Last week, the Chicago Cubs and Los Angeles Dodgers agreed to an overlooked trade that sent infielder Michael Busch to the midwest as part of a four-player swap. As we wrote elsewhere, Busch's inclusion in a deal felt inevitable. Though he was unable to crack the Dodgers lineup, he's a promising left-handed hitter who clearly belongs in a big-league lineup somewhere.
The Busch trade got us thinking about other teams with surpluses that demand clarity. In turn, we decided to highlight four teams with logjam situations that could precipitate trades between now and Opening Day 2024. (Fanatic readers might recall that we engaged in a similar exercise last spring.) Bear in mind that we make no guarantees about these teams actually making moves.
Now, let's get to it.
1. Baltimore Orioles: Position players
Stop us if you've read this before. The Orioles have an abundance of young position players either already at the big-level or drawing close to it.
Baltimore's collection includes reigning American League Rookie of the Year Award recipient Gunnar Henderson; three of the top 25 prospects in the minors in shortstop Jackson Holliday (No. 1), outfielder Colton Cowser (No. 21), and infielder Coby Mayo (No. 22); and a slew of others who are notable for whatever reason. Don't believe us? We could tick off Heston Kjerstad (the No. 2 pick in 2020) and Enrique Bradfield (last summer's first rounder). We could also mention Samuel Basallo, one of the game's top catching prospects.
OK, you surely get the point by now. We'll stop.
Henderson and Holliday's presence in particular should allow the Orioles to leverage their depth to trade for a pitching upgrade. Maybe that means moving Jordan Westburg, who held his own last season during his introduction to the majors. Maybe it means packaging smooth-fielding shortstop Joey Ortiz and/or pure-hitting second baseman Connor Norby. We don't know.
We do know that the Orioles need to make a move at some point, lest they fail to optimize their roster in pursuit of a World Series championship despite having an embarrassment of position prospect riches.
2. Los Angeles Dodgers: Pick your position
Even with Busch elsewhere, the Dodgers still have a number of players they could deal without ostensibly missing them later on. That group includes infielder Miguel Vargas, outfielder Andy Pages, and a collection of pitchers ranging from Gavin Stone to Landon Knack and Kyle Hurt. (For brevity's sake, we omitted the best of the pitching bunch with the assumption they'll remain.)
The Dodgers have had the most exciting winter of any team, signing Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and Teoscar Hernández and trading for Tyler Glasnow and Manuel Margot. Could they make a run at another starting pitcher? What about a shortstop? From our perspective, the Dodgers are still well positioned to do basically whatever they want this offseason.
3. Cincinnati Reds: Infielders
The Reds did something unexpected earlier this winter: rather than subtract from their infield glut, they added to it by signing Jeimer Candelario. Otherwise? The Reds haven't done a thing to decluster their depth chart.
We have to assume that will change at some point. As it stands, the Reds have Elly De La Cruz and Matt McLain penciled in up the middle with Noelvi Marte and Candelario at the corners. That leaves Spencer Steer in left, Jonathan India at designated hitter, and Christian Encarnacion-Strand on the pine.
Keep in mind, the Reds still have a number of notable infield prospects climbing the ladder. Take your pick between recent top-50 draft picks like Cam Collier, Sal Stewart, and Sammy Stafura, and intriguing trade acquisitions, such as Edwin Arroyo and Victor Acosta.
As with the Orioles, the Reds could use an impact starter if they're serious about completing their conversion from rebuilder to contender. We'll see if Cincinnati's front office can find a sensible deal over the next month.
4. Cleveland Guardians: Middle infielders
We'll stay in Ohio and on the infield with the Guardians' messy depth chart. They have José Ramírez and Andrés Giménez locked in at third and second. Kyle Manzardo should be the solution at first base sooner or later. That leaves the shortstop position as the one landing spot for a plethora of young options, ranging from Gabriel Arias to Tyler Freeman to Brayan Rocchio and beyond.
The Guardians have a clear need for offense, particularly from their outfield. If we're being charitable, it's possible they want to see how some of their outfield prospects -- George Valera and Chase DeLauter included -- can take to the big-league level over the coming months. Still, it feels wasteful to field a mediocre lineup when they have this many interesting infield options in tow.
And oh, by the way, the Guardians have the No. 1 pick in this July's draft. Two of the top three prospects -- JJ Wetherholt and Travis Bazzana, believed to be Cleveland's preference at this point in time -- are collegiate second basemen who ought to reach the majors in a hurry. The Guardians, then, have all the reason in the world to figure out their infield sooner than later.
