Is The Price Right?

The Tampa Bay Rays have expressed interest in trading David Price. We all know that he will be traded, the question is when, and to who? The Rays simply can't afford to pay David Price through his final year of arbitration. Price's salary for the 2014 season is already at $14 Million and should move up to at least $18 Million for the next season. When he hits free agency, you can bet the former Cy Young Award winner will sign a contract similar to that of CC Sabathia, Zack Greinke, Cliff Lee, Felix Hernandez, and Justin Verlander; establishing himself as one of the most elite starters in the game.

David Price

Price is a three time All Star and a Cy Young Award winner who will be turning 29 in August of this year. The home grown lefty found his groove in just his second full season in 2010 with a 19-6 record, a 2.72 ERA, and 188 strikeouts in 208.2 innings pitched. The following season his ERA shot up .77 points to a still respectable 3.49 ERA. He had a 12-13 record with 218 strikeouts in 224.1 innings pitched. 2012 was the season where Price won the American League Cy Young Award and he earned it. He brought he ERA down .93 runs to 2.56, while sporting a 20-5 record and striking out 205 in 211 innings pitched. In 2013 Price started off terribly with a 5.24 ERA in 9 starts, which can be connected to his first major injury, a tricep strain. He would go on to pitch a good season with a 3.33 ERA, 151 strikeouts, and a 10-8 record in 186.2 innings pitched.

Price usually finishes his seasons strong, but in 2014 he is already having a pretty nice season. With a 3.81 ERA and a league leading 133 strikeouts in 115.2 innings pitched Price is going to be a hot commodity. He has vocalized that he wants to be on a winning team, and the Rays have made it clear that they will be making trades at the deadline. The Rays also have several other pieces that can help a team such as Matt Joyce and Ben Zobrist, maybe even newly acquired Grant Balfour if he can turn his season around.

James Shields

There has been some talk that Price is on the decline, but I believe his stuff is good enough to pitch through a velocity decline. In 2010 his average fastball velocity was 95.3, then 94.7 in 2011, and 95.5 in 2012. In 2013 he had a spike in ERA from his Cy Young season and a tricep injury, which could correlate to his 93.4 average fastball velocity. In 2014 his average fastball velocity is at 93.3. Its only a 2 mph difference, but if the trend continues like it did with CC Sabathia, trading for Price and signing him to a long extension could be problematic.

The Rays have said they want a pitcher who is close to Major League ready and at least another good prospect, similar to the James Shields trade. The Kansas City Royals gave up their top prospect, Wil Myers, and their top pitching prospect Jake Odorizzi for Shields who has worked out well for them, but Price is in an entirely different class. It will take a big bundle of prospects to trade Price at the trade deadline, and a desperate team may do it.

The Rays do not have much catching depth and do not have great catching prospects in the minors. Jose Molina and Ryan Hannigan are not getting the job done. It would not be crazy to the Rays to ask for a young catcher or a good catching prospect in the a trade.

Besides a pitching prospect and a catching prospect the Rays need infield depth. Ben Zobrist has been slightly fluttered around in trade discussions, and he is a very fine player. James Loney is not the best offensive player, and Yunel Escobar was never considered a great player. The Rays may want an infielder whether it be a shortstop, a second baseman, or a first baseman.

Mike Zunino 

The most suitable team I can see trading for Price is the Seattle Mariners. They have all the excess pieces and the prospects. By adding Price to the Mariners, it would give them one of the strongest rotations in the MLB. They would have to part with their starting catcher, but also one of their highest prospects Mike Zunino. They also have Nick Franklin who can play just about anywhere, since he lost his job to Robinson Cano. Finally they can include Justin Smoak in the deal, but the pitcher is going to be the tricky part. The Rays will almost undoubtedly ask for Taijuan Walker, which the Mariners already expressed they will not trade him. Suppliments to Walker may be Erasmo Ramirez, Danny Hultzen, or Danny Farquhar.

My pick for Price is to go to the Mariners and contend with the Athletics down the stretch, but Price may also find a home in St. Louis, Anaheim, New York, Toronto, Cincinnati
, or San Francisco.

Overlooked Players On Losing Teams

It is very easy to overlook players having a good season when they are on a losing team. Also it is even easier to overlook a player having a good season when there is a big name player on the team. Here are some players having good seasons on losing teams. Because they are on losing teams, it also makes them possible trade candidates.

David DeJesus

On the Tampa Bay Rays a 34 year old outfielder is having arguably the best season on the team. I am referring to David DeJesus. He is hitting .269 with a .367 on base percentage in 62 games. to go along with his batting average and on base percentage DeJesus also has 5 home runs, 14 doubles, and only 32 strikeouts in 182 at bats. A team looking for a left handed outfielder who can get on base may be interested in DeJesus.

Kurt Suzuki on the Minnesota Twins is having a brilliant season, yet he is 4th in voting for the All Star Game for American League catchers. Suzuki is hitting .321 with a .378 on base percentage behind the plate  for the Twins this season. In 60 games and 212 at bats, Suzuki only has 2 home runs, but 15 doubles, and just 18 strikeouts. The Twins are unlikely to trade Suzuki before the All Star Game in hopes to get another player from their team in the game, but after the game Suzuki may be traded. Any team looking for a catcher should look at Suzuki.

Alex Rios

The Texas Rangers are just 3 games out of last place in the American League West. They may try to add pieces this trade deadline, but they may also try to sell and start over fresh next season. One player having a great season on this losing team is Alex Rios. He is hitting .319 with a .352 on base percentage. Over his 75 games he has just 3 home runs, but 16 doubles, and 8 triples. Rios isn't hitting for power this season, but he is making contact and driving the ball. The home runs should come soon, the Rangers should trade Rios especially knowing that he is free agent at the end of the season.

The Cubs have been talked about a lot with their two best starters being made available. Jeff Samardjiza and Jason Hammel are the two names coming up most often in discussions, but Jake Arrieta is having a very nice season for the Cubs. In 9 starts Arrieta has pitched 50 innings and recorded 55 strikeouts with just a 1.99 ERA and a 1.20 WHIP. Would the Cubs trade three of its five starting pitchers this trade deadline?

Oliver Perez

In that National League West the Arizona Diamondbacks are in last place and they have some pieces they can part with. Once a starting pitcher, Oliver Perez has made his way to the bullpen and can be a left handed weapon in late innings. Perez has a 2.48 ERA in 29 innings pitched this season with 25 strikeouts and a 1.24 WHIP. There may be a number of teams interested in Perez and not much would have to be given up to get him.

Although they do not have a losing record at 38-38, no one can see the Marlins winning the division or a wild card. They won't trade Christian Yelich, but he is being overlooked with the name Giancarlo Stanton on the team. Yelich is hitting .258 with a .342 on base percentage. In 251 at bats he has 6 home runs, 12 doubles, and 5 triples. Also to note, Yelich has 10 stolen bases. He is striking out in about 20% of his at bats, but Yelich has a lot of potential and should not be overlooked in the shadow of Giancarlo Stanton.

Trade Deadline

Jake Peavy was the big acquisition this trade deadline, going to the Red Sox in a three team deal. Peavy will go worst to first. Jose Iglesias will join the Tigers with the possibility of Jhonny Peralta being suspended for 50 games. Avasail Garcia will join the White Sox along with three minor league prospects. A great trade for everyone, the Tigers get a defensive short stop swinging a hot bat, the Red Sox get a credited pitcher, and the White Sox get a bundle of prospects for their rebuilding strategy.

The Orioles acquired starting pitcher Bud Norris from the Houston Astros for LG Hoes and Josh Hader. The Orioles also get a 2014 competitive balance pick in exchange for the 91st international bonus slot. The Astros already acquired starting pitcher Scott Feldman from the Cubs and relief pitcher Francisco Rodriguez from the Brewers, so they are set on arms.

A few relievers have new homes after the trade deadline. The Braves acquired Scott Downs from the Angels for Cory Rasmus, the Rays acquire Jesse Crain from the White Sox for a player to b
e named later, the Indians acquire Marc Rzepczynski from the Cardinals for Jaun Herrera, and the Dodgers sign The Beard himself, Brian Wilson. All these trades are to give the competetors an edge in the late innings.

The Indians will most likely use Rzepcynski as part of a rebuilding strategy, but the other acquisitions are for a playoff push.

The Padres make a significant addition to their starting rotation buy adding Ian Kennedy. although he has struggled this year, the Padres have success in salvaging pitchers. He will join a rotation with Edison Volquez, as the Padres continue to add pieces in hope to compete in years to come. Going to Arizona in the deal is relief pitcher Joe That
cher and Matt Stites.

The Athletics acquired third baseman Alberto Callaspo from the Angels for Grant Green. The Athletics hope to maintain their success and adding a veteran switch hitter may keep their team chemistry up.

The Royals traded minor league pitcher Kyle Smith for Astros outfielder Justin Maxwell. The Royals weak spot has been in right field and this should patch things up for a while.

Much prior to the trade deadline, the Yankees had a reunion with left fielder Alfonso Soriano as he joined the team. In his third game as a Yankee in 2013 he and Derek Jeter homered in the same game, the first time since 2003. Soriano adds a right handed bat to the Yankees struggling lineup, but it isn't quite enough to put them over the top.

Other moves are the Dodgers getting catcher Drew Butera and the Pirates getting Robert Andino.

In my opinion it was a disapointing trade deadline. Names like Alex Rios, Hunter Pence, Cliff Lee, Giancarlo Stanton, Michael Young, Michael Morse, Chase Headly, Carlos Quentin, Adam Dunn, Tim Lincecum, Jonathon Papelbon, Micahel Cuddyer, and many more were tossed around, but none were traded.

Although many names were not traded, trades can still go through with players who passed through waivers. for example last year when the Dodgers and Red Sox made their block buster deal, it was after the trade deadline. I am 90% sure more than one of those names will have a new team by October.

The West is the Best

The power shifted to West Coast teams at the trade deadline today. Players with a big impact have moved to teams in the Western divisions. It was an entertaining trade deadline and plenty of teams made changes. Lets cover all of them in chronological order.

 The Rangers acquired catcher Giovanni Soto from the Chicago Cubs for minor league pitcher Jake Brigham. That wasn't the only move the Rangers would make before the deadline.

The Braves we're a very sneaky team after they were out of the Ryan Dempster trade talks. They acquired outfielder Reed Johnson and and starting pitcher Paul Maholm. Maholm has a 3.74 ERA in 120.1 innings this year and Johnson has a .307/.361/.452 slashline this season. The Braves only gave up pitchers Jaye Chapman and Arodys Vizcaino.

The Blue Jays and Pirates swap outfielder Travis Snider and reliever Brad Lincoln. Snider hasn't performed well this year in his short time in the big leagues and hasn't been great in his career. Lincoln has a 2.73 ERA this season out of the bullpen for the Pirates.

The Dodgers traded for right handed reliever Brandon League of the Mariners. League will take his 3.63 ERA to the Dodgers in exchange for prospects Leon Landry and Logan Bawcom.

The Dodgers weren't done there. They woke up in the morning and acquired gold glove outfielder Shane Victorino. Victorino is 31 years old and is in the last year of his contract. Victorino will help the Dodgers at the top of the lineup and be on base for when Matt Kemp and Andre Ethier come up to bat. Victorino brings his speed and .324 on base percentage to the Dodgers in exchange for pitching prospect Ethan Martin and major league reliever Matt Lindbolm.

To counteract the trade for Victorino and to boost their own lineup the Giants traded for right fielder Hunter Pence. Pence is still under team control for next year and has been effective for the Phillies, but will bring his talents to the Giants. Pence is 29 years old and in 2012 he has a .336 on base percentage and 17 home runs. Nate Schierholtz, minor league pitcher Seth Rosin and catcher Tommy Joeseph will go to Philadelphia.

The Cardinals will bolster their bullpen with Edward Mujica. Mujica has a 4.38 ERA in 2012 with the Marlins. He will be a definite help down the line. Third base prospect Zack Cox will go to the Marlins.

The Red Sox showed that they are not out of competition for the American League Wild Card. They held onto all aspects of their team and added a reliever. Lefty Craig Breslow will go to Boston in exchange for pitcher Matt Albers and outfielder Scott Podsednik. Breslow has a 2.70 ERA this season with the Arizona Diamond Backs.

After getting Snider the Pirates were not done. They added struggling first baseman Gaby Sanchez from the Miami Marlins. Sanchez lost his job due to the acquisition of Carlos Lee. Sanchez is hitting just .202/.250/.306 this season, but he has done much better in his career. Pitcher Kaminska will also go to Pittsburgh in exchange for Gorkys Hernandez and a future draft pick.

The Reds were unsuccessful in getting a lead off hitter, but they did strengthen their already fantastic bullpen. They added Jonathon Broxton. Broxton will head to Cincinatti for pitchers Donnie Joseph and J.C. Sulbaran. Broxton has a 2.27 ERA this season with the Kansas City Royals and will set up for Aroldis Chapman.

Back to the Rangers. They traded for starting pitcher Ryan Dempster. Dempster was the biggest fish on the market coming into the last day before the deadline. He has pitched 104 innings with a 2.25 ERA in 2012. The Rangers gave up minor league third baseman Christian Villanueva and pitcher Kyle Kendricks. The deal was completed with seconds remaining before the deadline.

The final acquisition of the day was completed by the New York Yankees. With Alex Rodriguez heading to the DL the Yankees needed a part time third baseman. The two teams exchanged reliever Chad Qualls and third baseman Casey McGehee. McGehee has history of success and will have a chance to prove it in New York. The Yankees won't miss Qualls because Joba Chamerlain is back on the team from an injury.

Teams can still make trades with players who pass through waivers. Possible players to move are bench players, relievers, and players with big salaries.

The biggest winners of the day were the Giants and Dodgers. They will be in competition with each other down the line and both made moves to beat each other.