Early Season Trades that should happen NOW

New writer Keller Douglas here, and I am excited to join the Tough with 2 team hopefully bringing all of our readers some exciting content for the rest of the season. In this post I will be discussing three teams that have a player, or players, who should be dealt to fill a glaring hole, who they should get in return, and why. We're looking for mutally beneficial trades here, not lopsided giveaways to make some cap space. If you agree, disagree, or have any other recommendations, drop them in the comments!

Aroldis Chapman

Everyone knows that the Royals will more than likely deal Chapman come the deadline and his numbers this season have been spectacular. He truly looks to have regained his prior form with triple digit fastballs and devastating sliders and splitters. However, it undoubtedly will be beneficial for the Royals to consider a few deals for the return on investemnt for Chapman to allow the inclimng players some time with the MLB club, develop a rapport with the team, and develop with the coaching staff and organization.

1. Braves – Royals receive Brendan Shewmake. I know some Braves fans may not like this one, but considering Atlanta locked in Ozzie Albies with a long term deal, used Orlando Arcia before his injury including extending his contract, AND also having Vaughn Grissom clearly playing the role of Shortstop of the future, why not trade another prospect who is clearly on the cusp of big leagues for some much needed bullpen help? AJ Minter has scuffled of late, and sure, Raisel Iglesias is on the mend from his IL stint as I type this, but why wouldn’t a world series favorite try to sure up one of its “weakest” aspects of the team? Not only would Chapman give them another lefty in the bullpen, but if he continues to preform Atlanta will have an elite bullpen without sacrificing a 40 man roster spot. For the Royals, you get another fantastic infield building block. Bobby Witt has struggled on defense early in his career, so you can move him back over to third base where he feels more comfortable. If KC prefers to keep Witt at shortstop, Shewmake is young enough to move over to third or second base where Michael Massey and Nickey Lopez have been disappointing. Shewmake was in the discussion for making the Braves roster out of camp, so he could clearly play for a depleated Royals team and develop relationship with the players and coaches as he progresses into an everyday player.

2. Diamondbacks – Royals receive Jake McCarthy and/or Tommy Henry. This trade makes plenty of sense given the struggles the Diamondbacks have had at the back end of their bullpen. And, newsflash, the D-Backs are in first place in the division at the time of writing! Why not solidify their bullpen now to sustain success? McCarthy is clearly talented but has struggled thus far. Sometimes a change of scenary is the best adkustment to make and moving to KC would give him a chance to play everyday and fully develop (Look at a guy like Bryson Stott who just needed every day at-bats to show he's a stud). The Diamondbacks would be missing out on one of their speedsters in the outfield in the future, but I think Alek Thomas and Corbin Carroll could cover the entire outfield just by themselves! Tommy Henry was interesting to me because he has been up and down with the D-Backs over the last couple seasons but has struggled with giving up home runs. Kauffman stadium is one of the biggest and toughest parks to homer in and the Royals always need pitching help. Whether they can develop him is an entirely different analysis!

3. FUN TRADE Angels – Royals receive Jo Adell. This is one that I heard on one of my weekly podcasts the other day. The Angels have clearly had issues in their bullpen and are desperatly trying to be contenders before Shohei Ohtani hits Free Agency. It seems like Jo Adell, the Quad A player, needs a change of scenery at the moment. Aside from this making sense, how fun would it be to see Jo Adell making homeruns look easy in a massive Kauffman Stadium.

Tyler O’Neill/Alec Burleson/Brendan Donovan/Tommy Edman/Paul Dejong

Phew, that is a lot of names, right? Well, in case you don’t know, these are all Cardinals players. The Cardinals have so much talent for so few rosters spots. Usually, depth is a great problem to have; however, in the Cardinals situation, trading some of that depth for an upgrade to the pitching staff is essential! It is well known league wide that St. Louis pitching staff is the thorn in the side of this organization. While they do have a bevy of talent coming through the minor leagues, not all of them are ready to contribute to a team that is ready to compete year in and year out.

1. Dodgers – Cardinals receive Noah Syndergaard. I know, I know. “But Keller, the Dodgers could be a trade partner with anybody.” While this is true, the Dodgers are dealing with not having a super team for the first time in a long time. LA has plenty of pitching depth on the roster, including on the AAA roster to replace Thor. Not to mention the Dodgers have already dealt with infield injuries and have veterans David Peralta, Trayce Thompson, and Jason Heyward (who seems to be regaining form this year). Thor’s pitching style plays well for the Cardinals as well as he is a ground ball heavy pitcher and the Cardinals are one of the best, if not the best, teams in the league.

2. Guardians – Cardinals receive Logan T. Allen. Not entirely sure this one would happen since the Guardians may not want to give up such a promising young arm who dazzled in his MLB Debut last week, but he is the lowest ranked prospect of their young arms that are set to come up and contribute this year and the Guardians have plenty of holes that any of these players would help fill in the infield or outfield.

3. FUN TRADE Marlins – Cardinals receive Sixto Sanchez. I know he has barely started throwing, but the Marlins are lacking in just about every statistical offensive category along with limited depth in their minor league system. And who wouldn’t want to see Sixto Sanchez back and throwing 100 mph sinkers with his changeup that falls off the table pitching for a contender. If there is any organization that knows how to get their players to buy in and be disciplined, which is what Sixto’s biggest reason for getting injured, it is the Cardinals. If they could get Sixto right, he could be the number one in St. Louis for the foreseeable future.  

Forrest Whitley

This is the final player discussed in today’s article. This one may seem weird to some people becasued we have heard about this kid forever, but he's consistently hurt or dealing with something preventing him from playing. He still has a bright future ahead of him, but I think he also may be someone else who needs a change of scenery, and the Astros are also in win-now mode with a need to fill the only hole in their lineup - centerfiedl. You know exactly where these trades are heading now.

1. Nationals – Astros receive Victor Robles. I feel like these two were top prospects at the same time, right? Why not do a clean swap? The Nationals are rebuilding and could use the arms to add to their talented AAA propsect arms. Astros receive one of the best defensive centerfielders in baseball as well. And who knows, maybe they can reshape his offense into what so many scouts thought could have been. He doesn’t need to be the staple of an already potent offense. Why not go from batting ninth for the Nationals to ninth for the Astros? Sign me up!

2. Cardinals – Astros receive Dylan Carlson. Ahhh there is a theme here isn’t there? Another highly touted prospect who has failed to live up to the offensive expectations but has graded out quite well as a defensive centerfielder so far in his MLB career. Cardinals get another promising, talented young arm. Astros receive the switch-hitting defensive centerfielder that they could possibly develop into what scouts thought Carlson would be. Perhaps both Carlson and Whitley would benefit from a change of scenery, and both are going to contenders. No harm no foul!

3. FUN TRADE Rays – Astros receive Vidal Brujan. Started the trend already. Might as well keep on rolling with it, right? Yet another prospect who has yet to live up to the expectations that so many had for him. He was more of a speed/defense/contact type prospect than the two above who were projected to be 20+ home run type hitters in their primes. Brujan is a speedy switch hitter who came up as a second baseman but had received plenty of exposure to all infield and outfield spots during his time in Tampa’s farm system. Tampa raved about how well he adjusted to the outfield due to his elite athleticism. I was always a personal fan of Brujan’s skillset as a guy who grew up watching Luis Castillo and Juan Pierre stealing bases and helping the Marlins win a world series. Showing my age, aren’t I? Brujan would be another one the Astros could possibly develop into what scouts thought he could be, and the Rays get another fun young arm to develop. Win/win trade in my eyes!

Hope you enjoyed and I am glad to be a part of the Tough with 2 team! Until the next one!

--Keller Douglas