As the hot stove continues to warm back up after the holidays, here’s three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around baseball throughout the day today:
1. What’s next for Arizona following their trade with Toronto?
The trade last week that sent Daulton Varsho to Toronto with Gabriel Moreno and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. heading to Arizona in exchange brought to a conclusion two storylines that had stretched throughout the whole offseason to that point- that of the Diamondbacks trading one of their outfielders and that of the Blue Jays trading one of their catchers. Toronto could be mostly done after adding Varsho, Kevin Kiermaier, Chris Bassitt, and Erik Swanson, but Arizona still has work to do to round out their roster, even after adding Kyle Lewis in a trade with the Mariners earlier this offseason. The D-Backs lineup looks fairly set at this point, but Mike Hazen’s front office has been said to be targeting relief pitching this offseason, and even though that didn’t come to pass in the Varsho deal, there’s plenty of free agent relievers left on the market for Arizona to choose from. Chief among them is former Diamondback Andrew Chafin, though others such as Michael Fulmer and Will Smith also remain available. Perhaps even more in need of additions than the relief corps is the rotation, however. Zac Gallen and Merrill Kelly combine to form a solid top of the rotation, and Madison Bumgarner is locked into a rotation spot toward the back, but the D-Backs could really use another arm or two to occupy the middle of their rotation. Nathan Eovaldi, Michael Wacha, and Johnny Cueto are the top options remaining on the free agent market, though a bounce-back candidate such as Wade Miley or Corey Kluber could also make sense.
2. Which teams remain a fit for a Kepler deal?
The Twins are known to have interest in dealing longtime right fielder Max Kepler this offseason, and it’s possible that, with the long-awaited outfield deal out of Arizona done, Kepler’s market could begin to heat up. The Yankees and Marlins both were known to have interest in Arizona’s outfielders prior to the Varsho deal, and if Arizona is done trading from its outfield corps then its possible either team could pivot to Kepler as a less expensive backup option. While the Dodgers and Braves are both known to have interest in upgrading their outfield mixes, the addition of Kepler’s $8.5MM salary in 2023 would be a complicated add for either team, making a deal unlikely. Perhaps the best fits for Kepler are the Rockies and Rangers, both teams in need of outfield help who could be improved by Kepler’s steady though unspectacular bat even if he fails to return to the solidly above average bat he was 2019-2020, when he posted a .831 OPS in 182 games.
3. When will the Marlins move an arm?
The Marlins are known to be shopping members of their starting rotation to other clubs in their search for improved offense, though they’ve made it clear both Sandy Alcantara and Eury Perez are off-limits. Pablo Lopez is the most frequently discussed trade candidate in the Marlins rotation, but Trevor Rogers could make more sense for clubs with a longer path to contention, as he is under club control for two more years than Lopez, a free agent after the 2024 season. The Dodgers and Cardinals, as immediate clear contenders with solid rotations lacking in depth, seem like prime candidates to deal for Lopez, as such a deal would allow them to push Dustin May and Steven Matz, respectively, into swing roles. The Orioles and Diamondbacks, meanwhile, could make sense as partners in a Rogers trade. Both clubs are making pushes toward increased competitiveness in 2023, but face tough divisions that could limit their playoff opportunities in the near-term, making a longer term investment make more sense. Both teams are also in desperate need of rotation help; Arizona’s situation is detailed above, while Baltimore arguably downgraded the rotation by swapping out Jordan Lyles for Kyle Gibson when it was already the weakest part of their roster. All four of these clubs have the young, controllable position players/prospects who could be attractive to the Marlins as a return for one of their pitchers, as well.
While I understand that Kepler has value for CF eligibility however the reality is he has no value to what the twins may demand.
Gallo $11 mill. Bellinger $17.5 mill guaranteed. Kepler, with better offensive production than both of them the last 2 years, at a max of $9.5 mill is nothing more than a moderate risk. Yanks got a prospect with a solid floor of a RP for 1/2 season of Gallo. Twins could get more if they eat any of the contract.
I agree with better production than Cody however Gallo by far had better production then Max & Cody in 2021.
Kepler will be helped with no shifting more than most. In ’23
I would love for the Rockies to get Kepler for the right price. He is solid, yet unspectacular. But his biggest asset is his contact skills. The lack of strikeouts plays very well at Coors. I think he could improve his BA 50 points with a trade to Colorado. Maybe even more.
I agree. And he’s the type of player Colorado targets- Productive w bat that makes games fun to watch at coors
And he’s a very solid defender who could help their pitchers out
Has Kepler ever played leftfield? It’s like the “Bermuda Triangle” out there at Yankee Stadium. That’s why Reynolds would of been nice. Oh well.
Indeed, but not at the Pirates asking price!!
Twins are willing to throw out a Mendoza-level platoon.
If we’re talking about the 2019 Max Kepler, there’s much to like there. The problem for the Twins is that it’s not 2019.
Nearly every players stats looked better in 2019
Year of the homer, Homer…
Liberatore, Carlson, Burleson and Mason Winn for Lopez and Rogers.
Throw in Walker too!
Yeah, right.
Wouldn’t throwing in a walker really slow down your base running?
If they wouldnt part with carlson for Soto theres no way they do that…although I’d be 100% fine with that deal if mia threw in an OF like jesus sanchez.
How about gorman liberatore and carlson. And think Miami would do that in a heartbeat
Travis
Both sides would say no
Cards seem too attached to Carlson
Fish would want more for both pitchers
Cardinals probably not throwing Carlson in any trade after trading Bader last season. However, Liberatore, Burleson, and Gorman should be enough to get Lopez
I dont get what Orioles are doing/not doing. They need to find some SP, should be putting together package for Lopez.
There are a lot of teams that would be improved by Lopez. The fact that he hasn’t been moved already or that there hasn’t been a lot more rumors with specific proposals tells me either the Marlins are asking too much, or the Marlins are just difficult to deal with for some other reason.
It’s probably that they aren’t able to find a time that coordinates well with Kim Ng’s interview and special appearances schedule. Once they find that, teams will be able to talk to her about a trade.
Is that your go to statement? You commented the same thing twice on one article.
Marlins are not ready or equipped as it is. They lack many pieces, a 3rd baseman, a 1st baseman, a centerfield. Now, if I would want to trade one of their pitchers it has to be Lopez and depending want I can get back I’ll consider Myers, but only if I get great value. Marlins giving up the farm for Reynoldds at this point does not mean anything but just looking better and deceiving themselves and the fans. Get someone like Voight add other lefthanded bat and roll for now. Their division is pack with very excellent teams, Braves, Mets, Phillies, so do they have a chance to win anything now ? We all know the answer. Sadly bad trades and a lack of vision to invest in the right pieces have let to this.
Make some little changes now and hopefully they can be a bit better this year in the mean time Eder, Eures continue to develop and halfway mid season will get better returs for the likes of Roger’s and others. As for now stop the nonsense of giving up excellent pitching in return for pieces that won’t make any difference at this point.
@RedFraggle I mean…he’s not wrong. This has been the most inactive GM since her arrival. Someone might wanna check this lady’s pulse to make sure she’s still kicking
@Chemo850
She’s got a pulse and is kicking. Look how she always makes sure to be at an interview, appearance, and other self-promotion thing she does.
Yes but they buy corner Outfielders in bulk so they have that going for them, i guess…
Kim Ng’s work day:
Kim Ng calling Bruce Sherman: “Bruce can i sign someone today?”
Bruce Sherman: “no”
Kim Ng hangs up phone: “my work here is done”…
@RSox
You forgot the part of her workday when she talks to her staff.
Front Office Staff: Kim, we need your word on some possible trade discussions we’ve had.
Kim Ng: I’ll get to that at a later time. I’ve got some interviews, appearances, and some other stuff going on.
Kim Ng hangs up the phone: Why do they want me to do stuff?
The Orioles are the Orioles! Along with the signing of Kyles Gibson…They have a lot of internal options this season to see how it plays out such as Means(at some point), Grayson Rodriguez, Dean Kremer, Austin Voth, Kyle Bradish, Tyler Wells and Spenser Watkins,
Since next year’s free agent class is strong with SP i wouldn’t be surprised if they are going to audition their internal options then address the needs next season.
They just possibly completed a massive rebuild where they accumulated a ton of prospects who will be young and controllable. They aren’t going to force a trade for pitching to help win now. They are in a brutal division and are clearly not truly in contention for a championship. Let the kids continue to come up and prove themselves. Plus, while unlikely, they have no payroll and could make a huge godfather offer to Ohtani next year. Orioles are slow playing contention.
Well said!
I think they can be the third best team in the division with another move or so, and possibly on par with Toronto, who usually underachieves. How much longer do you keep waiting? Tampa doesn’t have an amazing looking roster now and Boston will probably be back in a year or two.
Don’t sleep on Tampa. They never have an amazing looking roster, but they do know how to fit the pieces together.
Last thing Orioles should ever do is trade away prospect value during free agency. They need to sign eovaldi
I mean, the Orioles have plenty of cost/club controlled players too. Santander, Mullins, Hays, Urias, Mateo, and (shudder) Mountcastle. Plus, there are Pitchers that could be moved too; Wells, Wells, Bauman, Watkins, Tate, Baker, Krehbiel, Kramer, and Perez.
Just mentioning that trades don’t have to just be about non-MLB talent. But, it’s seems pretty rare that teams w/ farm systems like the Orioles Don’t trade prospects to better the MLB club.
“But, it’s seems pretty rare that teams w/ farm systems like the Orioles Don’t trade prospects to better the MLB club.”
O’sSayCanYouSee;
The Astros didn’t coming out of their rebuild.
They’ve been contending for 8 straight years and just won their 2nd championship.
The Cubs traded off their prospects for veterans as they too started contending along with the Astros in 2015. The Cubs won a WS. After 3 years they had a top heavy payroll of veterans they’d traded for that were deteriorating. Somewhere along the line they had to go into another rebuild, and after sucking for a few years in the rebuild they look improved this year. Then again they’re not at the Astros level, but maybe in a few years….
I take your point Samuel; Astros charted a different tack, it worked, Mike E is Astros FO 2.0. No doubt, hope it is/stays that way.
But they did move Harder to MIL. A couple other pieces not of the “top” group of their prospects. (Another important distinction between Astros and Orioles is the International signings part. Orioles are a little behind on that curve atm. I know it’s a major part of day 1 Mike Elias’ master plan, so I’m sure it’s coming…but slower/later none the less)
I hope the Orioles are going to hold fast to what they have.I don’t think bloated payrolls are a thing the Org will be signing off of either. Between Albert Belle, and Chris Davis, I really wonder how gun shy they may be about big deals. That’s twice bitten. (AJ and Tejada worked out well)
“On July 30, 2015, the Astros traded Hader, Brett Phillips, Domingo Santana, and Adrian Houser to the Milwaukee Brewers for Carlos Gómez and Mike Fiers.”
O’sSayCanYouSee;
With how that trade worked out for the Astros it’s yet anther argument for Mike Elias not to trade multiple prospects for a quick fix.
I’m thinking the Os model is more similar to the Brave’s model than the Astros’ in one big way. The owners in Baltimore and Atlanta give the FO a player payroll line item expense in the budget to work with and that’s the extent of their involvement. The Houston owner looks like he is actively involved in player personnel decision making.
My dbacks need a number 3 or 4 starter for sure. I had us getting will smith as a reliever and if they want to go cheap Miley. If not they may make a trade for a starter. I see that happening more. We have 3 nasty rookies. Jameson Nelson and soon to be rookie of the year Brandon Pfaadt. However I would Like to see a veteran to help us out. Bumgarner may be a little better with no pressure on him
I think they should just see what Nelson, Jameson, Cecconi and Pfaadt do.
They have a bunch of young arms that have a ton of potential, might as well use this year to figure out what they have and then add around it for 2024.
I agree with some of them. Still need one veteran. Can’t have all these guys throwing to many innings.
Problem is who’s left to eat up innings at the bottom of the rotation for a budget conscious team; Zach Davies? Joe Ross? Wade Miley? Michael Pineda? Mike Minor?
I’d rather take my chances with what we have in house. Worst case scenario Corbin Martin eats some starts. Will that be pretty? No, but neither would any of those guys in a similar worst case.
If they want to snag a buy low like they did with Davies last season to rebuild value with Strom and flip him at the trade deadline (while subsequently saving service time on the young SPs), I can see the logic in that. In some cases that might even be preferable longterm, but we’ve been saving bullets long enough; I’m ready for them to set those guys loose and see what they can do.
Here we go….
Dbacks get Devers and sale and $15m.
Red Sox get Walston, Fletcher, and Rojas.
Dbacks lineup
1. Carrol LF
2. Marte 2b
3. Devers 3b
4. Walker 1b
5. Gurriel Jr Dh
6. McCarthy RF
7. Moreno/Kelly C
8. Persomo/Ahmed SS
9. Thomas Cf
Rotation
1. Gallen
2. Kelly
3. Sale
4. Nelson
5. Bumgarner
(Add in Pfaadt somewhere too….)
Bullpen
CL JAMESON
RP Henry
RP mantiply
RP Mccough
RP Vargas
RP Ginkel
RP Melancon
This is as a dbacks fan… tell me your thoughts… I would also like to sign chafin.
I think and believe the Red Sox would decline this.
I’m all for trading Devers at this point but packaging him with Sale is a terrible idea. Why lessen the return? Sale is basically on a two year deal that could possibly be dumped at the deadline for no cost or might even garner a return if he stays healthy. A big if but nothing lost but money if not
If Sale is the problem I would counter with Rojas, Tommy Henry, and Walston for Devers and Dalbec.
Zack if I’m Bloom that just doesn’t do it for me. If I’m to move Devers before the season I would want Pfaadt and Walston. Pitching is risky but that is the type of return I would need to trade Devers.
Yeah I think that’s out of the question.
if I’m the dbacks I wouldn’t trade Pfaadt for 2 years of Devers straight up.
You asked what it would take and that’s realistic if you want Devers. The Red Sox are going to want a legit top 5 prospect in your farm and another 10-15 guy probably.
Zack here’s another fact Bloom is already being crucified for a lot of the moves he’s done so I think the only way they move Devers is for a clear overpay it’s why isn’t moving until the deadline if Boston is out of it.
RS fan here. That’s a little short. Rojas is decent, and Walston is a legit, but not elite prospect.
What I’d like to see is something involving Thomas and Devers.
Zack the real problem with that trade proposal is it’s Mookie Betts 2.0. I just can’t see Bloom moving Devers in a package that reduces his prospect value to shed payroll on an upside down contract. The other problem is why would Boston trade Sale when his value has never been lower. I could see this might of happened early in the off season if the Red Sox were trying to clear space for a high end starter but those guys are off the board now. The Red Sox aren’t up against the lux tax this off season therefore I see very little chance that either Sale or Devers are moved this off-season. There is a much better of Sale and Devers moving at the trade deadline but even that is tricky Sale would have to agree a trade since he has 10/5 full no trade rights. It just doesn’t make sense for Boston the return isn’t near intriguing enough.
I would say that Thomas, Carrol, Druw Jones, and lawyer are off limits considering the Varsho trade already… what would it take to get Devers knowing that Devers only has a year left on his contract?
Honestly Zack I just don’t think Boston is trading Devers before the deadline however if Bloom is to move Devers it is going to a clear overpay in order for that to happen and probably a player that helps another hole perhaps a young starter.
I want nothing to do with Sale.
As a fan of the NL West, but not a big fan of the Dbacks, I also respect what the snakes are building and this is only going to make it more difficult for the top teams in the west to put up a great record in the division. But I agree, Sale would be a mistake for this team. They need to add a vet or two but wisely.
I don’t think they would move Sale in the same package as Devers, so I’m gonna say no to this if I’m Bloom.
Tigers will probably go after Carson Kelly.
I can tell you are a Dbacks fan. No way the Red Sox do that deal. You aren’t even close.
Rotation
1. Gallen
2. Kelly
3. Nelson
4. Bumgarner
5. Pfaadt
Trade for Sale but leave him out of the rotation? Also, he has 10-5 rights.
I see you edited it lol
Sale is relatively young and his arm has been rested, if Im Boston Im betting on a first half that shows out, and making a decision in regards to a trade at the deadline.
None of us to my knowledge are doctors who have seen Sale’s medicals and films. Remember he had hip issues in 18 and 19 and has NEVER completed a season strongly.
No way the cardinals give up those 4 players for two years of lopez
What are the chances that Sixto Sanchez gets it back and gets into the Marlins rotation this season?
All depends on him and his health.
That’s not enough. We would need to throw in another top prospect. Listen if we got Devers I would run naked around lol. However I would need an extension from him. I don’t want one year of Devers and a Injured sale for our prospects. It maybe nelson or Jameson. Could be blaze alexander. If your telling me we can sign him long term I’m all for it.
I’d have to imagine there are plenty of teams willing to take a chance on Rogers, but what’s reasonable to ask in return off of a terrible season? Why sell low if you’re the Marlins?
The Marlins will make a deal with one of their pitchers when it doesn’t interfere with Kim Ng’s schedule for interviews and appearances and speeches.
The best move for the Marlins is a multi year deal for Luke Voit, and a low cost one year deal for Cole Hamels or Mark Apple or any other back of the rotation starter, which buys them a year until Meyer is back and Perez is fully game –
They really have to plan for both the possibility that Garcia and Soler find their stroke at that plate and that they compete within the time frame of their contracts and the possibility that they don’t, planning on how best to keep their pitching staff strong and affordable into those seasons when Garcia and Soler come off the books.
Difficult, because I’d say if Garcia and Soler are at there best, and Perez is up and pitching up to the expectation of being legitimate ace, that rotation is good enough to compete this year.
Interesting dilemma, really a big year, Marlins need a power hitting first baseman and a pitcher or two to really stack up some depth in the pitching department.
You can have Voit on a one year. No one is standing in line at his agents booth. Why would you give him two?
Because he is going to crank 30 homers in 400 ABs in ’23 – if you give him everyday ABs
Kepler to the Yankees for Hicks and kiner-falefa. Who says no? Yankees get a left fielder, twins get a back up outfielder insurance for buxton and a shortstop until Lewis is ready.
I’ve thought Kepler makes sense for NY, that short porch might help his#’s. KF makes sense in a one on one, salaries are match. Dont know but dont see Mn as a team interested in taking on salary….Hicks’s contract probably a no go. Yanks should consider Falafa for Kepler if Mn was willing.
No German/Schmidt included with Hicks for Kepler. Yanks might have to throw a lower minor league prospect to make it work. Hopefully Kepler won’t be worse then Hicks. I doubt it.
From Minnesota’s perspective, I’m not sure why they would want IKF.
Twins say no. Lol
Kepler to Oakland makes a lot of sense for both parties. He goes out and has a big first half he’ll be traded and everyone wins
What’s the part for MN that makes sense for them? You seem to have forgotten to mention it.
The terribly ran pirates could actually win their first trade in franchise history if they’d pry away a couple young arms from Miami for Reynolds.
Lopez Eder and Sanchez is as good as a haul pirates could ever get
You mean Baltimore arguably UPGRADED the roster by supplanting Lyles with Gibson. Gibson wasn’t good last year, but he has had a MUCH better career than Lyles. Lyles didn’t light the world on fire last year either. With GRod, Kremer, Bradish, Hall, Voth, Gibson, Wells, and at some point Means, I wouldn’t peg the Orioles as being “desperate.”
Has anyone seen Bruce Springsteen lately? Dude is into his 70s, doesn’t look a day over 55. I’m 46 and look older than he does. Now I don’t go around staring at dudes normally but I want what he’s having, if it’s salad every meal so be it.
Ignorant Son-of-a-b
Has anyone seen Bruce Springsteen lately?
=============================
He’s always worked out, and his shows are the equivalent of playing all 48 minutes of a b-ball game. I saw him at a Greenpeace (?) concert in Philly. I think he was allotted about 30 minutes, but he ran back and forth the stage for all 30 minutes, and it was pretty hot.
The Boss needs to hire a driver.
Tommy Lee is 60 (which is at least 78 in rock years) thus proving substance abuse is good for you.
Pittsburgh’s Reynolds and the Fish’s Rogers as the centerpieces of a multi player deal? Pittsburgh gets control of Rogers for multiple years thus cheap until team is ready to compete. The Fish get their center fielder and for under 7 mil in 23 (24 arb elg).
I do think Pittsburg and Miami match up for a trade of Reynolds. It’s going to take a lot more then just Rogers for Reynolds. I know that Miami doesn’t want to trade Eury Perez but that’s probably a legit one for one trade. Miami gets there outfielder and improves the offense a lot and Pittsburg gets the type of potential TOR arm they want and Miami is dealing from a position of strength for a need.
Agree, they match up great. I don’t think they deal Perez, but a package of Rogers, Cabrera, and maybe Eder might intrigue them. Talk about big building blocks for a staff, even though there’s some risk there. Idk if Miami would do it, but there’s a match there somewhere, I just don’t see them dealing Perez.
I know the OF pickings are already somewhat slim, but if the Twins are going to move Kepler they should wait until after Profar, Perlata and maybe even Mancini sign. Someone is still going to need OF help after that, but right now I think you can get comparable value by signing a FA.
With the Marlins jettisoning Anderson, it makes me wonder if they’d have an interest in Devers at 3B.
Not including Rogers, Eury Perez, and Max Myers, they have 5 guys currently on the team that had ERAs of 3.75 or less, and 26 or younger. They could send Rogers & Myers, and maybe someone like Wendle, and not even miss Rogers and Myers.
Arenado’s hesitancy to waive his no trade is the holdup in the López trade.
Cody Bellinger is from Arizona, played for the Dodgers, never mind April, it’s freezing in Chicago in May, I don’t see him coming out of the blocks quickly
DBacks definitely good on the lineup, but I disagree on the need to add a SP; Henry, Jameson, Nelson, and Pfaadt are MLB ready and have league average (or better) projections as early as this season, and Cecconi and Walston should be ready by the following season as well. Between those guys, they should be able to fill two rotation spots. Unless Hazen can get a good value deal on a clear improvement, no reason to mortgage future value trying to force the contention window open a year early.
I would love to see another bullpen addition, but having Castro, Ginkel, McGough, Mantiply, Melancon, and (eventually) Vargas competing for the CL position all but guarantees that there will be decent depth/stuff in the bullpen. More arms means that Melancon is closer to a MR role; I fail to see how that’s a bad thing lol
The unrealistic fan in me wants them to keep the door open for signing Ohtani this offseason. When Ahmed, Gurriel Jr, and Melancon leave at the end of the season and Bumgarner’s salary goes down it’ll free up $30+MM from the payroll; payroll also drops another $14MM when Bumgarner becomes a FA after ’24.
Combine that with the large number of pre-arb players currently on the roster (plus the next wave of quality prospects) and expected payroll increases as the team gets closer (or deeper into) contention, and that gives the necessary payroll space in THEORY.
I highly doubt it’ll happen, but it’d be fun if it did.
Ohtani is already suffering through Angels management who continually finish out of playoff competition…..and he has already said he wants to win….and now……why in the world would he want to go to a rebuilding team in the middle of the desert who lost likely is 2-3 years away from potentially making any waves towards the playoffs.
2-3 years away? They’re projected for 83-84 wins in ’23; that’s with conservative estimates for the rookies set to get a large percentage of PAs.
Angels and DBacks are at completely different points. The Angels cobble together whatever they can to fill in the lineup around Trout and Ohtani, and pray that he and Ohtani can drag the lifeless husk that is the rest of the roster into contention. They were fortunate to luck their way into one of the better players in the sport’s history and the debut of the biggest deal since Babe Ruth; they proceeded to squander both. Which happened at the same time! That’s unfathomable to me.
The DBacks actually have a strong foundation of young, quality talent that have either appeared on Top 100 lists and made it to MLB relatively early in their careers (Carroll, Moreno, Thomas, Perdomo, Jameson) or have produced at an unavoidable rate in MiLB and have no more to prove there (McCarthy, Rivera, Nelson); then you can consider Pfaadt and Lawlar as Top 25 prospects in the sport.
Additionally, Gallen, Rojas, and Lewis would all still be controlled for multiple Arb seasons (Walker and C. Kelly would be going into their final Arb seasons when Ohtani is a FA). Finally, Marte is signed on at essentially market rate (only when he’s performing poorly; when he’s actually firing on all cylinders it’s a steal) and M. Kelly signed to a team-friendly extension (only a little more than Rich Hill just signed for).
That’s 17/26 active roster spots filled at affordable rates at the outset of the ’24 FA market, with absolutely zero mention of who occupies bullpen spots (which are 8 of the 9 unaccounted for); there are decent affordable options in place there as well. Even Bumgarner’s salary drops to a more palatable level (and more reasonable to eat money on).
The Angels roster is littered with holes, and no amount of money in the world could paper over an absolute dearth of quality internal candidates; conversely, the DBacks are so stacked with quality internal candidates that there are minimal holes on the roster that need to be filled, and a ton of payroll leftover with which to do so.
It’s more than likely that Ohtani signs with a big market club, but any small(er) market club would need to: be capable of dedicating a massive portion of payroll to him, have a large pool of affordable quality players in place, and have a pool of affordable quality players ready to take their place when they inevitably are dealt (for more talent due to escalating Arb costs). All three are criteria that the DBacks meet, how next season plays out will determine whether Ohtani would even be interested.
Orioles are supposedly looking for a left-handed hitting OF/1B. How about Kepler for Mateo? Kepler’s bat could play well at Camden Yards and Mateo could start at SS for the Twins until Lewis returns and be good insurance if he starts slowly.
That’s not crazy. Think the O’s would have to kick in a low minors lottery ticket or two, but not a bad starting point.
The Rangers have several middle infielders and really should trade for Kepler and some cash that could go to relievers instead. Duran, Smith, and Otto for Kepler, 10 million, and maybe a reliever?
Eury Perez is off limits for the Marlins?
Snakes don’t need more trades, just sign Chafin and Miley and be done
Marlins should trade just one pitcher out of Lopez, Luzardo, Rogers or Braxton for a young position player. Maybe Rogers to Dodgers straight up for Busch. Or Rogers to Cards straight up for Gorman? Would have to crunch stats to see which pitcher most equals trade value received
I think Cards can get Lopez for Gorman, Yepez, and a lottery pick.
Gorman, Yepez, Burlson and Mike Antico for Lopez. Sounds about right.
Had this actually shown up under the Diamondbacks team filter, you would have had a bunch of comments pointing out how wrong this article is. The top priority is, and will remain, the bullpen. The team has plenty of young talented arms in the farm to fill out the rotation. A few of them grade out better than a number of starters currently on the market.
This one still isn’t showing up under the Diamondbacks.