Here’s the latest from around the AL West…
- Some rival evaluators feel the Mariners could make Steve Cishek, Adam Lind and/or other veterans available before the deadline, ESPN’s Buster Olney reports in his latest subscriber-only news column. Lind has hit just .229/.258/.429 this season and lost playing time to Dae Ho Lee at first base, so in moving Lind, the M’s would be able to shift Nelson Cruz back to DH and improve their outfield defense. Cishek struggled in his last few outings prior to the All-Star break but has overall been quite solid as Seattle’s closer, notching 22 saves and posting a 3.07 ERA, 11.63 K/9 and 3.79 K/BB despite an ungainly 18.9% homer rate. The Mariners fell to the .500 mark after today’s loss to the Astros, so the M’s could certainly turn into deadline sellers barring a quick turnaround.
- Also from Olney, some teams see Angels catcher Geovany Soto as a possible deadline trade chip. Soto has been limited to 22 games this season thanks to a torn right meniscus, though he has hit .284/.333/.478 over 74 plate appearances. It’s worth noting that Soto has missed the last two games with soreness in his left knee. MLBTR’s Steve Adams listed Soto as a trade candidate in his overview of the catching trade market earlier this week.
- Yulieski Gurriel’s five-year contract with the Astros has drawn some split reaction from rival front offices, Olney writes. One executive called the contract “a good deal — three years ago,” while another noted that Gurriel was being outperformed by some former North American minor leaguers when he played in Japan in 2014. On the flip side, other evaluators praised Gurriel’s character.
- With Gurriel and probably top prospect Alex Bregman joining the already-crowded infield mix in Houston, manager A.J. Hinch told reporters (including MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart) that the added depth will allow for Jose Altuve to receive some DH days. The Astros obviously want to keep their superstar second baseman (who has played in 183 consecutive games) as fresh as possible down the stretch, and the likes of George Springer or Carlos Correa could also get some DH time for similar reasons. Altuve delivered four hits as Houston’s designated hitter today against the Mariners.
- It’s been a busy day for AL West news here at MLB Trade Rumors, as we’ve also covered the Rangers’ search for pitching and a number of Athletics-related items, including Oakland’s acquisition of lefty Ross Detwiler from the Indians.
The Mariners should get rid of Lind and his -0.8 fWAR as soon as possible by any means necessary, but that doesn’t mean they should be sellers at the deadline. King Felix returns Wednesday and Walker is getting healthier. Having those two back would significantly help the rotation. Also, their bullpen should start getting healthy soon which would improve the bullpen depth, which has been one of the keys of their fall. With their pitching getting healthy, there’s no reason the Mariners should be active sellers unless the disabled list grows longer in the next few weeks.
I have been thinking Seattle should be buyers but the mute the season goes the more i think selling us a better idea. I am not sure it us a good idea to give away prospects for a chance stu a wild card spot and probably not win it. If we did the health of the pitching staff puts a huge question mark on if we could win a series. I am not one to give up but I believe there is a time when you live to fight another day.
I would love to see Lind moved and Cishek has been a heart attack almost every time he has gone out there. Like I have said a few other times we need to upgrade 1st and an OF spot and SP before we will truly be contending. Do it in the off season sell what we can that has no long term value to the team and see if maybe you get lucky. The guys mentioned probably have little value but you never know. Throw Seth Smith inn as a bone and maybe get a little more back.