The Major League Baseball offseason is starting to heat up big time with trades and free agent signings and after Jacoby Ellsbury signed with the NY Yankees in a massive deal, attention is getting turned to the pitching market and there are a number of players that could be traded, including David Price, Brett Anderson, Yovani Gallardo, Homer Bailey and Rick Porcello.
The Oakland Athletics have been a busy team this offseason already, signing Scott Kazmir and also trading for closer Jim Johnson and now rumors have the team looking to deal Brett Anderson. Interested teams, according to ESPN.com, may include the Seattle Mariners and Cleveland Indians, as both are looking to upgrade their starting rotations. The Tigers already traded away Doug Fister and as they try to sign Max Scherzer, Porcello could be a player that moves as well, while Price has long been considered the most likely to move since the Rays don't spend on their players much apart from Evan Longoria.
Yovani Gallardo and Homer Bailey have been linked to a number of deals, but it's unclear if the Brewers or Reds will trade either player, while other names that could move includes John Lackey and Jacob Turner. According to Ken Rosenthal from Fox Sports, Anderson is a prime target for the Seattle Mariners, as they are looking to add another arm to a rotation that includes a Cy Young winner in Felix Hernandez and a finalist last season in Hisashi Iwakuma and with the Athletics already having a stack of young pitchers and now Kazmir as well, Anderson is a name that likely will move, as he is under solid salary control and has been a reliable pitcher. In 2009 he had a sub 3.00 ERA and while he is coming off Tommy John Surgery, he could be a solid trade option for the M's.
David Price is the most interesting option to look at, as the Rays most likely will trade him before next season and one of the main teams that looks like a possibility is the Texas Rangers. The team pulled off a huge trade for Prince Fielder for Ian Kinsler and now the team would like to add more strength to a rotation that included another Japanese Cy Young finalist in Yu Darvish. Price is one of the best pitchers in the game and the Rangers have the money and the pieces to make a deal, but with the team flirting with Robinson Cano as well, they could hold off on making the move.
The Rangers could move first baseman Mitch Moreland for Price according to the Daily News and ESPN.com reports that Price is a top target for the Texas franchise. Price has 71 wins over six seasons and has put up a sub 3.20 ERA during that time and while the Rays would love to keep him, Price will command big money as a free agent or in an extension and that likely prices him out of Tampa, where he helped the team get to the World Series.
Anderson is looking more and more likely as a player that will be traded after starting 30 games as a rookie, as ESPN.com reports that Oakland is very interested in dealing him. Jeff Samardzija is a name that has come up multiple times and the Chicago Cubs are likely to deal him, with Arizona being interested.