Red Sox Trade Rumors: Tim Hudson and 15 Interesting Potential Targets

Two weeks ago, Brian McPherson of the Providence Journal wrote an article on why the Red Sox only need to make it until July, explaining that acquiring a "rent-a-player," or a player with an expiring contract, would be a viable option.

ESPN confirms that the Red Sox have offered contracts to both Edwin Jackson and Roy Oswalt, but neither has accepted the offer, which leaves the current staff of Jon Lester, Josh Beckett, Clay Buchholz, Daniel Bard and possibly Alfredo Aceves looking more and more intact as the days before spring training dwindle down.

There is definitely a necessity for another starting pitcher on the roster. Boston has signed Carlos Silva, Aaron Cook and Vicente Padilla, but are they really going to help throughout the entire season? Daisuke Matsuzaka will be back midseason pending a successful recovery from Tommy John Surgery, but there also isn't a guarantee that he will be effective.

McPherson explores 15 players who Boston should be interested in trading for at the July trade deadline.

Scott Baker, Minnesota Twins

Scott Baker, despite posting a career low in ERA in 2011, doesn't seem like a player who the Minnesota Twins will exercise a $9.5 million option on for the 2013 season.

Baker earned $5 million last season and is expected to make $6.5 million this upcoming season. He experienced elbow trouble towards the end of the 2011 season, cutting his season short just after 21 starts. 

He's only won 10 games or more in three of his seven years with the Twins and just barely hit the 200-inning plateau once. 

Joe Blanton, Philadelphia Phillies

An elbow injury limited Joe Blanton's 2011 season, having only thrown in just over 40 innings. He's expected to make $8.5 million in 2012, which could make him an interesting trade candidate.

Blanton has won 12 games or more in four of his eight seasons split between the Oakland Athletics and the Philadelphia Phillies. He has had trouble keeping runs of the scoreboard, however, having just two seasons of ERAs under 4.00. 

One concern for Boston is that Blanton has been terrible in his career against the New York Yankees, losing three games in four starts and posting an ERA of over 8.00 in just 22 innings. 

Matt Cain, San Francisco Giants

Matt Cain is a very good extension candidate for the San Francisco Giants, but another unimpressive season could lead to a midseason deal for the expensive pitcher. In 2012, the last year on his contract, Cain is expected to make $15 million.

Despite only averaging 13 wins over the last three seasons, Cain has logged over 200 innings in each of them and had ERAs of 2.89, 3.14 and 2.88.

Boston would be acquiring an All-Star caliber pitcher, but would need to give up a pretty penny in order to do so.

Jorge De La Rosa, Colorado Rockies

If the Colorado Rockies allow Jorge De La Rosa to even think about letting him exercise a $11 million player option for 2013, then they have a serious problem. The lefty underwent Tommy John surgery in June of 2011 and missed significant time in 2010 as well.

His best season by far was 2009, when he won 16 games and averaged 9.4 strikeouts per nine innings, but his inability to stay healthy is a big concern for Colorado.

The Rockies should be interested in possibly moving De La Rosa, and Boston could be an interesting fit if the trade was worked out properly. 

Gavin Floyd, Chicago White Sox

The Chicago White Sox would be interested in hearing possible deals involving Gavin Floyd, and Boston is has expressed interest in Floyd, according to MLB Trade Rumors. Chicago holds a $9.5 million option on the righty for 2013.

After a superb 2008, Floyd has only averaged 11 wins and 191.1 innings in his three seasons since. Still under 30 years old, Floyd could turn out to be a valuable middle-of-the-rotation pitcher. He's managed to keep his strikeouts steady while slowly decreasing his walks at the same time. 

Floyd could be tough to acquire, as the White Sox are doing their best to lock up their starting pitchers, already extending John Danks' contract earlier this offseason. 

Zack Greinke, Milwaukee Brewers

Zack Greinke is expected to be one of the top free agents to hit the market after the 2012 season, and Milwaukee either extend his contract or ship him off if they can't work out a deal. The catch is that he holds a limited no-trade clause, but you don't see many players declining trades to teams like Boston.

It took quite the package for the Milwaukee Brewers to acquire Greinke after the 2010 season from the Kansas City Royals. Boston may not have enough to make the Brewers budge on the former Cy Young winner, but it is worth a shot. 

In his first season in the NL, Greinke won 16 games, tying a career high, and showed us a preview of what he is capable of doing with a playoff-caliber team.

Cole Hamels, Philadelphia Phillies

Cole Hamels is set to be one of the top upcoming free agents for the 2013 season. The Philadelphia Phillies avoided arbitration with Hamels this offseason, signing him to a one-year, $15.5 million deal with award incentives.

The only reasons why the Phillies would trade Hamels midseason would be if they were suffering a monumental collapse and were completely out of the playoff race, or if contract negotiations weren't going as well as they may have hoped.

The lefty has won at least 10 games in all but one of his six seasons, posting a career-low in ERA last season at 2.79. It would take a huge package in order to pry Hamels from Philadelphia, but it isn't totally out of the question.

Dan Haren, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

Dan Haren is pretty much the same case as for Hamels. The Angels are set for what could be a very good season, adding slugger Albert Pujols and CJ Wilson to an already playoff-caliber team. 

If the Angels struggle during the first half of the season, they could ship Haren off for offensive help or just try to dump some salary. Haren is scheduled to make $12.75 million in 2012, and the Angels hold a team option on him in 2013 for $15.5 million.

Haren has won at least 12 games and pitched over 200 innings in every season since becoming a full-time starter in 2005. He is one of the best K/BB pitchers in baseball and would be a great addition for the Red Sox if they could acquire him.

Tim Hudson, Atlanta Braves

The Atlanta Braves hold a team option on the aging, yet still dominant, Tim Hudson for 2013 that is worth $9 million. Atlanta has a very deep pitching staff with plenty of young talent, and they could be interested in shipping off one of their veterans. 

It was thought that the Braves would move Jair Jurrjens in a deal before the season started, but he still remains under team control for now. Hudson, on the other hand, is someone the Boston should definitely go after.

He has won 14 or more games in eight of his 13 seasons and finished 2011 with a 16-10 record and a 3.22 ERA. Adding an above-average pitcher for only $9 million in 2012 and possibly another $9 million in 2013 would be a very smart move by the Red Sox.

Colby Lewis, Texas Rangers

The Texas Rangers have an abundance of pitching going into 2012, with close to seven possible starting pitchers. They won the bidding rights to Japanese star Yu Darvish and then signed him to a six-year, $60 million contract. 

With so many options, the Rangers could be interested in moving one of them for more offensive help, and Colby Lewis just could be that guy. He won 14 games last season and 12 the year before after returning from a stint in Japan.

Lewis is only expected to make $3.25 million in 2012, which could be very attractive for Boston to try and make a deal for him.

Francisco Liriano, Minnesota Twins

After having a great 2006 rookie season, where he finished third in the ROY voting and was named to the All-Star team, Francisco Liriano has been anything but impressive. After recovering from Tommy John surgery, he hasn't returned to his '06 form.

He had a decent 2010 season, but a terrible 2011 showed that it wasn't anything to look forward to. Last season, he went 9-10 and posted a 5.08 ERA in just 134.1 innings. He had a career high in walks and a career low in SO/BB.

The selling point for Liriano is that he is an expiring contract, and you might be able to get a few quality starts out of him. He will only make $5.5 million in 2012, which Minnesota would most likely eat a chunk of in a trade.

Shaun Marcum, Milwaukee Brewers

Shaun Marcum had a good first year with the Milwaukee Brewers after being traded from the Toronto Blue Jays. He went 13-7 and posted a 3.54 ERA in just over 200 innings over the 2011 season. Over the past two seasons, after recovering from Tommy John surgery in 2009, he has thrown nearly 400 innings and kept his ERA at 3.59.

Marcum is an extension candidate for Milwaukee and is currently going through arbitration with them, filing for $8.7 million and the Brewers countering with $6.75 million, according to the Associated Press via MLB.com's Adam McCalvy.

He would be a nice fit in Boston if they could lock him up for a few seasons or just use him for the remainder of the 2012 season and then just cut him loose.

Brandon McCarthy, Oakland Athletics

The Oakland Athletics are clearly going through a rebuilding process after trading away starters Gio Gonzalez and Trevor Cahill this offseason. Brandon McCarthy could be the next one on the move if the right package was presented to GM Billy Beane.

McCarthy has one year left on his contract with Oakland and should make $4.275 million in the upcoming 2012 season. He went 9-9 last year, posting a 3.32 ERA in 25 starts in his first season in Oakland.

At only 27 years old, McCarthy could turn into a good middle of the rotation starter. He isn't a big strikeout pitcher, but has been able to lower his walk rate significantly. 

Anibal Sanchez, Florida Marlins

Remember when Anibal Sanchez was under the Red Sox control? At the time, he wasn't the biggest name in the deal that sent Hanley Ramirez to Florida for Josh Beckett and Mike Lowell, but he has made a name for himself over the years.

Despite winning just over half of his career games with the Marlins, Sanchez has a career ERA of just 3.72. He demolished his career high in strikeouts this past season, mowing down 202 batters compared to his previous career high of 157.

It seems that he could be a part of the Marlins' long-term plans, but if Boston could re-acquire him, it would be a beneficial move all around. 

Jake Westbrook, St. Louis Cardinals

Jake Westbook proved to be a solid pickup for the World Champion St. Louis Cardinals, acquiring him at the 2010 trade deadline. He's gone 16-13 in 45 starts with the Cards, which is about his career average. 

He will start a bunch of games for the Cardinals and keep St. Louis in most of them. Westbrook is expected to make $8.5 million in 2012 and has a mutual option for 2013 at another $8.5 million. 

If he is made available, Boston should be interested. He could be a valuable third or fourth starter, and if he works out, then they can exercise his 2013 option, and if not, then they decline it.