Three Tigers have been the main focus of trade rumors and speculation in the last few weeks – starter Matthew Boyd, closer Shane Greene and outfielder Nicholas Castellanos.
Boyd, despite a 1-8 record since the start of June and a lofty 4.07 ERA on the season, has garnered a lot of interest ahead of the deadline, thanks in large part to his ability to strikeout a lot of batters, despite not throwing overly hard.
97.1 The Ticket’s Pat Caputo says he’s not sure what is going to happen with Boyd, but it’s a fascinating situation.
“I understand with the analytics of it how people look at Matthew Boyd – I’m talking about clubs; not the pundits, not the other players, just clubs and why they value him so much because of his ability to use the pitch tunnel, late break, things of that nature,” Caputo said. “Analytically, that’s why people like him so much. It explains why somebody who doesn’t throw that hard strikes out that many hitters.”
Boyd has racked up 168 strikeouts on the season, ranking 6th in the Major Leagues and sits fifth in MLB with 12 Ks per nine innings.
As many clubs are reportedly interested in Boyd, who is arbitration eligible in 2020, Caputo says what he’s more interested in is what the Tigers might be able to get in a package deal for Greene and Castellanos.
The Cubs are reportedly interested in Castellanos, and while the closer role may be filled on the North Side of Chicago, the Cubs could certainly use a little more help in the bullpen. In the Cubs’ push to a first World Series title since 1908 back in the 2016 season, they shipped off many of their top prospects to build themselves into contenders.
“The Cubs have no prospects of note that the Tigers would be that interested in trading for,” Caputo said. “They’ve already dealt most of their prospects and their farm system has been struggling to some degree.”
One player that could be of interest to the Tigers is Kyle Schwarber – a college catcher at Indiana University who was converted to an outfielder. While his defensive skills are certainly a drawback, it’s his left-handed power and club control that should entice Tigers GM Al Avila.
“Schwarber is not eligible for free agency until 2022, he’s a left-handed hitter with a lot of power, they’ve soured on him, that’s pretty clear,” Caputo says. “All that talk about Castellanos and those rumors was a direct shot at Schwarber. He hasn’t hit left-handed pitching and his WAR is barely above replacement level. He’s not very good defensively, but he has 22 home runs, he’s a left-handed hitter with power and he is under long team control.”
The Tigers may have a solution for Schwarber’s outfield struggles that the Cubs don’t – an open position at first base. Slugger Anthony Rizzo has that spot firmly nailed down at Wrigley, while the Tigers could try and turn Schwarber into their guy at first.
Caputo says the other best trade partner when it comes to prospects in a potential Castellanos-Greene package would be the Tampa Bay Rays.
“They fancy themselves as contenders, and rent-a-players may interest them a little bit more, even with Greene under control for one more year, being arbitration eligible and they have a lot more prospects than the Cubs to deal,” he said.