Interesting trade speculation from Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News in Wednesday’s Q&A. If the Rangers – currently 14-20 – slide further out of contention, they could consider trading 27 year-old first baseman Mark Teixeira this summer. According to Grant, the bounty would have to include pitching and a Major League-ready first baseman or outfielder.
We know Baltimore covets Teixeira, so Grant’s idea of Nick Markakis and a pitcher for Teixeira could make sense on the surface. The first baseman becomes a free agent after the 2008 season, but I don’t see the Orioles sitting down with Scott Boras and working out an eight-year extension. I’m surprised we haven’t seen Teixeira’s name connected to the Angels yet; they’ve got the talent, the need, and the history of tolerating Scott Boras.
You may recall a Ken Rosenthal article from mid-March, where he paints Baltimore as quite anxious to acquire Teixeira. Rosenthal also throws the Nats into the mix since he’s a Maryland native and the team’s new ballpark will be opening. As I noted a while back, Teixeira won’t be a free agent this offseason but he won’t come cheap in ’08. His salary could jump from $9MM this year to $15MM or so through arbitration.
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