Ron Vesely/Getty Images
Trade rumors continue to swirl as the MLB offseason unfolds.
The status of Miami Marlins standout J.T. Realmuto is still the biggest story, and the New York Mets’ recent signing of Wilson Ramos has had an impact on his market.
Meanwhile, the starting pitching crop has thinned considerably since the start of the offseason. Teams not willing to meet Dallas Keuchel’s asking price will have to turn their attention to the trade market, and two of the top arms thought to be available may no longer be attainable.
With that, let’s take a quick look at some of the latest notable trade rumors from around baseball.
Dodgers, Rays, Others Still in the Mix for J.T. Realmuto
Kiyoshi Ota/Getty Images
The New York Mets effectively closed the door on acquiring J.T. Realmuto when they signed Wilson Ramos to a two-year deal, removing what had been the most aggressive suitor from the running for the Miami Marlins standout.
Several other teams are still in the mix, though.
Joe Frisaro @JoeFrisaro
With #Mets off the board, am hearing the #Rays #Dodgers and others remain in mix for #Marlins J.T. Realmuto. This week will be telling if a trade is made or not. All along the Marlins have maintained they don’t have to do anything. From what I’ve gathered that stance remains
The Dodgers’ interest comes as no surprise given the potential departure of Yasmani Grandal in free agency.
Prospects Keibert Ruiz and Will Smith are both ticketed for the minors to start the year, so at the least, a stopgap option will be needed. Trading for Realmuto would buy them two years to sort out the future of the position and would essentially erase the loss of Grandal from the lineup.
The Rays’ interest is a bit more of a surprise.
They already swung a deal earlier this offseason to acquire Mike Zunino from the Seattle Mariners, which presumably filled their vacancy at the position.
That said, Realmuto would be an obvious upgrade, and they have the prospect capital to get a deal done.
The Cincinnati Reds, Colorado Rockies and New York Yankees have all been loosely linked to Realmuto at one time or another during the offseason, so they could be among the “others” mentioned in that report.
Indians Less “Motivated” to Trade Corey Kluber, Trevor Bauer
Tim Warner/Getty Images
After trading away Yan Gomes, Yonder Alonso and Edwin Encarnacion, it sounds like the Cleveland Indians are no longer looking to trim payroll.
Jon Heyman @JonHeyman
After trading Edwin, Yonder and Gomes, word is Indians won’t be as “motivated” by financial concerns now. Translation: Kluber and Bauer more likely to stay.
If Trevor Bauer and Corey Kluber are off the market, that could mean teams looking for top-tier rotation help will ramp up their pursuit of guys like Madison Bumgarner and Zack Greinke.
Dallas Keuchel is the top remaining arm on the free-agent market, but there’s a steep drop-off behind him. As such, teams still looking to significantly upgrade their starting staffs might need to get creative.
Mets Open to Trading Kevin Plawecki
Lynne Sladky/Associated Press
Aside from removing the Mets from the running for Realmuto, the Wilson Ramos signing has also pushed Kevin Plawecki to the trade block.
Andy Martino @martinonyc
This might have been lost in the shuffle of Ramos signing last night, but Kevin Plawecki is now available in a trade. Mets plan is Ramos/d’Arnaud
With Yasmani Grandal, Devin Mesoraco, Nick Hundley, Jonathan Lucroy, Matt Wieters, Rene Rivera and Stephen Vogt all still available in free agency, it remains to be seen if there will be a market for Plawecki.
The 27-year-old posted a respectable 94 OPS+ with 13 doubles, seven home runs and 30 RBI in 277 plate appearances last season en route to 1.3 WAR.
He’s under team control through the 2022 season and is projected to earn just $1.3 million in his first year of arbitration, so he represents a controllable, low-cost backup option capable of stepping into a large role if needed.
All stats courtesy of Baseball Reference and FanGraphs, unless otherwise noted.
Be the first to comment