in any acquisition this month.

Royals make a small add: Kansas City, which is on the fringes of contention, made an appropriate move for its situation on Wednesday. The Royals didn't blow up the farm for a big add, but they did bring in a nice tactical piece from the Astros in Justin Maxwell.

Maxwell, a right-handed-hitting outfielder, comes to Kansas City, in exchange for Minor League righty Kyle Smith. Maxwell has always hit left-handers well, and he should form a nice outfield platoon with David Lough.

Smith, a former fourth-round pick, is having a strong year with Class A Advanced Wilmington of the Carolina League. He adds depth to the ever-improving Astros farm system.

Not a lot of selling: While plenty of players drew interest in the final hours and days before the Deadline, quite a few veterans somewhat surprisingly stayed put. Numerous potential sellers instead held on to their players, either to play out the year or in some cases potentially deal them in August waiver trades.

Included on that list are the Angels, with Howie Kendrick and Erick Aybar, the Mariners with Michael Morse, Oliver Perez, and Tom Wilhelmsen, the Cubs with David DeJesus and Nate Schierholtz, and of course the Phillies.

Few teams were more in the headlines than Philadelphia, but general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. decided to hold. He didn't move Michael Young or Cliff Lee, both of whom featured in lots of rumors and reports over the past few days.

Under the wire: One small deal did sneak in under the wire. It was after 4 p.m. ET when the Dodgers announced that they had acquired catcher Drew Butera from the Twins for a player to be named later or cash.