The Chicago Cubs are way out of things and after trading away Matt Garza to the Texas Rangers the team may be ready to deal some more, as David DeJesus, Nate Schierholtz, Kevin Gregg, James Russell and Dioner Navarro could be on the way out and the Cardinals, Tigers and Pirates have looked into some deals.
According to Hardball Talk, the Pirates want Schierholtz, DeJesus or Alex Rios from the White Sox and Schierholtz could be a nice option, as he has 14 home runs with 43 RBIs this season, while Pirates right fielders as a whole have hit .231 with nine homers and 37 RBIs during the season. Kevin Gregg could be moved to the Tigers for Bullpen depth and DeJesus may be an option for the Pirates if the Rios deal falters. Alfonso Soriano was already moved and the Cubs would get back some nice prospects in deals.
All this comes as Hardball Talk reports that the Rangers would be willing to trade anyone, even Elvin Andrus and possibly Matt Garza again after just acquiring him, as he looks very attractive after going s 1-0 with a 1.88 ERA in two starts for his new team and 7-1 with a 2.95 ERA overall this season and it may be linked to the Nelson Cruz suspension, as the team will need some more power in the lineup and some suggestions include Garza for Carlos Beltran or even Carl Crawford.
The Baltimore Orioles are locked in a division race in the American League East with the Boston Red Sox and the Tampa Bay Rays and as the trading deadline gets closer, the team is looking to add some strength in the lineup and the rotation, as Mariners players Michael Morse and Oliver Perez are looking like strong targets for the team. The team is ranked 16th in on base percentage and first in the league in slugging and adding Morse after he is back and healthy could help the O's down the stretch.
The Orioles are battling for position and are 59-48 this season and sit just five games out and they are prime players for the Wild Card as things get closer and now the team wants to add some more depth to the roster. The team has a plus-31 run differential this season, less than both the Red Sox and Rays and while they rank fourth in runs scored and fourth in batting average, the team would like to get the pitching up to snuff.
Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik has been putting together a plan for five years to get the team back to respectability and so far that has not worked and now Perez may be one of the players to go along with Morse and he may try to pry away a prospect or two for some of his veteran players. The trade season has already started with Scott Feldman and Ricky Nolasco being moved and now that the Mariners have young stars like Nick Franklin, Brad Miller and Erasmo Ramirez with the big team, the vets might be on the way out.
Overall, the Chicago White Sox, Houston Astros, Milwaukee Brewers, Miami Marlins, Minnesota Twins, New York Mets, Seattle Mariners are 10 games out and while not all of them will be sellers, there is a good chance that will go down for most of those teams, especially the Cubs and the White Sox, as Dunn and Alex Rios are the top names being mentioned. The trades that have already gone down could signal how teams react later down the line, including with the Dodgers, as they are interested in a pitcher despite already dealing for Ricky Nolasco.
Other deals that have gone down show that the Cubs are willing to move players, as they traded outfielder Scott Hairston to the Washington Nationals and also dealt starting pitcher Scott Feldman to the Baltimore Orioles. The White Sox fit into the same category and Chris Sale could be added to that mix, as reliever Matt Thornton was dealt to the Boston Red Sox already and Jesse Crain was also acquired.
The Tigers, Yankees, Cardinals and many other teams could come calling for the Mariners and even six wins in seven games likely won't stop the team from dealing. They are over 12 games back in the division after sniffing .500 earlier in the season and the team isn't getting much better. They rank 28th in runs and 27th in batting average and are just 23rd and 18th in on base and slugging percentage in the league.