The trades are coming, the trades are coming! I promise you.
With so many names being bandied about six weeks out from the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline, filtering down to a handful per column is a tough call. The rumor mill is mostly crap, so determining the hottest is wild guess territory. The alphabetical method makes little sense, so I thought I'd throw you a curve -- since Rich Hill can't, apparently -- and go by height.
Ryan Madson is 6' 6" so let's start there. The A's are going nowhere fast and Billy Beane lives to trade. And clearly, he has nothing better to do.
While behavioral scientists and sports psychologists continue to study the effects of Chris Hatcher's presence on Andrew Friedman, let's assume that a parting of the ways is coming. If Sergio Romo doesn't return from his fake ankle injury as good as new, he'll be jettisoned too.
Relief help is on the way, and while Madson shouldn't be at the top of the list, necessarily, he's sure to be on it. Oakland will be reasonable to part with him and the approximately $11 million in his deal though 2018. That's a lot of money for a 36-year-old setup man, but he had 30 saves as recently as 2016 and is pitching well now (2.63 ERA, 0.988 WHIP, 9.2 SO/9). The 42 games of postseason experience and two rings is nothing to sneeze at either.
Pat Neshek. At 6' 3" he is the second tallest reliever on today's list, and a good one. A late bloomer and an All-Star for St. Louis at 33 in 2014, Neshek is at 0.67, 0.815, 8.0. As a former Oakland player -- not that that should matter as much as it does -- Dodgers general manager Farhan Zaidi is familiar with the resume, which includes 13 postseason appearances, a 2.61 and 0.581.
A free agent after the season and a bargain at $6.5 million for 2017, the Phillies should insist on genuine value in return. Neshek is worth the cost and Los Angeles can spare a chip in a fair deal. Keeping him away from the reliever-hunger Nationals is a nice bonus. While I doubt that it is, a trade should be in the works already.
Yu Darvish, 6' 5". Great pitcher, healthy and a free agent come November.
Lifetime: 52-35, 3.30, 1.176, 11.1.
2017: 6-5, 3.35, 1.128, 9.5.
Leads the majors in starts with 15, has pitched in two playoff games, once effectively, once not so much. Salary is $11 mil and the qualifying offer thing ain't what it used to be.
Houston is going to win the American League West by 20 games, but the Rangers are right in the thick of it for the wild card. The second will card. Texas has to decide. To get a guy like Darvish -- a Greinke-like 1-A if ever there was one -- Los Angeles is going to have to wait for a determination from Jon Daniels. Patience is a virtue, or so they tell me.
Cole Hamels. Same deal applies here. Texas has to decide, but if Daniels is going to spring for Darvish over the winter -- which could be north of $150 mil -- he might not be able to keep Hamels and the approximately $35 mil remaining through 2018 even if he wants to.
While I don't know with certainty, I think because of age and contract he can be had for less in personnel than Darvish, a deal for Hamels is within the realm. And I won't lie to you. I'm not completely objective on this one. I'm a big fan.
Hamels has pitched his entire career in hitters havens at Philadelphia and Arlington, and after a stellar 2016 season (15-5, 3.32, 1.306, 9.0 in 200 2/3 innings at 32, albeit plus a clunker in October), I would love to see how he takes to Dodger Stadium. In the fall especially.
His lifetime marks are glorious: 138-96, 3.31, 1.161, 8.6 in 2247 innings over 12 seasons. He has seven postseason wins, a 3.48 in 98 innings and is a bonafide World Series hero, the likes of which L.A. hasn't seen since Orel Hershiser, who no longer takes the ball every fifth day.
Hamels doesn't either currently, as he's out with the obligatory oblique, but he's one start into his rehab (3 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 Ks) and we'll know plenty about his status by the end June, much less the final day of July. And he is 6' 4", after all.
Give me Hamels and Neshek, say be-bye to Hatcher and I'm a happy man. For the moment. We'll have more trade options, very much including the offensive side of the ball, next time.
Until then, remember, glove conquers all.
