During the offseason, rumors about major league players dominate the headlines. Fans and analysts alike discuss potential landing spots for major league free agents and trade candidates. With so much of the focus on big name MLB players, the subject of which top prospects could change hands falls into the background.
The players below are some of the most valuable trade assets in the game who have not yet lost their rookie eligibility. MLB Pipeline considers each of them to be among the top 25 prospects in baseball. They all play for teams that are firmly in “win now mode”. Indeed, all five of them belong to teams that finished with a top four record in baseball last season. It’s safe to say that, were they to dangle their respective prospects as trade bait, each of those teams could fill nearly any need on their big league roster.
Victor Robles, OF (No. 2 Overall Prospect): Nationals
The Nationals signed Victor Robles out of the Dominican Republic at age 16, and he’s met little resistance throughout his development. The Nats promoted him to the majors for the first time in September of 2017; he even made the club’s NLDS roster. In his 24 regular season at-bats, Robles managed six hits, including three for extra bases. The Nationals are in need of another starting pitcher, and the 20-year-old outfielder could easily bring back an elite arm. Washington’s outfield picture for 2018 seems reasonably clear, with Adam Eaton, Michael Taylor and Bryce Harper all under contract and Brian Goodwin as a solid fourth outfielder option. However, Robles is practically major league-ready right now, so it might not make much sense to trade him when he could easily contribute this season. eIt’s especially important to note that Eaton, Taylor and Harper all dealt with injuries last season. With that in mind, the Nationals might prefer to deal their second-best prospect, outfielder Juan Soto, instead.
Kyle Tucker, OF (No. 7 Overall Prospect): Astros
Houston took Tucker out of H.B. Plant High School in Tampa, FL with the fifth pick in the 2015 draft. The young outfielder proceeded to rocket through the club’s minor-league system, reaching the Double-A level midway through 2017. Tucker’s hit tool is one of the best among minor-leaguers, but the Astros already have other left-handed outfield options at the major league level. Josh Reddick and Derek Fisher both bat primarily from the left side, while George Springer, Marwin Gonzalez and Jake Marisnick figure to be ahead of Tucker on the depth chart heading into 2018 as well. That’s not to say that Tucker isn’t more talented than those players, but it seems like a lot would have to happen for him to stumble into significant playing time next season. On the other hand, the Astros don’t have a clear hole on the major league roster outside of the bullpen, and Tucker is far too valuable to trade for a reliever. The organization has also reportedly been stingy about trading any of their top prospects lately, so perhaps it’s unlikely we’ll see him moved.
Francisco Mejia, C (No. 13 Overall Prospect): Indians
Mejia’s development has been a somewhat slow process; the Indians signed him out of the Dominican Republic all the way back in 2012. However, he’s vaulted up prospect lists after incredible success across the past two seasons, including a 50-game hit streak during the 2016 campaign. The best catching prospect in baseball is only 21 and has an elite hit tool from both sides of the plate. Cleveland decided to give him a bit of seasoning at the major league level this past September, which seems to imply that they think he could be close to MLB-ready. The Indians already have catchers Yan Gomes and Roberto Perez under contract for the foreseeable future, so Mejia could be a good candidate to be exchanged for help at first base if Carlos Santana signs elsewhere. But the Indians are also testing Mejia out at third base in the Arizona Fall League, a position he could more easily claim on the Tribe’s roster at some point in 2018.
Triston McKenzie, RHP (No. 20 Overall Prospect): Indians
After McKenzie struck out 157 batters in 91 innings during his senior year in high school, Cleveland selected the right-hander in Competitive Balance Round A of the 2015 draft. The lanky 20-year-old stands at 6’5″ and throws his fastball in the low 90s, though most scouts believe he could pick up even more velocity as he grows stronger. McKenzie struck out double-digit batters in six different games at the High-A level in 2017, including a 14-strikeout effort on May 9th. Overall, the Royal Palm Beach High School product pitched to a 3.45 ERA (and a 2.67 FIP) while punching out 11.71 batters per nine innings. With the Tribe’s window of contention seemingly at its peak, and McKenzie highly unlikely to reach the majors in 2018, the righty could potentially end up being an excellent trade chip. Even if the young righty were MLB-ready, the Indians already have a stacked rotation that will include Corey Kluber, Carlos Carrasco, Trevor Bauer and two of Danny Salazar, Josh Tomlin and Mike Clevinger. McKenzie could be dangled for help at first base (should Santana depart), or elite bullpen help such as Brad Hand or Felipe Rivero.
Alex Verdugo, OF (No. 23 Overall Prospect): Dodgers
The Dodgers took Verdugo in the second round of the 2014 draft, and the left-handed outfielder has done well at every level of the minors. His power isn’t prolific and his speed is average, but his hit tool is excellent. Verdugo is patient at the plate and is great at hitting to the opposite field. While fellow Dodgers prospect Walker Buehler is excluded from this list due to his proximity to the majors and a fairly clear opening in LA’s rotation, Verdugo could be more of a luxury than a vital asset. Chris Taylor and Yasiel Puig are set to man center field and right field, respectively, and it’s unclear whether the Dodgers are ready or willing to give up on Joc Pederson yet, especially following a strong postseason performance. Verdugo could potentially be used to land a strong second baseman. It’s not outside the realm of possibility that he could be used to acquire a more proven outfielder, either. Still, the Dodgers have four other top 100 prospects outside of Buehler and Verdugo. Even if they attempt to make a blockbuster trade during the offseason, they might prefer to move someone a bit further away from the majors.
What do you think? Which of these top 25 prospects is most likely to be with another organization by the time spring training rolls around? (Poll link for app users)
Lewis Brinson if Milwaukee decides to trade for an ace rather than sign a free agent one
That’s a pretty big “if”. They were quite reluctant to even talk about him at all in July.
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I think it’ll more than likely be Robles or Tucker. Both teams are contenders and will be looking to add more players that are ready right now. They won’t care what price it costs.
To me Robles seems like the one most likely to stay put with Harper nearing free agency.
I agree muscle man. If Harper leaves, Robles will be there to take his place
The Astros will care. There NOT gonna trade away any top prospects. The Astros will see Tucker on there team soon enough
Tucker is not being traded anywhere this offseason. I believe that Fisher is the more likely trade candidate. Tucker will no doubt be ready for a roster spot in 2019. It makes more sense to keep him around for when Springer departs via feee agency in a couple years.
I dont think any of them do. I think we see a lot of Cardinals prospects changing hands, a Red Sox prospect or 2, and maybe some kids in Atlanta’s system.
Is Verdugo for Hernandez on the Phils a possibility? Not sure how Hernandez has done recently but he was a pretty high value piece last time I checked.
Idk if the dodgers would
Give verdugo up just for Hernandez and I don’t see the Phillies need for another outfielder. But I guess you can never have enough depth.
Dont see the dodgers need for a second baseman with forsythe in place. Not to mention hedges or kikè Hernandez could play second base in a pinch
I don’t think any of them move either. Astrid need Tucker’s cheap salary in the years to come due to all the salary demands that are going to come, Robles to replace Harper. I doubt the Indians move anyone after moving a couple for Miller.
robles should be kept in hopes of replacing Harper
Agreed
Werth is gone too and who knows if Taylor and Goodwin can play everyday.
Robles because the Nats are going to go all in Harpers last year
Yep because Harper is 100% leaving DC. Everyone knows that. All my friends who follow the Nats (a lot of them) say he’s definitely gone. They’re upset about it but also understand why he wants to go.
Another “going all in” comment. Well why not keep Robles since Harper will be gone after next year
Verdugo hands down.. he’s in a position of depth for the Dodgers and he’s already been past by a couple
Verdugo passed by which players? He is the Dodgers no. 2 prospect.
I don’t think he’s been necessarily passed, but the emergence of guys like Toles, Taylor, even Diaz on the minor league side have made Verdugo somewhat expendable. His defensive and hit tools fit so well for a corner, in which he profiles best as, but that ability or inability to hit for power is going to hurt his value. You also have to question the maturity issues, both physically and mentally. His ability levels are ahead of his readiness to play 162. I like Verdugo I think he’ll hit maybe even for power with juiced balls and his willingness to make adjustments, but he’s just not in the same vein as Seager and Bellinger. Even BA’s comps weren’t to encouraging. If they have an opportunity for controllable major impact, I don’t have a doubt Verdugo and Alvarez could be potentially first on the block.
Plus the Dodgers wouldn’t include him in the Darvish deal
Because they didn’t have to for a half season rental
I agree totally.
The one on Dave Dombrowski’s team
^
Reyes, Kelly, Flaherty, Bader, O’Neil I would say could potentially be swapped in a deal…
Reyes would be a tough move at this point coming off Tommy John surgery. It would be selling low at the moment.
The Cardinals would probably have a little trouble moving O’Neill. The kS% would be a tough sell, just as it was for the Mariners.
Reyes
and Kelly won’t be traded!
The Dodgers don’t need a 2nd baseman
Pederson will be traded before Verdugo.
Doubt they trade Joc especially after his postseason. If they trade Verdugo it will be for a #2 SP
Post season does not overcome his poor hitting mechanics over last 2 seasons, including time at AAA, and his decline in defensive metrics. Verdugo could very well be as good as Benintendi (without the speed).
Verdugo is certainty not as good of a prospect as Benintendi was. Not the same power and speed. Verdugo also is likely not a CFer so the lack of power doesn’t play as well in LF or RF. And I know it was small sample size, but he looked overmatched in September, similar to JDL last year.
Joc just needs to avoid the horrendous month or 6 weeks he seems to have. In his career, he was great in 2015 from April-July, good for all of 2016, and good in 2017 from May to August and in the playoffs. Not all of the Dodgers prospects will develop like Seager and Bellinger.
Verdugo is not a power hitter. Nothing wrong with a .280-300 BA if he can maintain it. He also barley played in September.
Verdugo turned 21 in Sept; in AA he was 4 years younger than the average age; AAA over 5 years younger. His power will develop. His speed will still play in CF, but not as fast as Benintendi. Joc? it isn’t a month or 6 weeks, his hitting mechanics have been horrible for last 2 seasons although he looked better in the WS. Pederson is no where close to the talent of Seager and Bellinger — Verdugo is a better prospect than Pederson
Stop just stop plz stop, Verdugo isn’t a cf in the NL west. He’s not. Let’s stop eating that narrative. Pederson was and is a better athlete than Verdugo and he’s probably seen his final days in CF on an everyday basis.
Pederson will not get traded before Verdugo. For one he’s hit the arb phase , 2 you’d be selling at his lowest point, 3 the loss of attractiveness=that’s not this FO. Yes power does develop with age, but it’s important to note some swings don’t lend themselves to power. And no Joc has not been bad the last two seasons. He was horrendous last year, but the adjustments he made the year prior were absolutely intriguing. No one would even admit it, but it’d be interesting to find out how hurt he was after that groin injury. So yes Verdugo is intriguing, but let’s also note his extreme OPS spikes came in extremely hitter friendly environments. If we’re being honest Verdugo is nowhere close to the class of Seager and Bellinger either. Verdugo is good, but let’s be honest about his overall profile and fit.
Comparing everyone to Bellinger and Seager is unfair. Both those guys are already superstars. If everyone is compared to them no one would look good. The only dodgers prospect who looks like those guys is DJ Peters. Verdugo has the making of a very solid player. Only way he gets traded is for someone under team control for a while. Willy Calhoun for Darvish was a disaster the front office will learn from
I mean not really quite honestly he didn’t fit an NL roster or at least an NL roster that isn’t GAB. He is for all intents and purposes a DH. I honestly love Calhoun. The bat plays, but the defense does not. They sold high instead of allowing him to languish at AAA, due to the bat being so far ahead of the defense. He’ll fit in a small ballpark with an available DH. The problem becomes the value of such a player in today’s game isn’t there.
If you think that was a disaster then I’m sorry obtaining value for value will never occur. It also probably makes it quite clear you didn’t account for his extreme shortcomings. They took a chance on a high upside arm that didn’t work out during the WS. Whether it was due to the inability of P’s being able to throw that slider due to the seams or Darvish simply out of gas. You make that trade every single time.
No you don’t make that trade. Unless its Verlander or someone who is under control for some time. Calhouns bat plays. Him stuck between Bellinger Seager and Turner would be lethal. Just because calhoun has poor defensive skills doesn’t mean throw him away for 1 month of yu darvish. I said it at the time of the deal. They should have taken a chance on calhoun panning out than 1 month of darvish october stats. Its too risky and it didn’t pay off. Darvish was supposed to help them win the world series. He ended up losing it for them.
I’m sorry if he’s not playable defensively he’s not playable. We seem to forget how big poor defense played in the 16 nlcs. And then we saw the major example of poor defensive play in 17 nlcs. This time it was on the other end. The difference in this discussion is we are talking about defensive play that is barely playable. So you can preach it, but they made exactly the right call. Then you consider where he fits. Well definitely not on the infield. He’s not seeing LF for the Dodgers. With the talent on this team it’s quite clear a player has to be more than one dimensional.
At the end of the day you are correct. No you don’t throw him away. You try to obtain value for him and you give a player an opportunity to establish himself somewhere he can fit. That wasn’t in Los Angeles. And no the most important aspect of having a team that impressive is trying to get them over the top. Whatever happened in the WS happened. It doesn’t negate the fact that he helped get them there. And to be quite honest if Jansen doesn’t miss mid mid with a hanging cutter and Kersh can protect one of the two leads this is all completely moot. Darvish wasn’t good in the WS, but when it comes down to it the reason they lost the World Series is because multiple guys failed to perform. My main point is we can as fans be prospect huggers, but also realize the main goal is win a WS. At the same time you need to also be realistic about the shortcomings. Can’t sit here and tell me going into the WS with a rotation of Kersh,Hill, Wood back to Kersh on short rest is a WS contender. I’m not buying that. You also have to be smart enough to know that Verlander was never really a serious consideration.
Verlander wasn’t going to happen because of the contract and Sonny Gray would have taken a lot more than Calhoun. What they could have done was get Doolittle and Madson for Calhoun. Both those are solid bullpen pieces under control for beyond 2017. Defense is not a big deal in left field. The NLCS this year was not decided by defense. Last year i can see what you are talking about but the hitting was what killed them.
You’re reaching. Significantly reaching. No the better package was still the nats package. Not only that if the dodgers were going to beat that package they’d be doing so taking on salary’s and assumption that Dolittle could stay healthy. So stop that was never going to happen. The A’s also already have a more favorable DH/1b. And rumor has it they are looking to trade him to move a better version, Davis, to DH. So again your example fails. If you don’t think LF defense was a major aspect in this years nlcs oh boy you weren’t watching. I’d have to honestly ask you if you actually watched Calhoun play defense in LF? And no much the same with Verdugo they were never going to see significant time down the stretch. And sure offense did kill them sort of, but again it came down to the inefficiencies of reliance upon a rookie playing the most games ever in Bellinger, a guy in Turner who was clearly injured, an adjustment that was made on Puig, and so on so forth. Verdugo and Calhoun were never honestly in the running to get ABs down the stretch. It just wasn’t going to happen. So yes offense killed them, but it was offense in positional play that you absolutely could not argue Calhoun would have seen time at. Then again it still doesn’t address the major need of adding another SP. It just seems extremely unrealistic to believe Calhoun would have ever seen his way to the mlb roster for the WS especially seeing as though Verdugo could barely even get a sniff. So you can play hindsight 20/20 and yes they probably could have used another rh RP. But it’s clear. The stars getting paid like stars failed to produce and that’s why they lost at the end of the day.
I never said Calhoun should have been in the world series roster or with the team in the playoffs. Im talking 2018 and beyond that his bat would make the dodgers lineup look really nice. Not this year. As for Calhouns trade value, to say there was no better option than a rental is a stretch. They could have got Brad Hand who made an impact on the world series and the next 2 seasons under control. Point is Dodgers got a steal drafting Calhoun when they did. It was an absolute waste to trade him for 4 starts from a rental pitcher. There is a reason the front office hated trading a big price for rentals. They should have stuck to their principals. Dodgers steamrolled the Cubs in the nlcs. Left field defense had absolutely no impact on the series.
Brad hand could have*
Again Hand really? C’mon honestly it’s still the same concept. He holds no major impact in the NL none absolutely none. That’s the concept I don’t know if you understand. Maybe AL. But is he better all around than Urias? There are very few positions he can play due to size and defensive deficiencies. So Hand? No absolutely no. There is a reason the package started and ended with Verdugo. Again Calhoun for Hand= you are reaching. The value is not what you think it is.
Did you follow deadline day? Padres dropped their heavy asking price and still no one met it. Padres are a rebuilding club. They can afford to take a chance on his bat. Its just a matter how much more they possibly would have wanted. And you are really overstating calhouns poor defense. He made 1 error in 11 games. Thats not that bad. Yes he is a below average defender but its not going to hold him back. Look at Schwarber. He looks really bad in the field often but the Cubs really dont care
Say what you want but the FO got essentially what they drafted in Tampa, when they drafted him then; a dude that could absolutely rake, but who didn’t really have a position. The only difference is there’s no DH in LA. And sorry but check again they got way more than 4 starts.
If you’re really quoting errors oh boy we have issues. The main issue with errors esp in the OF is if you don’t touch the ball there is no error. And if you actually watched, which I’m making no assumptions upon, you’d well you’d understand only in a small ballpark would that work. And btw that really doesn’t take into account the extreme- UZR and DRS. Small sample size we know, but it’s not new. That’s even before mentioning the eye test.
And yes I follow it all, but it still doesn’t make your assertions true. The padres are still looking for long term impact pieces. In the NL a DH doesn’t fit said description, but hey…. especially with the major major depth they have in the OF. If you don’t think the Cubs care about Schwarber you might want to watch this offseason. I’m sorry brother your assertion holds no water and I’m absolutely a dodger fan and a Dodger prospect follower. I just don’t paint everything with roses.
And again playing in the NL central is still not like playing in the NL West
I think Calhoun could have been fine in LF long term for them. But hey thats just me. If he hits 40 HRs and has a 900 OPS for texas in a season (not saying he will, but he definitely has the potential) would we really care that his DRS is poor?
Calhoun would have to slug .600 or more to have a .900 OPS. He doesn’t walk enough. His defense is bad. Verdugo will hopefully get dealt just because he can’t show up on time.
With balls flying out the way they are 40 in a Cracker Jack box not all that impressive. Look we can agree to disagree it happens. All I’m saying he’s really not an NL player. With scouts pondering as to whether or not he’s even athletic enough to play in the OF there’s enough cause for concern. I was in the boat hoping a full year of being able to work defensively could quite possibly transform him into a playable 2b with shifts to cover up his def flaws. Sadly it never developed. I like Calhoun and I think Tex is good for him. I just don’t think the FO loses any sleep at all over this trade. They went after a major need and gave up a piece that didn’t really fit the current makeup of this team.
The Indians trading for Hand could solve two of their issues with the pen and at 1st as well.
Hand and one of Pirela, Solarte, or Dickerson even to man 1st solves those two issues. All 3 have some experience playing 1st with Pirela and Solarte coming off good seasons.
Padres have a logjam in the OF-Jankowski, Renfoe, Margot, Dickerson, Pirela, Cordero and INF 2B/3B- Spangy, Asuaje, Solarte, Villanueva- currently
Packaging players would be one way to clear the log jam.
God how I missed the Brad Hand trade proposals….
Well did you watch the playoffs? It was abundantly clear that every team’s bullpen could have use a Hand.
Very true
Oh you mean the top 100 prospect in the 50-100 range plus 1 prospect (organizational 10-15 range) or 2 prospect (organizational 15-20 range)? For the best available relief pitcher on the market that comes with 2 more years of control via arbitration……those trade proposals?
Preller just got done watching the Dodgers, Nationals, Yankees, Cubs, etc pens blow their chances at a WS- his asking price just went up.
Yankees went out and got Robertson- who gave up 5 runs in the ALCS……Kahnle gave up 3.
The cubs pen YIKES in the NLCS
Dodgers pen was awful in the WS of all times LOL
Nationals wasted trading for Kintzler who cost them the NLDS LOL
Even the Rockies in the wildcard and Diamonbacks in the NLDS could have used Hand.
“The top 100 prospect in the 50-100 range plus 1 prospect (organizational 10-15 range) or 2 prospect (organizational 15-20 range)”
Ah, I remember those trade proposals. What you said right here was basically what we deducted it down to and then when nothing happening at the deadline, we were all left scratching our heads.
Now that the playoffs revealed some holes that still lie within certain contender’s bullpens, it will be interesting to see how differently they view Hand in the offseason compared to the Deadline.
Every article you are talking about Hand. Yes he is really good. But the yankees and cubs lose with or without hand. Watson and Cingranit pitched well in the WS who was there instead of Hand. Dodgers may win with hand but its unrealistic to expect an in division trade. Hand has never pitched a significant game in his life. You never know how he could react. The playoffs proved the stage can get too big for some guys. You also act like Hand in a different environment would be good too which you just dont know. He pitches in the grand canyon on a team with no pressure. Look what happened to Justin Wilson. Get over the fact you didnt get Gleyber Torres for Hand
Kintzler is not the reason the Nats lost. The Nats also showed that you can find relief help without giving up top prospects.
Plus the bullpen isn’t why the Dodgers lost, it was their rotation not going deep enough into the games. So I am not sure Hand’s price went up. If anything the price for controllable starters went up.
You can’t not make a trade because you assume the pressure will be too big for him. Hand has nasty stuff that can get anyone out no matter what team he plays for. No one can know for sure if the Dodgers having hand would of been the difference maker, however one can assume hand would only help the bullpen because of how good he is. Watching the World Series only justified the importance of a solid bullpen. If the Dodgers don’t wanna trade good prospects then they’re not gonna get good bullpen arms, it’s as simple as that. The only other way is to open up your wallets and spend $$$ which Dodgers ownership doesn’t wanna do
If the Dodgers got Hand they would not have got Watson and Cingrani. Watson and Cingrani were major contributor to their playoff run. Hand would have done nothing unless they got him in addition to those guys. And they dont need to give up major prospects or money to find a bullpen arm. Morrow was a minor league signing. Freidman knows how to find good bullpen arms for cheap. Relivers are too much of a crapshoot to deal major stuff for unless they are chapman or miller types. Hand is not. In 2 years he could go back to being mediocre
same thing happened with kimbrel.
think the best offer was mateo plus prospects from the yankees for kimbrel gyorko and some cash.
low and behold kimbrel wound up getting margot allen guerra asuaje.
rockies may lose greg holland. hand to the rockies for pint, hampson, and tyler helps both teams.
get over we didnt get torress for hand? LOL i nor many padres fans never thought we’d get torress for hand.
LOL you got reading issues walker? I clearly stated what the return from hand would look like.
alsp I brought up hand because hand was brought up in the article as a potential trade with the indians for tristian mckenize LOL.
how you managed to comment and be completely oblivious to all of this is astonishing LOL
game 3- cubs vs nats cubs win 2-1. kintzler gave up the go ahead run
game 5- kintzler gave up the 8th run and solis the 9th run. cubs win 9-8.
he cost them big time in two key games.
Your trade packages for Hand are delousional. Riley Pint really??? What a joke. You expect the rockies to trade him for a relief pitcher in that ballpark. lol pure comedy. How about Hand for Trout? Is that good enough for you
The Nats lost because they couldn’t hit water if they fell out of a boat in the post-season! The bats just went totally cold!
If you dont like people making fun of your literacy skills I suggest you do a better job reading before commenting.
I like how you criticize but dont have the balls to say what a hand trade would look like. typical LOL. your parents would be ashamed of you.
go be a disappointment elsewhere walker. you have no business being here. you’ve proven that already.
the rockies have enough to compete but need pen help. either they trade for pen help or scrap heap cause nobody is going to pitch there unless they overpay by a lot.
Ok this is what a hand trade would look like. I will use 3 teams that could use him and this would be a reasonable return
Astros- Yordan Alvarez, Colin Moran and a pitcher in the latter half of the top 30.
Red Sox- Michael Chavis and Roniel Raudes
Twins- Fernando Romero, Kohl Stewart and Mitch Garver Those are my examples of realistic returns.
Verdugo is most likely to be traded because the Dodgers have such amazing depth.
The rest don’t really make much sense.
If Toles comes back healthy more likely that Verdugo could be traded. Otherwise, more likely they would move Pederson, although he wouldn’t bring nearly the return.
Pederson has been not good since his rookie year. He still has some potential though, and might benefit from a change of scenery.
I’ve long thought that Pederson could be interesting with a different team
With Robles you also have to take into account that Harper will be a free agent soon and they might not want to pay him the $ he wants.
Great work as usual, Kyle. I remember you from our Wahoo’s on First Days!
Hey Michael! And the championship of our WoF fantasy baseball league of course! Haha.
Oh man that was a brutal competition until the very end hahaha
My guess is Michael A. Tater gets the trade over Robles, then in turn Robles becomes the starting OF. With Eaton coming back they’ll have to clear room and they might as well opt for the cheaper, younger player and maybe save a couple dollars to try and throw an Harper after 2018 concludes. This is a mighty cold take, as you can tell.
You don’t trade starting pitching. McKenzie isn’t going anywhere.
Exactly, and neither is Mejia for a 1B. If Santana doesn’t return they will go with a 1B by committee approach or sign a guy to a 1 year prove it deal from the scrap heap.
I would normally agree but they traded Justice Sheffield in the Miller trade so they aren’t afraid to do it. I almost never view anyone as untouchable but would think both those guys fall into the “only in a perfect deal” situation.
Sheffield was moved because they had depth at starting pitching. If Santana walks they’ll sign someone like Duda or maybe a reunion with Napoli. Mejia and Mckenzie aren’t going anywhere
Right on, neither will be moved in the offseason for a 1B. They will shop at the usual scratch and dent sale for somebody to fill that role if and when Santana signs elsewhere.
I think the Dodgers will trade Grandal and Verdugo if the right player is available wether it’s a pitcher or a every day outfielder. Wouldn’t surprise me if they trade Pederson as well since they have outfield depth in the minors and Toles is coming back next year ask
Dodgers should trade joc in a deal for Stanton
Dodgers don’t need another outfielder though. Need a starter and a second baseman.
would you rather have Stanton next to taylor/puig, or any of the alternate options we got?
Take Tucker off this list. Set chance he is traded. Fisher and Marwin would be dealt well before Tucker.
zero chance*
Yeah there is absolutely no chance Tucker gets traded. They won the WS. Theres no reasom to deal him.
Exactly. Not going to trade best prospect with big pieces possibly leaving in next several seasons. Trading Marwin for a reliever instantly opens up playing time for Tucker. Neither Fisher or Marisnick are ahead of him on depth chart in any form.
The Astros aren’t trading Marwin. Makes no sense. Even if he regresses, he’s still super valuable to the team as a utility everyday starter.
He’s also an impending free agent and will be signing elsewhere for a lot more money than Houston will pay him.
But he wasn’t on WS Roster and so wasn’t other Tucker.
I agree. He’s not on the 40 man yet, and could still go for another year of seasoning. In the meantime, the Astros have Fisher, Marisnick, and Marwin to man left field.
I’d say twins Nick Gordon. The new staff sees Royce as the SS of the future, and need to get an arm.
Nice call.
Probably Greg Blosser
I feel like the nats would trade Soto before Robles mainly because Robles can play center unlike Soto and they should play eaton in left because he wasn’t a good defensive center fielder before the injury and theirs no way he’ll be better now. Taylor is a great fourth outfielder and could start on a bad team but not for a World Series caliber team and the same for Goodwin.
Bobby Bradley.
Probably, but he’s nowhere near the caliber of prospect this article was looking at
Not happening unless they make a big FA signing, and that’s not a good idea. Then you’ve got EE & Santana declining and locked up to big deals.
I’d rather give Bradley one more year in AAA and get a cheap stopgap. Sign Napoli again and see if he can find his mojo
Out of these 5, I guess McKenzie feels the most likely to me, just because he’s an A-ball pitcher, and I could see Cleveland deciding that their abundance of pitching and the fact that he’s still a year or two away could make him worth cashing in while their window is wide open. Really though, I’m not sure I see any of these guys moving. I could see either of Brinson or Rodgers traded if Milwaukee or Colorado elect to push the chips way in for a starting pitcher, but I think there’s a good chance none of that top 25 referenced gets moved this off-season
He’ll be ready for the rotation just when the current staff breaks up and a slot opens up for him. He’s not going anywhere.
I’m not sure why an elite bullpen arm would be of importance to the Indians who had one of the best bullpens in ’17 but if accurate then I could see a package of Betances and one of Tyler Austin, Garrett Cooper or Mike Ford for McKenzie and a couple of other prospects being viable. You get a legit set up/closer with history for 2 more years at arb market value and a decent young fringe 1b options to battle it out in spring training.
No way. Trade a top prospect Starting pitcher for the Yankees scraps? Not happening
Jurickson Profar
Is not a prospect but I agree it’s time for a change of scenery for him.
Profar is already only a few years away from free agency. He has not qualified to even be a prospect for years
Archer is about the only player I see the Dodgers being willing to talk about Verdugo on…
Not really sure who the Astros would even be targeting to send Tucker to. They obviously don’t value relievers that highly. Unless a team is trading a top 5 reliever under team control for many years exists. Right now all I see are Knebel and maybe Green/Kahnle on the Yankees. The track record isn’t there and I don’t think either team would be trading them.
Brad Hand and Brittons lack of team control, does not warrant their top prospects wen they have the depth to acquire either with other prospects.