« MLBTR Chat Transcript | Main | Blue Jays Claim Hoffpauir From Cardinals »

Trade Market: Center Fielders

By Tim Dierkes [November 3, 2009 at 5:07pm CST]

Next up in our Trade Market series, center fielders. We discussed free agents at the position here.

Curtis Granderson, Tigers. Granderson, 29 in March, slipped to .249/.327/.453 in 710 plate appearances this year, but he did hit 30 home runs with 72 walks. David Golebiewski of FanGraphs considers Granderson's slash line misleading. Granderson struggled mightily against lefties; last year's .739 OPS against them was the only decent showing of his career. He's owed $25.75MM for the next three seasons and is well worth it. As far as trade speculation, it stems entirely from Lynn Henning of the Detroit News.
Cody Ross, Marlins. Ross is here simply because he's an arbitration-eligible Marlins player. He turns 29 in December and is coming off a .270/.321/.469 performance with 24 home runs. He plays center and right field; his defense is hard to judge statistically.
Aaron Rowand, Giants. We're guessing the Giants wouldn't mind unloading the $36MM owed to Rowand for the next three seasons. The 32-year-old has a limited no-trade clause.
Gary Matthews Jr., Angels. With two years and $23MM remaining on his contract, Matthews wants a trade and an everyday role. Good luck with that.
Vernon Wells, Blue Jays. With $107MM coming over the next five years and a full no-trade clause, Wells' brutal contract puts Rowand and Matthews to shame. Hopefully Wells can bounce back in 2010; he's having wrist surgery soon.
B.J. Upton, Rays. Golebiewski analyzed Upton's struggles this year and wondered if poor health was to blame. The 25-year-old at least continued to play a fine center field. He's arbitration-eligible for the first time, and I'd be surprised to see the Rays sell low on him.
Jody Gerut, Brewers. Gerut is a non-tender candidate after a .230/.279/.376 showing, but the Brewers may need him if they don't re-sign Mike Cameron.
Willy Taveras, Reds. Taveras was non-tendered a year ago, and now the Reds may release him with $4MM remaining on his contract.
Felix Pie, Orioles. The O's may prefer to keep Pie around to see if his scorching August was a sign of things to come. Then again, the 24-year-old may have more value to another team since the O's can use Nolan Reimold in left field and have Adam Jones entrenched in center.