Troy Tulowitzki is the best shortstop in baseball and he’s playing for a bad team that may finally be willing to trade him. He’d be a defensive upgrade over Wilmer Flores and he’d be the best hitter on this Mets team. A gigantic contract, long injury history and (suspected) high trade demands make him less of a slam dunk trade candidate, but for the sake of this article – he’s certainly worth exploring. What other players might be available who could improve the Mets offense? What teams might make worthy trade partners?
At this early stage of the season, most teams are not ready to throw in the towel or go all in for a playoff run. Teams typically wait until July before they make moves as a buyer or seller. However, trades do happen in June and, as we head into Memorial Day weekend, there are certainly a few teams whose players are already telling their wives it’s okay to book a family vacation in October. Likewise there are some teams reserving October for the postseason. Here’s a quick overview of the potential buyers and sellers as they currently sit.
| Team | Buyer or Seller | Tradable Assets | Needs | Match Up? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nationals | Buyer | Desmond | Bullpen | No |
| Mets | Both | Murphy, pitchers, catcher | SS, LF | ——- |
| Braves | ? | Bullpen arms, Markakis? | Prospects | No |
| Phillies | Seller | Hamels, Howard | Prospects | No |
| Marlins | ? | Prado, Morse | Catcher | Maybe |
| Cardinals | Buyer | Prospects | ? | Maybe |
| Cubs | Buyer | Castro, Russell, Baez | Pitcher | Yes |
| Reds | Seller | Bruce, Phillips, Chapman? | Prospects | Maybe |
| Pirates | ? | Prospects | Bullpen | No |
| Brewers | Seller | Parra, Segura, Braun, Garza, Lohse, KRod | Pitcher, 1B | Yes |
| Dodgers | Both | Crawford, Ethier, prospects | Pitcher | Maybe |
| Giants | Buyer | Prospects | 3rd | Yes |
| Padres | Buyer | Prospects | Pitcher | Yes |
| Diamondbacks | Seller | Trumbo, Owings? | Prospects | Yes |
| Rockies | Seller | Tulowitzki, Gonzalez, Dickerson? | Prospects | Yes |
| Yankees | Buyer | Prospects | 2B, Pitcher | Maybe |
| Rays | ? | Prospects, Loney? | Offense | No |
| Red Sox | Both | Victorino, Prospects | Pitcher | No |
| Orioles | Buyer | Prospects | Pitcher | No |
| Blue Jays | ? | Bautista? | Prospects, Pitcher | Maybe |
| Royals | ? | Rios, Gordon, prospects | Prospects | Yes |
| Tigers | Buyer | Prospects, Plouffe? | Bullpen | No |
| Twins | ? | Prospects, Escobar? | Pitching | Maybe |
| White Sox | ? | Prospects, Ramirez? | Pitcher, 2B | Yes |
| Indians | Seller | Brantley | Prospects | Yes |
| Astros | Buyer | Prospects | Outfielder | No |
| Angels | ? | Prospects | Outfielder | No |
| Mariners | ? | Prospects | OF, Bullpen | No |
| Rangers | Seller | Andrus, Holland, Lewis, Detwiler | Prospects | Maybe |
| A’s | Seller | Kazmir, Crisp, Reddick | Prospects | Yes |
This is just excellent. Terrific matrix. Just one thought – don’t you think the A’s would trade Zobrist, who could help us in multiple ways. We could send them two or three surplus prospects to re-stock their farm system.
Sorry, but Zobrist isn’t really a fit on this team right now unless the team also trades Murphy. They wouldn’t have both on this team.
Also, missing some other people that need to definitely be on this list. Carlos Gomez is almost certain to be shopped by Milwaukee.
I’m not buying that the Indians are sellers. Brantley isn’t going anywhere because he’s under team control and he’s cheap.
The Padres don’t need pitching, in fact, they need to do something with that horrendous OF defense.
I would put that the Royals are definitely buyers. They could use some more starting pitcher depth.
You have Plouffe listed under the Tigers, he plays for the Twins.
Nobody is buying Detwiler, he stinks.
Tulowitzki is not a trade target for the Mets unless the Rockies take back a ton of money in return….
Thanks for the props. Don’t know how Plouffe came up on the wrong team. Sorry about that. I like Zobrist a lot but I feel like either Flores or Murph will fill that role. I don’t think the Brewers would trade Gomez.
Very nice chart Matt. It will be a handy resource going toward the trade deadline.Maybe you could update it once or twice before then.
I wonder what it would take to pry Josh Reddick from the A’s?
Could Victorino be had for a Gee,Colon or Niese?
Of course the Rockies and Cubs need to be in the loop for a SS upgrade.
With Granderson and Cuddyer (24 million+)playing the corner outfield why would the Mets trade an asset for an upgrade in LF. I thought that was what the off season FA signing was for? The Braves are sellers and will continue to revamp their 25 man roster. The Pirates are buyers as well as their window of opportunity starts to run out. I don’t think Toronto would entertain any offers for Bautista unless you gave up the farm.. He’s their version of David Wright. Royals are buyers as they contend with Detroit for the Central Division. Twins are sellers? and maybe this year continue rebuilding by moving Morneau and Mauer.I think this year you’ll see more trades at the deadline simply because more teams will be in reach of a wildcard..
Brian wrote an article a while back about the need for four good outfielders on a team. A more recent article he wrote asked ” who would play the outfield if one of the starters got injured?” It would not hurt the Mets to get some depth in the outfield.
Victorino seems to be available in Boston and Colon would be of similar salary. Both are free agents at the end of the season. There are enough at bats in the outfield to make this transaction.
Really like the detailed chart. This is probably the most comprehensive analysis I’ve seen. It does reinforce that there are limited options for upgrading at short via trade. Improving the outfield offense may be more likely (and less costly).
Prior to Cuddyer’s struggles I wrote about the importance of a 4th outfielder. Given the ages and injury history of our outfielders it was foolish to go into this season with Newy and Mayberry as our backups.
Chris Owings has been a letdown this season, the Rockies are not being realistic, and the Cubs have all the leverage in the world right now, so I don’t see us getting a SS via trade. What we need is someone who can play third base, then move around when needed if we ever get our Captain back.