Read Bleacher Fan and Sports Geek’s arguments and find out who they believe the best player available at the trading deadline is.
We’re still four weeks away from the Major League Baseball trading deadline, but we at The Sports Debates thought it was time for us to take a look at some guys who can put a good team over the top and may also be available in the next four weeks.
As of Friday morning, a whopping 23 teams are in contention either leading a division, the wild card race, or within six games of the division/wild card lead. That leaves a LOT of teams with a shot to make a run at a playoff berth. This is definitely good for the game of baseball as we head into the dog days of summer.
There are plenty of good players possibly available. Cleveland Indians staff ace Cliff Lee, Colorado Rockies closer Huston Street, Baltimore Orioles relief pitcher George Sherrill, and maybe even Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Dan Haren can be had for the right price. But, there’s one player who stands out to me, who I think will be traded and who will have a big impact.
His name is Matt Holliday.
Holliday, who currently plays for the Oakland Athletics, enters play Friday hitting .275 with eight home runs and 40 RBI. Not great numbers for a guy of Holliday’s stature. Keep in mind, however, that he is playing in spacious Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum.
Holliday is a free agent after the 2009 seasons, and with “super bad guy” Scott Boras as his agent, the chances of him resigning with the Athletics are about as slim as Ron Artest becoming a teammate of Kobe Bryant (wait, it looks like that IS going to happen!). Oakland general manager Billy Beane will have an interesting decision to make in the next four weeks before the trading deadline on July 31.
Holliday is a three time All-Star. He is in his sixth season, and he has 136 career home runs. He was also the MVP of the 2007 NLCS, so he has the postseason experience.
I am a big fan of the home run. Both chicks and Loyal Homer dig the long ball. When a home run slugger is at the plate, it changes the entire attitude of the opposing team. Holliday is one of those guys that you always see where he is in the batting order. In the back of your mind, if you’re an opposing pitcher, you are thinking to yourself, “Where’s Holliday? When is he due up?” And even though his power numbers are down slightly this year, he still creates that threat.
Having Holliday on your team changes the entire complexion of the starting lineup. Does someone like Juan Pierre or Coco Crisp scare you that way someone like Holliday does?
If any contender is fortunate enough to acquire Holliday, then they have upgraded their club tremendously. If your favorite team is in contention and needs a slugging outfielder, this is the guy you want.
Loyal Homer, the only issue I have with this is that Holliday is a lifetime .280 hitter away from Coors Field. His .357 lifetime average AT Coors Field is remarkable… but he’s not a good fit for everyone with that imbalanced average, is he?
It’s hard to argue against his anti-Coors numbers. I just think he poses a big threat when he is in the lineup. He’s a three time All-Star. If your team needs an upgrade at one of the corner outfield positions, I think it’s worth a shot to look at him. However, Oakland appears to be asking for atleast two big-time prospects so that may scare some teams away, especially with him being a free agent this winter.