Trade Market Rumors

Trade Market: Shortstops

Another entry in our Trade Market series: shortstops. We covered free agents here. As always, it's one of baseball's scarcest positions. J.J. Hardy, Brewers. GM Doug Melvin admitted to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel that it would be "very difficult" to keep both Hardy and Alcides Escobar on the roster. Due to an August demotion, Hardy is under team control for two more years (he earned $4.65MM in '09). He was very valuable in 2007-08, and the 27-year-old is easily the prize among all available shortstops (considering both trade targets and free agents). Despite Hardy's off year, expect Melvin...   Continue Reading

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Trade Market: Second Basemen

Next up in our Trade Market series, second basemen. We analyzed free agents at the position here. Dan Uggla, Marlins. Uggla is currently neck-and-neck with Hanley Ramirez as the best-paid Marlin, and that puts the second baseman on the trading block. Uggla's 2010 salary has yet to be determined since he's arbitration-eligible, but it'll be a raise from this year's $5.35MM. That Chris Coghlan came up as a second baseman only increases the chance of an Uggla trade. As a perennial 30-home run bat, Uggla should be good value next year even with shaky defense. Uggla might be a consideration...   Continue Reading

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Trade Market: First Basemen

Next up in our Trade Market series, first basemen. We analyzed first base free agents here. Prince Fielder, Brewers. On October 7th, Brewers GM replied, "I don't see that happening" when asked about trading Fielder or Ryan Braun (Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reporting). What's more, SI's Jon Heyman expects the Brewers to attempt to lock Fielder up this winter. Fielder is already under team control through 2011, and there is no reason to expect him to be shopped (the Brewers have other trade chips with which they can acquire pitching). Adrian Gonzalez, Padres. Like Fielder, most Gonzalez trade...   Continue Reading

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Trade Market: Catchers

We've covered the free agent market by position, but that only tells part of the story. With the GM Meetings just 11 days away, it's time to analyze the trade market. We'll start with catchers. Kelly Shoppach, Indians. Lou Marson, acquired in the Cliff Lee trade with the Phillies, could be handed the Indians' starting job in 2010. Shoppach is a non-tender candidate after hitting .214/.335/.399 in 327 plate appearances this year. The Indians may prefer not to pay him $2MM+ next year, so they could shop him around. Shoppach, 30 in April, slugged .517 in 2008. John Buck, Royals....   Continue Reading

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The Left Fielder Market Revisited

Time for another look at the market for left fielders. The Mets figure to be surveying these options. A trend here: teams don't seem terribly motivated to move the top players. Matt Holliday, Rockies. Holliday, a Scott Boras client, is signed for '09 at $13.5MM. The Rockies' asking price seems to be fantastically high. Jason Bay, Pirates. The Bucs are not motivated to trade Bay, who is signed for next year at just $7.5MM. An extension seems more likely than a trade. Adam Dunn, Reds. There hasn't been much buzz around Dunn, for some reason. He's got a very Dunn-like...   Continue Reading

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The Third Baseman Market Revisited

Today let's take another look at the third base options on the trade market. Garrett Atkins, Rockies. Atkins has displayed dramatic home/road splits since the beginning of '07. Plus, his defense is not well-regarded. He's under team control through 2010, and the Rockies' unwillingness to do a long-term deal should tell you something. They'd probably still ask for a lot though. Casey Blake, Indians. Blake seems likely to be traded. His versatility is a plus, and he provides an .800 OPS. He's been linked to the Dodgers and Twins recently. Adrian Beltre, Mariners. It's been suggested that the Mariners might...   Continue Reading

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The Shortstop Market Revisited

Next up in our second pass through the Trade Market: shortstops. Cristian Guzman, Nationals. He's having a fine year, hitting .313/.340/.424 in 424 plate appearances. Extension talks with the Nationals have dragged. The Nats might prefer to trade him, while Guzman might prefer to test the free agent market. Miguel Tejada, Astros. The Astros have given no signs of kicking off a rebuilding effort, so a trade is unlikely. Plus, Tejada hasn't hit much since April. He's signed for '09 at $13MM. Clint Barmes, Rockies. The Rox might be able to spare him, but Barmes has never hit away from...   Continue Reading

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The Second Baseman Market Revisited

Let's take another pass at the market for second basemen. Brian Roberts, Orioles. After so many offseason Cubs rumors, there's been no recent buzz around Roberts. The O's don't look like contenders, so trading him still makes sense. Ray Durham, Giants. The resurgent Durham sits at .293/.385/.414 in 304 plate appearances. The Giants should be listening; there was a rumor the Brewers were interested. Mark Grudzielanek, Royals. He wants to play two or three more years. Should provide about the same value as Durham. Mark Ellis, Athletics. He may not be available, as extension talks are expected. Jamey Carroll, Indians....   Continue Reading

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The Starting Pitching Market Revisited

We've been updating our Trade Market series position by position, but today's let's jump ahead to the starting pitchers. After all, pitching is always in high demand. By the way - not all of the pitchers below are available. I just wanted to discuss them. Justin Duchscherer, Athletics. Duke is leading all of baseball with a 1.78 ERA in 101 innings. He is under team control for '09, and Billy Beane wants to wait until after the season to talk extension. He'd be a very interesting trade chip. Zack Greinke, Royals. Despite interest, the Royals "remain decidedly uninterested in moving...   Continue Reading

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The First Baseman Market Revisited

Next up in our second pass through the Trade Market, first basemen. Mark Teixeira, Braves. As Mark Bowman wrote yesterday, the Braves may need a few weeks to decide whether to sell or buy. Teixeira is hitting .275/.381/.492. Frank Wren might have a hard time finding a match for Teixeira. He's an upgrade on guys like Casey Kotchman, Carlos Delgado, and Chad Tracy, but is the improvement worth it? Rich Aurilia, Giants. Aurilia could make sense as a platoon partner for Tracy in Arizona, if Brian Sabean doesn't mind helping a team in his division. Aurilia hit well in May...   Continue Reading

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