With the baseball non-waiver trade deadline approaching, teams are starting to sort themselves into two groups; buyers and sellers. This year very few teams are willing to give up on making the playoffs because of the added playoff spot, but it looks as if the Marlins, Mariners, Twins, Royals, Phillies, Cubs, Astros, Padres, and Rockies are out of it. Every other should look to improve their team as most division races are close, some of the trades proposed here might seem a little wacky, but both teams will benefit from them in the long run.
1. Phillies send Cole Hamels (but only 2/3 of his contract) to BoSox for SS Jose Iglesias and C Blake Swihart
For the first time in what seems like forever the Phillies are long shots to make the playoffs. There have been rumors that Hamels would be moved but no potential trades have been made public. The Red Sox are only 2 games out of the AL East which is quite an accomplishment considering they have the 19th best ERA in the Majors. Hamels would help bolster their rotation with his 3.07 ERA and 11-4 record. He also has the 12th best WHIP in the game at 1.09, the true measure of how effective a pitcher is. Hamels only has one year left on his contract and is set to make $15 million this year, the Phillies should cover at least 1/3 of the remaining money since the Red Sox need Hamels.
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| Jose Iglesias |
The Red Sox would be giving up two of their top 10 prospects but Jose Iglesias is the #2 SS in their system and Blake Swihart is their #2 catcher. Sure, both players could switch positions but the Red Sox are pretty set at both second and third so their isn't much room for Iglesias and Swihart is blocked by Ryan Lavarnway and Salty behind the plate and by Adrian Gonzalez at first. The 22 year old Iglesias is Major League ready at short stop and since the Phillies have a rapidly aging infield, they could try to move him to either third or second base. In 2012 so far he has hit .261 in 60 games at AAA and .333 in 10 games in the Majors. Swihart is a 20 year old catcher currently hitting .265 while slugging.393 at A, Carlos Ruiz is 33 years old and by the time Swihart is major league ready, Ruiz may be out of his prime.
2. Marlins send 2B-OF Chris Coghlan and RHP Heath Bell and get C Hector Sanchez, RHP Heath Hembree, and LHP Mike Kickham
Let's start off with what the Giants will be sending away in this deal, Catcher Hector Sanchez is only 23 years old and on their Major League roster, sounds like he is too good to give away unless you remember that the Giants also have Buster Posey on their team. Yes, Posey has gotten injured in the past but this is a high risk trade that could provide plenty of reward. The Giants also possess two other catchers in their farm system that could back up as well as current back up Eli Whiteside (who is a douche) who is filling in for the injured Sanchez. Hembree is currently in AAA for the Giants and has taken up the closer role. He has 13 saves in 32 appearances for the Fresno Grizzlies. His 5+ ERA might appear scary but opponents are only hitting .217 off of him. Mike Kickham is more of a long shot to make the major leagues since the Marlins are pretty solid in the rotation and Kickham isn't a top prospect but he could help in the bullpen one day. He has spent 2012 at the AA level and has been doing very well. He is 8-7 with a 2.71 ERA and at 23 seems to be soon ready for the Majors albeit with much upside.
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| Chris Coghlan |
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| Hector Sanchez |
The Giants will be receiving two good players that have struggled recently but with a change of scenery their luck might change. At 34 years of age, signing Heath Bell to a multi-year was very, very stupid. He has blown 6 saves for them this year but in the past he was an all-star. Sending him out west might be the best thing for him since he was successful with the Padres and maybe he is just a California type of guy. Chris Coghlan was the Rookie of the Year in 2009 but since then he has been sent down twice by the Marlins, now he is 27 and his career either needs to take off again or it might go down the drain. The Yankees could be another good possible fit for him but the New York pressure could get to him. He is very versatile and could fill in almost any where for the Giants. If this trade would go down, it could turn into nothing or it could win the Giants a World Series and revitalize the Marlins Franchise.
3. Yankees Acquire RHP J.J. Putz and OF Justin Upton in exchange for cash(TBD), OF Mason Williams, and 3B Tyler Austin
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| Mason Williams |
What the Yankees get here is a flatout superstar in Justin Upton, he might not have been himself so far but he is still young (24) and has the potential to be great. The Diamondbacks are only 7 games out but have made it clear they went to get rid of Upton and they should also try to get something out of the 8.5 million they spent on him. Since the Yankees have lost both Brett Gardner and Mariano Rivera for the what looks like the rest of the season both their bullpen and outfield have held up well. This doesn't mean that they still can't upgrade. The Yankees are use to taking up old washed up players but this is a chance for them to get quality players at a quality age, Putz is 35 and at the tail end of his career but also the tail end of his contract while Upton still has a few years left on his deal. The Diamondbacks would need to find young talent to help replace Upton in the line up. Since the D-Backs already have plenty of pitching prospects (some are already in Majors) they don't need to receive a pitching prospect. Because the Yanks have money, they are loaded with prospects and even if they trade some away, they can always sign a free agent or go to one of their other prospects. Both Williams and Austin are at the tops of the Yankees system and Williams is 85 in Baseball America's Top 100 Prospects. Austin will soon be able to replace Ryan Roberts at 3rd and is quite a hitter, never hitting below .300 at any stop in the minors. Mason provides an average bat with above average speed as well as some power. Both are only in High-A so they are a couple years away from the show.
4. Braves give up prospects RHP Zeke Spruil and SS Tyler Pastornicky and Receive Shortstop Marwin Gonzalez and if they can LHP Wesley Wright
Yes, everyone knows that the Braves have a stacked bullpen but why not try to make it better. Venters is currently hurt and someone other than O'Flaherty has to help get the ball in to Kimbrel's hands. The Braves have a gaping hole at shortstop that they have tried to plug with Paul Janish but that will probably not work out. Gonzalez is only 23 years old and hitting just under .300 in his first year of the majors. He does not produce many homers but he can hit the ball with power in the gap for doubles. Wright would only be used against lefties as righties are hitting over .300 against him but he has held righties down to .185 and has a 4 to 1 K to BB ration against them. The Braves need to win the World Series and everyone in baseball would be happy if they did. Chipper Jones is a no doubt Hall of Famer and this move could earn him a ring.
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| Marwin Gonzalez |
The Braves would be giving up quite a bit in this deal though. Pastornicky has already been in the majors and has the ability to turn into a great player, it's just that Gonzalez is one year ahead of him and the Braves need Pastornicky to be one year ahead because of the Jones situation. He hit .252 in 161 Plate Appearances in the Majors this year while hitting .268 at the AAA level. Spruill is in his 4th season out of high school and still appears a while away from the bigs. The second round draft pick has a 4.18 ERA in AA this year while possessing a WHIP of 1.263. Maybe a change of scenery will help this young man out since he could make the Astros better.
5. Cubs send Ryan Dempster to St. Louis and Matt Garza to Baltimore while building for the future up the middle
Let's first talk about the Ryan Dempster situation, the Cardinals, Nationals, and Braves have all been said to be interested in the pitcher. The Nationals do not need to improve their team what so ever, they would only hurt themselves by giving up prospects to get him. It is understood that in a year they have a chance to win a ring they would go all out, but they have a team that could win it already and if they get him and miss, their future might be in doubt. Same thing goes for the Braves, they have to ask themselves, does this really make us that much better. The answer for them is no and they need a shortstop more than another pitcher. Both St. Louis and Baltimore are in contention for the world series and by picking up another pitcher.
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| Dan Klein |
The Orioles would be giving up a lot in this proposed trade as they would be sending their #2 and #3 pitching prospects as well as their #1 OF prospect.
Robert Bundy is the older brother of the O's top pitching prospect Dylan Bundy, so maybe moving out of the shadow of younger brother will be good for him. He will not be a top of the rotation pitcher but could have good effect coming of out of the bullpen or being at the end of the rotation.
Dan Klein is 23 years old and has an ERA of 1.11 between AA and High A this year, the only problem is that he is constantly injured. If he can stay healthy, there is no reason why he can't be the future of the Cubs organization. The Outfielder they would be giving up is
Glynn Davis, this kid can run and he has an average stick, he will boost their defense by covering a lot of ground but he is only in High A and a couple of years away from the Majors. Some might say that this is giving up way too much for Garza but this might be the only year that everything falls right in their season.
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| Mitch Harris |
The Cardinals wouldn't have to give up as much because Dempster has the ability to become a free agent after this season unlike Garza, who is still bound by arbitration. They send away
RHP Mitch Harris, RHP Trevor Rosenthal, and C Cody Stanley. Mitch Harris is a pitcher that the Cardinals drafted in 2008 but since he attended the Naval Academy he has been busy fulfilling his service obligation and the Cubs could use him for PR since an appearance by him would potentially increase attendance. Rosenthal has a 2.78 ERA in AA this year and if he keeps it up, he could end up in the show soon, but the Cardinal's door is closing and Dempster could help them win now. Stanley is not as hot of a prospect as he is 23 and struggled offensively in A since being called up from Rookie Ball. In 4 years in the minors he has thrown out 41% of base runners so he has more upside behind the plate than at it.
All these trades have the potential to help one team win the World Series this year and another win it 5 years ago. In baseball, some players become worthless to one team because of either better players at their position or they simply don't fit into the system. Some teams in this trade are obviously winners over the other. Prospects are never a sure thing so teams do take a risk by sending away their star, but when you suck you have to do something. It is almost 99% sure that none of these trades will happen, but you never know what will happen at the trade deadline.
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