MLB Trade Rumors: Buzz on Chris Johnson, Ben Zobrist and More

With the United States women's national soccer team completing its thrilling 2015 World Cup championship run, the month of July well and truly belongs to baseball when it comes to sports and America.

The starting lineups for the 2015 All-Star Game are in, the contenders, also-rans and cellar-dwellers are mostly fleshed out at this point and there are few better ways to spend a lazy summer day than taking in a ballgame.

On top of all that, the trade deadline is rapidly approaching in the MLB, meaning several teams are going to have to decide whether or not they need a short-term boost for the stretch run, long-term stability or even a page-one rewrite.

The rumors will build up to a fever pitch as the month of July rolls on, but there are already a few tidbits for fans to chew on after the Independence Day weekend.

Here's a look at some of the latest chatter from around the league.

Chris Johnson

Tony Avelar/Associated Press

The Atlanta Braves are suffering through a rare down season, at least by their usually excellent standards. They are currently 40-42 and in third place in the NL East.

The Braves haven't finished with a losing record since 2008, and with the Washington Nationals enjoying a monstrous season from Bryce Harper, they don't appear likely to win the division—although they could still pip the New York Mets for second place.

In a bid for salary relief, it appears the Atlanta Braves are trying to offload third baseman Chris Johnson, as Fox Sports' Ken Rosenthal detailed on Twitter:

Johnson has played sparingly this year, batting .232 with a .280 on-base percentage and just seven RBI in 41 games. According to Spotrac, he's owed $6 million this season, $16.5 million more over the next two years and has a buyout option for 2018. That's no help for the Braves if they are trying to save money and clear out a roster spot on the big club.

Rosenthal put together one possible trade scenario with the San Francisco Giants:

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#Braves used same model when they required #Padres to take Upton Jr. to get Kimbrel. #SFGiants among teams with no interest in Johnson.

— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) July 4, 2015"

Johnson's contract and performance are bad enough that Atlanta would indeed have to include a stronger player like Cameron Maybin, who's batting .294 this season with 39 RBI and 15 stolen bases.

John Bazemore/Associated Press

Any team looking to take on Johnson would need to have deep pockets, a need for depth at the hot corner and hope that Johnson can find a bit of the form that saw him hit .321 with 68 RBI in 2013. 

He does still crush left-handed pitching, hitting .366 against southpaws this season. But this is offset by his .138 average against righties and, well, $6 million is quite a chunk of change to pay for a situational corner infielder.

That, of course, really puts a limit on possible takers for Johnson.

With the Braves still capable of contending in the NL with a strong second half., they might be forced to keep Johnson in lieu of trading away a solid contributor in a package deal and losing ground in the division.

Ben Zobrist

Eric Risberg/Associated Press

The Mets could use another bat in the lineup, and a big name has surfaced as a potential target, per the New York Post's Joel Sherman: "Sandy Alderson recently stated he was willing to 'overpay' for the right hitter to help his lineup. When he said that, he had one player in mind—Ben Zobrist."

After a failed run at glory last season and an offseason fire sale, one would think Oakland would be in a selling mood. Per Spotrac, the 34-year-old Zobrist is in the last year of a four-year deal, making $7.5 million this season.

He could leave the team for nothing this offseason, making him an excellent trade candidate, but it appears the A's might want him to stick around a bit longer after a recent uptick in performance, per Sherman:

"

Because of this, A’s general manager Billy Beane has tempered sell-off talks, at least for now, to use more of the month to determine whether his team should go for it or at least market walk-year players such as Zobrist, Scott Kazmir and Tyler Clippard.

Thus, for now, the player whom the Mets were targeting is unavailable—but stay tuned.

"

Billy Beane proved last year he isn't afraid to go all in when he thinks he has a contender in the Oakland Coliseum. Of course, as of July 6, 2014, the A's were 55-33—not 37-45 as they are this season.

Zobrist is sporting a .267/.354/.450 slash line this year, with five round-trippers and 31 RBI. The versatile switch-hitter has done much of that damage in June, which is not a bad bit of timing should a contender come calling.

LM Otero/Associated Press

Then again, in the offloading of excellent players like Josh Donaldson and Jeff Samardzija this offseason, Beane once again demonstrated he's willing to part ways with talent if he knows he can get an impressive haul in return.

Should Oakland wilt in the July heat, a Zobrist deal should happen—especially if this notion that the Mets are willing to "overpay" is indeed true. Beane won't leave an opportunity like that on the table.

Chicago Cubs

Nam Y. Huh/Associated Press

These are exciting times for Cubs fans. Sure, the team currently sits in third place in the NL Central, but it isn't a mediocre club duking it out in a bloated—but for baseball purists, necessary—six-team division anymore.

The NL Central is slimmer after 2013's realignment, the Cubs are 44-36—good for the fifth-best record in the NL—and have some of the most exciting young talent in all of baseball, like rookie masher Kris Bryant.

So rather than trading away key starting pitchers like they did in the middle of last season, the Cubs are actually looking to bring some in, at least according to Fox Sports' Jon Paul Morosi:

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The Cubs would prefer to trade for a starting pitcher whom they would control beyond this year, because they lack major-league-ready starters in the upper levels of their system. If they’re going to play on a big name, Cole Hamels (signed to a long-term contract) makes more sense than Johnny Cueto (pending free agent).

"

The Cubs have a solid quartet in Jake Arrieta, Jason Hammel, Jon Lester and Kyle Hendricks, but they need a dependable fifth man to round out the rotation.

Going for a big name like the Philadelphia Phillies' Cole Hamels—5-6 with a 3.02 ERA and 1.13 WHIP this season—would be a definite throwing-down of the gauntlet for general manager Theo Epstein.

The Cubs could swing a trade with any number of prospects from Baseball America's No. 1-rated farm system for 2015. The Phillies could be interested in some middle-infield talent, having traded away Jimmy Rollins to the Los Angeles Dodgers before this season and witnessing the swift, brutal decline of second baseman Chase Utley.

Morosi also notes the Cubs could be in the market for a left-handed hitter, citing switch-hitting Dexter Fowler's struggles from that side.

But with strong hitters like Bryant and Anthony Rizzo leading the way—and hopefully a resurgent second-half from Starlin Castro in the works—the focus should remain on fleshing out the rotation for what should be a hectic playoff push in the National League.