BOLDLY Predicting the MLB Trade Deadline: National League Central

The July 31^st trading deadline is fast approaching here for the 2018 MLB season, so let’s take the chance to post a few bold predictions for every team in the National League Central before the deadline next Tuesday. Enjoy, and leave your comments and thoughts below in the comments section.

The Chicago Cubs will acquire JA Happ (went to the New York Yankees after this was written) or Steven Matz, whichever comes off the board last. The Yu Darvish experiment has failed, and Theo Epstein and company are in the market for a starting pitcher, specifically a starting pitcher that could potentially start a playoff game for the team behind Jon Lester and company. I would trust either Matz or Happ (Yankees) in a Game 3 or Game 4 situation if I were the Cubs, and I’d trust him a whole lot more than I would trust Darvish right now specifically. Chicago may also be in the market for lesser upgrades like a left-handed specialist in the bullpen or a bench piece, but a starting pitcher is likely the main target for the Cubbies as we speak.

EDIT: The team acquired Cole Hamels, does "close but no cigar" count?

The Cincinnati Reds will trade Matt Harvey, Scooter Gennett, Raisel Iglesias, David Hernandez, Jared Hughes, and Adam Duvall. While this sounds like a lot of movement for the Reds to accomplish in just five days I could totally see multiple players moved in a single deal. For instance, if the Boston Red Sox were to acquire Scooter Gennett, which I boldly predicted, then they might want to package a deal with Jared Hughes or David Hernandez as well. There will be many teams interested in Raisel Iglesias and he could fetch a premium in the trade market, but no team probably needs him more than the Colorado Rockies. After the money the team spent on their bullpen in the offseason this may come as a surprise, but if you check the stat lines for those highly paid relievers and if you then check how close Colorado is to the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Los Angeles Dodgers in the division the deal begins to make a little more sense. I can see a blockbuster deal going down between the Reds and the Rockies that also includes Adam Duvall along with Iglesias as both are needs for Colorado while the Rockies have the prospects to get such a deal done.

Milwaukee Brewers need a shortstop and a starting pitcher, everyone else around the league is telling Milwaukee to “join the club.” Obviously, that is my speculation, but it seems like every team that is contending or close to contending needs a starting pitcher and a shortstop. The Brewers revamped their outfield this winter and have a young and exciting team with plenty of prospects that could be moved in any number of deals, but I can’t see Milwaukee making those deals just for the sake of making them. That doesn’t seem like their style given their history over the past 10-or-so years. If the right deal comes along, for example a potential deal for James Shields to help with the rotation or a deal for Asdrubal Cabrera with hopes that he can handle the shortstop position again, then I could see the team making it. I just can’t see a substantial deal being made by Milwaukee, although watch out as they could look to acquire Yangervis Solarte from the Toronto Blue Jays with the hopes that possibly he could handle the shortstop position for the remainder of the season. 

EDIT: I mean, or they could acquire a closer or reliever like Joakim Soria and throw a monkey wrench into my whole post. Or that. 

The Pittsburgh Pirates will not make another move. The Pirates could win 12 games in a row, or they could win 25 games in a row, but I just can’t see the team doing anything substantial. Just a few weeks ago if I had written this post it would have been littered with a laundry list of players that the team was absolutely going to trade but winning a dozen or so games in a row has the tendency to change things. The Pirates management likely knows better that the team will eventually come back down to Earth here in 2018, and with that so will their hopes of a 2018 postseason spot in the National League.

The St. Louis Cardinals will also be quiet at the trading deadline in my opinion as that team is in that scary and uncomfortable position somewhere between obvious contender and should-be seller. The Cardinals have all but said that they would not move Carlos Martinez in any deal this summer and that all but told me that the Cardinals plan is to either go all-in and sell or stand pat with the core that they have now for potentially one last run at the playoffs in the 2019 season. If the team was at least open to discussing a trade for Martinez then I could see them tearing it all down, but since they wont I truly believe they will stand pat more than they will do anything before July 31st, 2018.




Disclaimer: BOLD predictions are meant to be BOLD for a reason. Keep that in mind before directing hate mail towards me or any of my writers on the blog or on Twitter. Thanks in advance.

Larry Rothschild and the Next Nathan “Eovolving” Eovaldi

Larry Rothschild and the New York Yankees have drawn rave reviews from their fans and from notable opinions around the league for their work with Nathan Eovaldi in 2015.  After leading the league in hits allowed in 2014 while with the Miami Marlins Eovaldi came back and actually gave up more hits per nine innings, although the length of his starts were significantly reduced skewing this stat a bit, and despite giving up more hits not only did his ground balls and strike out numbers go up but so did his win total. The Yankees may be looking at striking gold once again this offseason or relatively soon by adding another “project” type starter with youth and upside on his side so could the next Nathan “Eovolving” Eovaldi be for the New York Yankees?

If you’re going to fit the mold of a Yankees starter and Eovaldi you’re going to have to keep your walks down, your strikeouts high and your groundballs even higher. Sounds simple enough on paper but not as many pitchers do it as you would expect. When a pitcher does this consistently they are called aces and they are generally not young, controllable or even available. See David Price or Jordan Zimmermann for an example. So who is young, controllable, said to be available and fits the starting pitching molds set above?

Carlos Carrasco is one and is signed through the 2020 season. There have already been rumors of Carrasco being traded this winter by Cleveland and New York is said to be dangling Brett Gardner to the Indians. Danny Salazar also fits this most, just don’t trade them Aaron Judge.

Jose Quintana also fits the most and is also signed through the 2020 season with the Chicago White Sox. The problem is the two most attractive trade pieces the Yankees have, Gardner and Andrew Miller, do not presumable interest the White Sox.

Just like Eovaldi the Yankees could buy low on a struggling National League East pitcher with a bad stat sheet and record for the previous season. Enter Shelby Miller of the Atlanta Braves. They are in total rebuild, make the call.

New York reportedly talked to Seattle about a deal involving Brett Gardner which could have brought back left-hander James Paxton to the Bronx. Paxton has an injury history that scares me but a delivery, motion and repertoire that reminds me, and others, of Andy Pettitte. That is intriguing enough on its own.

The Houston Astros like Andrew Miller and still need a bullpen, would that come at the cost of either Collin McHugh or Lance McCuller Jr.? If I’m the Yankees I certainly hope so.

Cincinnati is rebuilding and I would love for the Yankees to take Raisel Iglesias off the Reds hands. I can remember clamoring for him when he defected from Cuba and Cashman has the opportunity to right a wrong. Some are calling Iglesias “El Duque II.” They sure know how to intrigue me, don’t they?

Tyson Ross of the San Diego Padres would be nice, so would Andrew Cashner truth be told, but AJ Preller is unlikely to make them available. Would the next best thing be Tyson’s brother and current Washington Nationals starter Joe Ross? Washington would love Andrew Miller and may even be interested in Gardner to replace Denard Span. This deal could work, although I could see Cashman acquiring Gio Gonzalez before Ross unfortunately.

Keep in mind, at least as far as I know, that New York is not linked to any of these starting pitchers and in most cases these pitchers are not openly being shopped by their teams. I was merely looking to get together a list of comparable pitchers to Nathan Eovaldi to present to Mr. Cashman, who you all know reads my work, just in case he wants to find lightning in a bottle one more time.