Offseason MLB Trade Ideas Based on Latest Week 25 News, Rumors and Speculation

For fans of teams no longer in the hunt for a playoff spot, I've got some good news: It's almost over.

Roughly seven weeks from now, the doors to the free-agent market will swing open, officially signalling the start of baseball's offseason. And while you can be sure that each and every one of MLB's 30 teams will be talking to potential free-agent additions, you can bet that those teams will be talking to each other as well.

Because we know that free agency isn't for everyone, and a team's most pressing needs can't always be filled by throwing bags of money at the most talented free agent at that position. There are times when there simply isn't an intriguing free agent available to fill a specific need.

That stands to be the case this winter for teams in need of help up the middle, specifically in the middle of their infields. After Howie Kendrick and (arguably) Ian Desmond, there's not much in the way of quality options at second base or shortstop.

But the same can't be said of the trade market, which could be flush with available upgrades at both second base and shortstop, and it's those positions that dominate this week's look at potential offseason trades.

Keep in mind that these proposed deals are only ideas and pure speculation. Unless otherwise noted, there's no indication that any of them have actually been discussed.

Brock Holt Gets Traded to the Mets

Winslow Townson/Associated Press

Boston Gets: RHP Akeel Morris and a player to be named later

New York Gets: IF/OF Brock Holt

Brock Holt deserves to be an everyday player, an opportunity that isn't going to materialize for the 27-year-old in Boston next season. With a crowded outfield, a healthy Dustin Pedroia at second base and Pablo Sandoval at third, there's nowhere for him to play.

That lack of available playing time is one reason Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe believes the Boston Red Sox will not only receive offers for Holt this winter, but seriously consider them, with an eye on upgrading the bullpen the end result.

Playing time wouldn't be an issue for Holt in New York, where he'd have a chance to be the Mets' everyday second baseman, a position at which he's provided above-average defense for the Red Sox this season.

An emergency addition to the Mets bullpen in mid-June for one game against the Toronto Blue Jays—which went about as well as you'd expect it to go for a player who had never pitched above Single-A—22-year-old Akeel Morris has all the makings of a big-time late-inning reliever.

While he has multiple pitches in his arsenal, Morris dominated across two minor league levels this season (2.05 ERA, 0.93 WHIP, 61.1 IP, 81 K) largely due to his nasty fastball-changeup combo, with the latter coming in nearly 15 mph slower than his mid-90s heater.

Morris still needs to iron out some command issues, as he walked more batters (29) than he allowed hits (28), but he could quickly become a fixture at the back end of Boston's bullpen, one that would be in place for years to come.

Neil Walker Gets Traded to the Angels

John Minchillo/Associated Press

Los Angeles Gets: 2B Neil Walker

Pittsburgh Gets: RHP Jake Jewell and a player to be named later

Neil Walker wants to be one of those players who spends his entire career with one team.

“If I could have it my way, I'd be in black and gold for my entire career,” he told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review's Rob Biertempfel. “Maybe I'm naive and living in a fantasy world, but I'm going to hold out hope until the day comes that I am absolutely, positively no longer in a Pirates uniform.”

As Biertempfel noted, that day could be coming soon.

With Josh Harrison, Jordy Mercer and the currently injured Jung Ho Kang all under contract and set to occupy second base, shortstop and third base, respectively, in 2016, Walker, who is expected to command a salary around $10 million in his final arbitration year, is probably too expensive for the Pirates to keep.

Walker fits with the Los Angeles Angels in terms of both need and cost.

Angels second basemen have combined to post the game's fourth-lowest weighted runs created plus (67), an area where Walker (108 wRC+) would offer a major upgrade—enough of a boost to overlook his below-average defense.

With Los Angeles paying Josh Hamilton more than $28 million in each of the next two years to play for the Texas Rangers, the team isn't likely to have much in the way of spending cash for free-agent additions. That makes Walker's one-year, $10 million-ish deal a reasonable, short-term expense to add.

Pittsburgh would get an intriguing 22-year-old righty in Jake Jewell. While his future role remains unclear—he began the season in the bullpen but finished the season in Single-A Burlington's rotation—Jewell has a terrific fastball that sits in the mid-90s and has shown plus secondary stuff at times.

With a farm system that's deep in pitching talent, the Pirates can take their time developing Jewell, who probably wouldn't be ready to contribute to a big league pitching staff until late 2017 or 2018.

Starlin Castro Gets Traded to the Yankees

Paul Beaty/Associated Press

Chicago Gets: LHP Jordan Montgomery, RHPs Rookie Davis and Bryan Mitchell

New York Gets: 2B/SS Starlin Castro

With Addison Russell entrenched at shortstop and Javier Baez waiting to take over at second base, Fox Sports' Ken Rosenthal opined that the Chicago Cubs may look to move Starlin Castro in the offseason.

Castro has re-established some of his trade value with a move to second base, where his defense has been adequate, and a resurgence at the plate, hitting .342 with a .914 OPS since the beginning of August.

At the very least, the Cubs should be able to generate far more interest in the 25-year-old, who is due $37 million through the 2019 season, than they were at this year's non-waiver trade deadline, when he appeared to be one of the most immovable objects in the game.

The New York Yankees, with a need at second base, figure to be one of those interested parties. And the Bronx Bombers have the kind of MLB-ready pitching prospects that figure to interest the Cubs, who could use some rotation depth.

Rookie Davis and Bryan Mitchell aren't future aces—at best, the pair projects to be solid mid-rotation starters—and we can't rule out a career for either one as a late-inning reliever, as both have electric fastballs that could play up in shorter outings, with Davis capable of hitting triple digits on the radar gun.

Jordan Montgomery's future is in the rotation, but he's still at least a year away from making an impact in the big leagues. The 22-year-old pounds the strike zone with all four of his pitches, using a low-90s fastball to setup a nasty changeup that gives opposing batters fits.

Marcell Ozuna Gets Traded to the Mariners

Lynne Sladky/Associated Press

Miami Gets: LHP Roenis Elias

Seattle Gets: CF Marcell Ozuna

Miami Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria "is disappointed in [Marcell] Ozuna and very much open to trading him this offseason," according to the Miami Herald's Barry Jackson, who added that Miami would be looking for a young, inexpensive starter in return.

Roenis Elias isn't a front-line starter, but the 27-year-old fits the bill as a quality starter, pitching to a 3.93 ERA and 1.29 WHIP across parts of two major league seasons with the Seattle Mariners. He is also inexpensive, with his first arbitration-eligible season not arriving until 2017.

With a return to health by James Paxton and Mike Montgomery waiting in the wings, the Mariners can afford to part with Elias, especially if it means finally finding a long-term solution in center field.

Ozuna looked like a future star after hitting .269 with 23 home runs and 85 RBI last season, but he's fallen out of favor in Miami after hitting .249 with a .638 OPS to start the season, earning himself a month-long demotion to Triple-A in early July after a 10-game stretch that saw him go 1-for-36 with 14 strikeouts.

While there will always be a ton of swing-and-miss in his game, Ozuna still has considerable upside and could benefit from a change of scenery. Being surrounded by veteran hitters like Robinson Cano and Nelson Cruz could be just what Ozuna needs to get himself back on track.

Unless otherwise noted, all statistics courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com and FanGraphs and are current through September 21. All contract information courtesy of Cot's Contracts (via Baseball Prospectus).

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