BOLD TRADE BAIT

Evan Davis

There are some players almost expected to get traded at the deadline, like Wilson Contreras and Ian Happ of the Chicago Cubs, Luis Castillo of the Cincinnati Reds, and Frankie Montas of the Oakland Athletics. But I thought it would be interesting to put a set of players together that I believe could be traded, just no one is talking about them. There are a lot of star studded players who are poised to become free agents this offseason, so maybe teams trade them away rather than losing them for nothing.

Carlos Rodon (SP, SF Giants)

Carlos Rodon has already earned the clause that allows for him to opt out at the end of this season, and given the minimal success of the Giants, I don’t really see a reason for him to stay.

A lot of contenders could use starting pitching help, and the Giants could get a sizable haul for the 29-year old southpaw.

Joc Pederson (LF, SF Giants)

Similar to Rodon, Pederson will be a free agent this season after inking a 1 year/$6 million deal with the Giants last offseason. I just don’t see Pederson resigning with a team that is struggling to play .500 baseball, especially given the fact that his nickname is “Joctober”

A lot of teams would be in the market for the All Star starting left fielder who continues to be clutch when the moment is the brightest. If I’m the Giants, I blow it up at the deadline because it isn’t really worth hanging on to the team considering they aren’t even a wild card team.

Xander Bogaerts (SS, BOS Red Sox)

Xander Bogaerts has an opt out at the end of this season, and with the underwhelming play of the ball club, it seems clear that Bogaerts is heading out the door. Bogaerts is one of the game's best shortstops in the game and teams in contention like the Milwaukee Brewers could definitely use an upgrade at that position.

If Boston doesn’t want to put up with the charade trying to figure out if Bogaerts stays or not, they should just trade him and start a rebuild. Honestly, if I'm the Red Sox, everyone is available at the deadline, because as of now, they have a worse record than the Baltimore Orioles.

Josh Hader (CP, MIL Brewers)

With the assurgence of Devin Williams, I think it would make sense for Josh Hader to be dealt to another ball club. Hader has one more year of arbitration after this season, and a ton of teams could use a reliable closer *cough* Dodgers *cough*.

Yes, it is never an issue to have an abundance of arms in the bullpen, but we’ve seen some cases where having too much could be a potential issue. Hader is one of the best closers in the game, and the Brewers could get a decent haul in return while keeping their closer of the future.

Shohei Ohtani (SP/DH, LA Angels)

The second coming of Babe Ruth, Shohei Ohtani is a possibility to be traded either at the deadline of sometime during the offseason. The Angels already have two major contracts to deal with (Mike Trout and Anthony Rendon), and with Shohei Ohtani wanting to command more AAV than Max Scherzer ($43.3M AAV), the Angels might look to trade him.

The haul would be absolutely insane for the All Star, and it might consist of a haul bigger than what a team would give up for Juan Soto. We haven’t seen a player of this caliber be able to do so much on the field, whether it’s stealing a base, throwing 101 MPH, or hitting a ball to the moon. Get the popcorn ready for what could be one of the biggest deadlines/offseasons in recent memory.