Trade “Alive”line

The trade deadline is upon us (just one week away, now) and things are heating up. This year is the first year that all trades must be completed by July 31. In past years teams could still perform trades until August 31 with the use of the waiver wire, but not more! It should make this trade season much more active in the next week – thus, an “alive”line instead of a deadline.

I don’t know if such records are kept, but anecdotally speaking, Flint Hill is one of the most active traders in the EFL. Of the 30 players on my team, I have acquired 15 of them via trade. I’d be interested to know what the ratio is on your team, if you have time to check it (Editor’s note: Dave can reset your password on the EFL website if you want to be able to post but don’t remember your password). 

As such, I take a keen interest in trades, and I like to peruse your rosters to see who might be good trade bait, which is something happening at a lot of different baseball sites these days. Thus, in the spirit of the week, I want to take a guess at which player(s) on each EFL roster is most likely to be involved in an MLB trade this next week:

Bellingham: Hunter Pence. The 36 year old revived slugger has hit 15 home runs for the Rangers this season during which he was named an All Star. Having just returned from an injury, he has potential to hit another 10-15 home runs and is under contract through 2020. Some team in need of an OF/DH type will pry him away from the Rangers. My guess: Tampa Bay Rays.

Brookland: Jose Martinez. Martinez is built for the AL, but the Cardinals have been reluctant to part with him. His OPS is hovering around .750 this past month, and he has been heating up at the right time. But he needs an AL team because his defense is not that great. My guess: Oakland.

DC: Scooter Gennett. Scooter wowed the world last year with his rediscovered power stroke, and expectations for him this season were high. Then he suffered a gnarly hamstring injury early on and missed a month or two of the season. But he is back and could be had for a low price since he has not yet been hitting well. As a 2B power hitter, he could fit well on a team that is in need of more production from that spot. My guess: back to Milwaukee. (to back up Keston Hiura)

Haviland: Harrison Bader or Tyler O’Neill. The Cardinals need some pitching help (don’t we all!) and will be willing to part with one or both of these guys (in addition to Martinez mentioned above) in order to get it. I think they are more likely to deal O’Neill than Bader, simply due to Bader’s track record in the MLB, but maybe a young team will value O’Neill more than Bader because of his youth and power. My guess: One or both to the Giants. (I bet Puig also gets traded…but that is low hanging fruit)

Canberra: Yates is the obvious choice, but I am picking Tim Beckham. Dealin’ Dipoto will be active this next week, and Beckham has shown he can hit, though he is streaky. A team looking for a utility guy who can play IF and OF (smart move, Jerry, having Beckham get reps in the OF) will make a move for him. My guess: Houston.

Kaline: Marcus Stroman. The Yankees are so desperate to win a World Series after decades of watching the Red Sox prevail time and time again (how’s that for hyperbole?), that they will make a lopsided deal to their Eastern division foes for Stroman, who will come to Bronx and (I am sad to say) lead them to a championship. My guess: Yankees. 

Portland: Merrill Kelly. This one was difficult for me. Most of the Rosebuds players are either on a contending team or are under control for a few years with their MLB team. The Dbacks are still considering whether they will buy or sell this year, but if they sell I think Kelly could be a better target than a Ray or Greinke due to his success and contract. My guess: Cubs.

Flint Hill: Dennis Santana. Mychal Givens is the easy choice – I think he is bound to get traded to someone like the Rays. But Santana is a sleeper, and because of the Dodgers depth and desperation I think he will be in a package to someone this season, which could give him a chance in an MLB rotation soon. That would be exciting! My guess: Pirates. 

Pittsburgh: Maikel Franco. The Phillies are desperate to win after signing Harper to an enormous contract and trading for Realmuto. Franco will be a throw with some of their young guys (Sixto Sanchez) to a team who will send them someone with power to protect Harper. My guess: Rockies.

Old Detroit: Madison Bumgarner. The OD pitching staff could have two SP on the move – Robbie Ray in addition to MadBum – which could, if the pieces fall right, give him a chance to free up money for the final push of the season. That isn’t frightening at all. This is wild, but I think the Red Sox will trade for MadBum. They love lefty SPs and they don’t want the Yankees to have a walk in the park to the pennant. My guess: Red Sox. 

Peshastin: Clint Frazier. Clint has made waves in his short career, from his vibrant red hair (cut when he became a Yankee) to his brash attitude around being demoted to Scranton despite his solid 2019 campaign. Teams want him, and he will most assuredly be included in any deal. My guess: Indians (back home for him).

Cottage: Nicholas Castellanos. He is Jose Martinez, part 2. Good bay, subpar defense. Teams in contention usually pry these types of players away for the offensive holes they may have in their own rosters. I don’t think Castellanos will fetch much in return, but he will be traded. My guess: Indians.

Who do you think or hope will be traded from your team? Add your comments below.