There is well over a month until Major League Baseball’s (MLB) July 31st non-waiver trade deadline takes place, but rumors involving star players have already started to take place.
The Seattle Mariners are a team that looked good on paper and were predicted by many analysts to be in the thick of the pennant race. However, after a 24-41 start to the season, Don Wakamatsu’s Mariners find themselves 12.5 games behind first place Texas and in the cellar of the American League West.
Seattle made a lot of aggressive moves during the off-season which was highlighted by their acquisitions of Philadelphia’s ace left-handed pitcher Cliff Lee and longtime Angels third basemen Chone Figgins.
Now that their pennant dreams have been extinguished, general manager (GM) Jack Zduriencik is looking to unload both Lee and Figgins, among other players. The problem that Zduriencik faces is the fact that he had to give up three highly touted prospects to acquire Lee and to trade him and to receive nothing in return is out of the question.
A team that has been linked to Lee is the New York Yankees who believe that acquiring Lee and his 2.88 earned run average (ERA) would guarantee them another World Series title. This will be an interesting storyline to follow come the July 31st trade deadline.
Another team that will look to unload some of its players is the Houston Astros. Similar to Seattle, Houston got off to a horrid 25-40 start, but unlike their west coast counterparts, the Astros were not expected to be a very good team.
All-star first baseman Lance Berkman and all-star pitcher Roy Oswalt have made it clear that they want out of Houston.
While Oswalt’s 11 quality starts and 3.16 ERA are extremely appealing for teams that are looking to add another power arm to their rotation, Berkman’s unimpressive stats (0 homeruns [HR] and 6 run batted in [RBI] in 181 at bats) may have teams steering clear of him and a potential package deal.
Another Astro that could garner some interest is left fielder Carlos Lee. Lee leads the Astros with 36 RBI and is tied for the team lead in homeruns with 10. The only things that could scare away potential suitors are his age and the large contract that comes along with his production.
While mediocre teams will be looking to unload some of their stars in the hopes of acquiring young talent, there will be some teams that will be looking to acquire a player that will put their team into playoff contention.
The San Diego Padres could be one of those teams. After a multitude of great pitching performances propelled San Diego to a surprising 38-27 start, the Padres are laughing atop the National League West. Projected to be one of the worst teams in the league at the beginning of the season, San Diego has shown the league that great pitching can consistently win ball games.
That being said, Padres GM Jed Hoyer may believe that adding another power bat to compliment all-star first baseman Adrian Gonzalez might not be such a terrible idea. Potential players that might fit the bill are Orioles shortstop Miguel Tejada or Arizona’s Chris Young.
Despite the fact that the season is a quarter of the way through, there are many teams that are still unsure as to whether or not they will be buyers or sellers at this year’s trade deadline. For these teams, the next five weeks will be a time of self-discovery. Whether or not that self-discovery will be positive or negative still remains to be seen.
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