Yankees, Angels, Cubs: Will Anyone Trade For Tigers' Granderson?

The Detroit Tigers have put Curtis Granderson up on the trading block, and it seems as if all of baseball's big spenders are interested. The Yankees, Red Sox, Cubs, and Angels all have reported interest in the Tigers' All-Star Center fielder.

The question is, what will it take to get him? Any package from the Yankees is said to start with Austin Jackson and Phil Hughes. That is a steep price for any team to pay. Just back in 2007, Granderson became the second man ever to hit 20 in each of the following categories: doubles, triples, homers, steals, and singles. He was also near the top of the league in slugging percentage and is a gold glove caliber fielder. Unfortunately, he also hit .183 against left handed pitching in the 2009 season.

He is a puzzling case. Some people think Granderson has already shown his best, and others believe he is just getting started. Keith Law of ESPN believes that Granderson should be platooned, while others believe that Granderson is the future face of baseball, with his unique mix of talent and character.

So what should the Tigers do? Trade Granderson and others (the vastly overrated Edwin Jackson for instance)? Or go after it with an inflated payroll for one more year? The answer is this. Although the Tigers would be loathe to trade a man of Granderson's talents and abilities, they must remember what they are.

The Tigers are a mid market team. They cannot buy talent like the teams mentioned above and stay fiscally solvent. They must build a team from their farm system and lock the core of their team into long term contracts. Granderson, Cabrera, Porcello, Verlander, and Jackson could be parts of the future.

They must decide if Granderson (and Jackson) are better as a part of their future, or for trade to build their team in a more inexpensive matter. It all depends on who they can get. An Austin Jackson and Phil Hughes package would be a good start for the Tigers. All I can say is everybody has a price, the only question now is who's going to pay.