MLB Trade Ideas Based on Week 9 News, Rumors and Speculation
Is James Shields a member of the Chicago White Sox yet?
Talk of the veteran hurler joining the American League Central contenders might be the juiciest rumor out there, but it's far from the only one. A major injury in Kansas City has created some buzz, while a rebuilding club may have learned from past mistakes and be ready to part with an All-Star infielder.
We may only be two months into baseball's regular season, but general managers have clearly been trying to earn their paychecks, working the phones to find upgrades, add depth and, in some cases, gauge interest in potential trade chips.
Keep in mind that these proposed deals are only ideas and pure speculation. Unless otherwise noted, there's no indication any of them have actually been discussed.
Zack Cozart Gets Traded to the Tampa Bay Rays
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Cincinnati Reds Get: RHP Jacob Faria and SS Daniel Robertson
Tampa Bay Rays Get: SS Zack Cozart
The Rumor
The Cincinnati Enquirer's Zach Buchanan speculated about whether the Reds would trade All-Star shortstop Zack Cozart, making the argument that they waited too long to move Aroldis Chapman and shouldn't repeat history.
Why It Makes Sense for Cincinnati
The Reds get two players who are nearly ready to contribute, though it remains to be seen in what role.
Jacob Faria has a mid-rotation starter's ceiling but could be a beast out of the bullpen, where the combination of his mid-90s fastball and mid-80s changeup, both plus offerings, would play up in short stints.
Daniel Robertson has the arm strength to stick at shortstop but is athletic enough to fill in pretty much anywhere around the infield, giving the Reds options down the road. He's not Cozart's equal defensively—few are—but he has a solid bat with developing power and could be his long-term replacement.
Why It Makes Sense for Tampa Bay
The perennially cash-strapped Rays get a relatively inexpensive ($2.925 million) upgrade at a premium position, one that's under team control through 2017.
Cozart would be a massive upgrade defensively over Brad Miller, who grades out as baseball's worst defensive shortstop using either ultimate zone rating/150 (UZR/150) or defensive runs saved (DRS). Miller has better career offensive numbers, but Cozart has been the better hitter this season.
That said, the defensive improvement Cozart offers outweighs any advantage Miller might have at the plate.
Drew Pomeranz Gets Traded to the Boston Red Sox
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Boston Red Sox Get: LHP Drew Pomeranz
San Diego Padres Get: LHP Trey Ball, 3B Michael Chavis and a player to be named later
The Rumor
Fox Sports' Ken Rosenthal reported that teams have been contacting San Diego about southpaw Drew Pomeranz, noting that Padres general manager A.J. Preller “remains open-minded” about trading any of his players.
Why It Makes Sense for Boston
In an ideal world, Clay Buchholz would return to his All-Star form, Eduardo Rodriguez's knee would stop barking and Boston could fill its rotation needs without making a move. But the Red Sox can't count on any of those things happening, and reinforcements are needed after David Price and Steven Wright.
A ground-ball pitcher who is missing bats at a career-high rate, Pomeranz would be a good fit at Fenway Park and could slide into the middle of Boston's rotation with little issue. Just entering the prime of his career, the 27-year-old has two years of arbitration remaining, which makes him more than a short-term rental.
Why It Makes Sense for San Diego
It may not seem like a huge return for the Padres, but they sell high on a player they traded nothing of consequence (Yonder Alonso and Marc Rzepczynski) to obtain over the winter and add a potential front-of-the-rotation arm and the team's third baseman of the future.
A former first-round pick, Trey Ball has been something of a disappointment thus far as a professional, struggling with his command. But as MLB.com noted in its profile of the 21-year-old, he's a talent worth taking a chance on:
"It's still easy to dream on Ball, a 6-foot-6 left-hander who's as athletic and projectable as ever. There are no glaring flaws in his delivery, he works hard and he's starting to add strength to his skinny frame. But if he doesn't start making improvements soon, he may never approach his once-lofty ceiling of a frontline starter with three solid-to-plus pitches and command to match.
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Like Ball, 20-year-old Michael Chavis still needs time to develop in the minors. But he's got the strong arm and athleticism needed to stay at third base, with 20-30 home run potential as he continues to refine his approach at the plate.
Aaron Hill Gets Traded to the Kansas City Royals
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Kansas City Royals Get: IF Aaron Hill and $8 million
Milwaukee Brewers Get: 1B Ryan O'Hearn and LHP Matt Strahm
The Rumor
Aaron Hill was one of eight potential replacements ESPN.com's Buster Olney listed for Kansas City third baseman Mike Moustakas, who is out of the season with a torn ACL.
Why It Makes Sense for Kansas City
Capable of playing second base or third base, Hill gives the Royals options. He's a better defender at second and would be an upgrade over the Christian Colon/Omar Infante/Whit Merrifield trio they've used at the keystone thus far.
But he could also take over for Cheslor Cuthbert at the hot corner, allowing Kansas City to use Cuthbert as a utility infielder and keep third-base prospect Hunter Dozier down on the farm. In exchange for Milwaukee picking up the rest of Hill's $12 million salary (roughly $8 million), the Royals give up better prospects in the deal.
Why It Makes Sense for Milwaukee
Milwaukee gets a pair of mid-level prospects to help with the rebuilding process in exchange for a player nobody expected much from this season.
Matt Strahm, 24, looks like a solid mid-rotation arm and one that's especially tough on left-handed hitters. Depending on need, Milwaukee could look to turn him into more of a left-handed specialist out of the bullpen.
Ryan O'Hearn, 22, is much like current Brewers first baseman Chris Carter in that he's passable defensively but comes with big-time power and a penchant to swing and miss. That power could be a major asset at Miller Park.
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Sean Doolittle Gets Traded to the Cleveland Indians
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Cleveland Indians Get: LHP Sean Doolittle
Oakland A's Get: OF Greg Allen, OF/1B Mike Papi and LHP Justus Sheffield
The Rumor
In his weekly mailbag for Cleveland.com, Paul Hoynes wrote that the Indians need another left-handed reliever, and Hoynes agreed with one reader that Oakland's Shawn Doolittle would be an obvious target. ESPN's Jim Bowden also named Cleveland the "best fit" for the former All-Star.
As the San Francisco Chronicle's Susan Slusser reported, some around the game believe an injury-ravaged A's club should be selling off pieces now, not later: "One scout in Seattle this week said he believes the A’s will be fortunate to finish around the .500 mark, and, he said, 'What does that get you? You wind up picking 15th in the draft? Why not trade some of the guys who can bring back something and maybe get a better draft pick?'"
Why It Makes Sense for Cleveland
As Bowden wrote Thursday: "[Doolittle] might not be all the way back from his injuries (shoulder in 2015, triceps in spring training) but 23 K's in 19.1 IP says he'll only get better—and almost every contending team needs another lefty in the bullpen."
That's true for the Indians, with Ryan Merritt—who has yet to get into a game since being promoted to the big leagues—the only southpaw in manager Terry Francona's bullpen.
Doolittle, 29, is historically tough against batters from both sides of the plate, though right-handed batters have had better success against him thus far in 2016. Due $8.59 million through 2018, there are a pair of team options on his deal for 2019 ($6 million) and 2020 ($6.5 million) with a $500,000 buyout for each.
Those sort of numbers—and the ability to get out of his most expensive years—shouldn't be a major issue fitting into Cleveland's budget. And while it stings to part with a prospect like Justus Sheffield, Cleveland still has a number of high-upside arms on the farm, including Brady Aiken and Rob Kaminsky.
Why It Makes Sense for Oakland
The A's certainly don't have to trade Doolittle, whose contract is more than reasonable before his option years would kick in, but the chance to add three potential long-term pieces, including a pair of hitters with a seemingly preternatural ability to get on base, is too enticing to pass up.
Sheffield* was Cleveland's first-round pick in 2014 and the team's No. 5 prospect heading into the season, per MLB.com. The 20-year-old projects as a solid, durable, innings-eating No. 2 or No. 3 starter, but he is still at least a year away from contributing.
The same is true of 23-year-old Greg Allen, who like current A's center fielder Billy Burns, gets noticed most for his speed and defense. Allen, who has stolen 103 bases on 126 attempts since 2014 and owns a .371 career on-base percentage, could be an alternative in center for the A's.
Mike Papi, 23, has more swing-and-miss in his game than you'd like for a batter with still-developing power—160 strikeouts since the start of the 2015 season—but he's also drawn 111 walks over the same time period. He has the arm strength to stick in either corner outfield spot and can also play first base.
*Not to be confused with Sheffield's older brother, Jordan, who is a senior at Vanderbilt University and expected to be taken in the early rounds of the upcoming MLB draft, which begins June 9 and runs through June 11.
James Shields Gets Traded to the Chicago White Sox
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Chicago White Sox Get: OF Jon Jay, RHP James Shields and $30 million
San Diego Padres Get: RHP Spencer Adams, OF Micker Adolfo, RHP Tyler Danish and 3B Trey Michalczewski
The Rumor
Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune was the first to report that Chicago and San Diego had been discussing a deal involving James Shields, with a source telling him the talks had "energy."
MLB Network's Jon Heyman confirmed the report but added that multiple teams had spoken with the Padres about Shields and that nothing appeared imminent. Bruce Levine of 670 The Score heard that talks "are fluid" and that Chicago's top prospect, shortstop Tim Anderson, is not part of discussions.
Why It Makes Sense for Chicago
Shields is overpaid, but talk of his demise as a useful piece of a contending rotation has been overblown. While he hasn't been as good as his 3.06 ERA suggests, there's nothing wrong with a 3.90 fielding independent pitching (FIP) and expected fielding independent pitching (xFIP)—all three numbers below league average.
"He'll eat up innings," a rival scout told Lin of a possible return to the AL, where Shields spent most of his 11-year career. "He'll give up more home runs for sure."
Both those things are true. But he'd also give the White Sox a durable, reliable arm to slot after Chris Sale and Jose Quintana, which they need.
It may not always be pretty, but Shields gives his team a chance to win more often than not.
As for the financial aspect, he's due roughly $58 million through 2018, including a $2 million buyout of a $16 million team option for 2019. With San Diego picking up $30 million, the White Sox are essentially getting Shields on a three-year, $28 million deal.
Jon Jay's salary isn't negligible at $6.85 million, but it's not a budget-buster, either. He fills Chicago's need for a left-handed bat and could either platoon with or replace Austin Jackson in center field.
Why It Makes Sense for San Diego
By picking up a little more than half of Shields' contract and including Jay in the deal, the Padres shed nearly $30 million from their books and get a bigger—and better—package in return, including three of Chicago's 10 best prospects as ranked by MLB.com.
Spencer Adams (No. 3) is the centerpiece of the deal. He's a 20-year-old righty with four above-average pitches, phenomenal command, a high ceiling (No. 1 starter) and low floor (No. 3 starter). Tyler Danish (No. 11) is a former second-round pick who has been developed as a starter but could wind up a closer.
Chicago's No. 5 prospect, Trey Michalczewski, could be San Diego's long-term answer at third base with enough athleticism and power to stick at the hot corner, while Micker Adolfo is a prototypical right fielder with tremendous raw power and a strong, accurate throwing arm.
Danish and Michalczewski could be ready to contribute as early as next year, while Adams and Adolfo need a bit more time.
Unless otherwise noted, all statistics courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com and FanGraphs and are current through games of May 30. All contract information courtesy of Cot's Contracts (via Baseball Prospectus).
Hit me up on Twitter to talk all things baseball: @RickWeinerBR.
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