We are now one week away from the 2013 Major League Trade Deadline and things are only starting to heat up as only two major trades have occurred. Matt Garza to the Rangers from the Cubs and Francisco Rodriguez from the Brewers to the Orioles. There are a few other trade talks going on right now so that number could rise by the end of the night tonight.
— One trade that could possibly have effects on the Pirates would be the Alfonso Soriano to Yankees talks. The Yankees are looking for another outfielder and Soriano is their number one guy. If those talks fall through their next target would be Alex Rios, who is on the Pirates list as trade candidates.
Sources out of Chicago have said that it’s a good possibility that Soriano does, in fact, head back to New York and the deal could be done as soon as tonight as he may not be in the Cubs lineup for tonight’s contest.
— The Seattle Mariners looked to be sellers in the trade market a couple weeks ago giving thought to some that Jason Bay could be a decent candidate to play right field in Pittsburgh. The Mariners have gone on an 8-game win streak since and have decided to not be in the market anymore as they want to keep together the team for a run at a winning season. Sometimes, it’s just better to do it for morale and the fans.
— There have also been ramblings about another former Pirate, Ryan Doumit, who has transformed into an everyday right fielder for the Minnesota Twins. Tom Singer of MLB.com mentioned Doumit in a post two days ago.
Doumit is batting .238 with a .685 OPS while hitting 9 home runs and 42 RBI in 86 games for Minnesota. In his seven years with the Pirates, Doumit batted .271 with a .777 OPS while hitting 67 homers and 266 RBI.
This is a long shot with Doumit being owed 3.5 Million next season in his final year of a 3-yr contract with the Twins.
Names Mentioned Yesterday
Alex Rios / Alexei Ramirez (White Sox):
Alex Rios – With Soriano likely going to New York, Rios is still on the block and the Sox are still taking offers. There are also rumors that the Rangers are in talks about the right fielder.
This is a name that the Pirates have been looking at to fill the lack of power in right field. Rios has continued to build off of a solid season from last year by hitting at a .277 clip in 94 games this season. He has a .331 on base percentage and a .774 slugging percentage while hitting 12 home runs and knocking in 48. His speed would also be a welcome sight as he has stolen 20 bases in 26 attempts.
Alexei Ramirez – The Cardinals were rumored to have offered one of their top pitching prospects (Carlos Martinez) in a one-for-one trade, although that was said to be for not later in the day by CBS Sports writer, John Heyman.
while it wouldn’t surprise if #STLCards liked alexei r, #chisox did not turn down top rhp prospect Carlos Martinez for him
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeymanCBS) July 24, 2013
Ramirez would be a big upgrade to what the Pirates have at Shortstop right now. The Bucs would lose some range on defense, but they will make up for it and more on the offensive side as Ramirez is batting .284 with an OBP of .310.
The bad side of these two would be the return needed to get them. The Pirates would most likely have to give up at least three of these guys: Kingham, Pimentel, Hanson, Glasnow and Heredia.
Nick Schierholtz (Cubs) – Schierholtz hit a pinch-hit two run shot in last night’s game against the Diamondbacks which does nothing but help his trade resume.
Schierholtz is a solid left handed, power bat that could help in right field. Even though his average is .267, he still is boasting a .821 OPS which could help ramp up the lower half of the batting order.
Not much talk has been about Schierholtz, though, since the Garza trade because teams were looking at him in a package deal with the pitcher. Tom Loxas of ChicagoNow.com has told me that he doesn’t think interest was lost in Schierholtz once Garza left.
We will have more updates throughout the week leading up to the July 31st 4pm trade deadline.
Follow Travis for Pirates news and in-game updates on Twitter @TBerardi_OVA or @OVAthletics
(Photo Credit: Gene J. Puskar / AP)
