Will Justin Upton Move?

[chargerss24]

"FoxSports.com reported Wednesday that the Diamondbacks and Mariners came to an agreement on a trade for outfield Justin Upton, but Upton used his no-trade rights to block the deal. The Mariners are one of four teams on Upton’s no-trade list, though it is not yet known who else is on the list. The Diamondbacks have been trying to move Upton and the $38.5 million remaining on his contract since the start of the offseason. The Braves and Rangers continue to have interest in the 25-year-old."

Will he start the season with another team? Will a change of scenery be good for him? I'm asking this because I'm an Upton owner.

[daullaz]

I expect him to be traded, and I'm crossing my fingers for the Braves to pull it off. They have plenty of quality pitching prospects, and now that the Diamondbacks have Gregorius and the Mariners are off the table (thanks to Upton), they may be able to work out a deal without having to give up Simmons, which is a deal-breaker.

[BigLebowski]

Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com reports that the Mariners offered one of Danny Hultzen, James Paxton or Taijuan Walker, plus Nick Franklin, Charlie Furbush and Stephen Pryor to the Diamondbacks for Justin Upton.
It would have been quite a haul for the D'Backs, but it's a moot point unless Upton changes his mind and winds up accepting a deal to the Mariners. While the M's are one of four teams on Upton's no-trade list, it's possible a deal could be revived. The Rangers and Braves are also in the mix.

Rotoworld is reporting this offer. But as stated it's moot unless Upton will approve it.

I would still take the Upton side, but it would be hard to pass up that offer for him, with the perceived depth the d'backs have in the of.

[americanleagueroto]

Sounds like Walker was the arm in the deal, which is, well would have been, pretty big for Arizona. Walker, Franklin plus 2, not a bad haul, but we'll see if they can get him to waive his no trade.

As a Mariner fan I have mixed feelings about the deal as it stands, but it also sounds like another player was coming from Arizona, which depending on who, makes the deal sound pretty fair all around.

Dave

[daullaz]

So according to Sickels' scouting on minorleagueball.com, the offer was one A- player (Walker), one B+ player (Franklin), one C+ player (Pryor) and Furbush. I don't see a similar offer on the Braves side -- doesn't necessarily mean they won't get a deal done. But I did go through his other grades and try to find a logical landing spot that can give up similar prospects. Let's have some fun. Sorted roughly in descending order of who I think wants Upton the most.

Rangers: 3B Mike Olt (A-/B+), SP Martin Perez (B), SP Neil Ramirez (C+) and RP Michael Kirkman. The Rangers say they're out, but the Diamondbacks may be able to get their best deal here, thanks to Texas' ML depth, if they can just give up on snagging Profar.

Braves: SP Julio Teheran (B), SP J.R. Graham (B), SS Nick Ahmed (B-) and RP Jordan Walden. Teheran and Graham are Sickels' top-two Braves prospects, but you can sub either for Gilmartin, Spruill or Wood, if you like. ARI would have to still be high on Teheran for this to work.

Phillies: SP Jesse Biddle (B+), 3B Cody Asche (B-), SP Ethan Martin (B-) and RP Phillipe Aumont (C+). I doubt this will be enough to get a deal done. Domonic Brown is probably available, but the D-Backs already have too many OFs.

Orioles: SP Kevin Gausman (A-), 2B/SS Jonathan Schoop (B), SP/RP Steve Johnson (C+) and RP Pedro Strop. I like Baltimore for a mystery team, as Upton can replace the McLouth/Reimold duo. Not sure if there are new draft trade rules -- Gausman may not be eligible for trade yet.

Tigers: 3B/OF Nick Castellanos (B+/A-), RP Bruce Rondon (B), SP Casey Crosby (B-) and SP Drew Smyly. A lot to give up for Detroit, but if they shift Torii to LF, imagine facing Jackson/Hunter/Cabrera/Fielder/Upton/Martinez as a starting pitcher.

Royals: SP Yordano Ventura (B), SP Kyle Smith (B), 3B Chelsor Cuthbert (B-) and RP Kelvin Herrera. Probably don't have enough to get a deal done after the Tampa trade, plus they probably don't want to pay Francoeur all that money on the bench.

Cubs: SS Javier Baez (A), SP Arodys Vizcaino (B-), 3B Josh Vitters (C+/B-) and RP James Russell. The Cubs don't have many hi-level arms available, and their best one (Vizcaino) is a risky trade chip while recovering from TJS.

Red Sox: SP Matt Barnes (B+), SP Allen Webster (B/B+), SS Jose Iglesias (C+) and RP Junichi Tazawa. Leaves Boston pretty light in high-level pitching prospects, and Ellsbury would probably have to be dealt, moving Victorino to CF.

Indians: SS Francisco Lindor (A-), SP Mitch Brown (B-), RP Cody Allen (B-) and RP Vinnie Pestano. Doesn't make as much sense for the Indians with Swisher in the fold, unless they move Reynolds to DH and let Swish play 1B. Lindor should peak the D-Backs' interest.

Pirates: SP Jameson Taillon (A-), SS Alen Hanson (B+), SP/RP Kyle McPherson (C+) and RP Mark Melancon. I can't see the Pirates giving up either of their top SP prospects with their MLB rotation looking slim, but who knows?

Mets: SP Noah Syndergaard (A-/B+), 2B/3B Wilmer Flores (B+), RP Jeurys Familia (B-/B) and SP/RP Jeremy Hefner. This may be an even better offer than that of the Mariners, but they probably don't have the money and it goes against their strategy (on the surface, at least).

Rays: SP Chris Archer (B+), SP/RP Alex Colome (B-), SS Hak-Ju Lee (B-) and RP Jake McGee. Rays always have minor-league depth to burn, but trade probably doesn't make sense with Myers waiting in wings. Upton probably too expensive for Tampa.

[AussieDodger]

Wow fab post daullaz

I don't think I'd be able to knock back that Pirates offer.

Lately it seems like teams are willing to "compensate" players for waiving their no-trade clause. Surprised it didn't happen here. Unless Upton is gung-ho about playing with his brother in Atlanta.

Walker + Franklin is a pretty big haul to give up on, maybe this isn't dead.

[ayebatter]

Wow fab post daullaz

Agreed

Walker + Franklin is a pretty big haul to give up on, maybe this isn't dead.

Here too

[kab21]

At what point do the DBacks back themselves into a corner and have to trade him because of all of the rumors?

[Pogotheostrich]

At what point do the DBacks back themselves into a corner and have to trade him because of all of the rumors?

If they aren't there already they are close. It seems like Upton has been available forever. I guess they could start the season and gamble he starts off hot but they seem like they really want to move him.

The Rangers seem like the best fit to me but it sounds like Arizona is hung up on Profar. I doubt anyone is going to match the prospects Seattle reportedly offered.

[daullaz]

At what point do the DBacks back themselves into a corner and have to trade him because of all of the rumors?

There have been Upton trade rumors for years, so I don't think they'd trade him just because of the rumors. I think it's more likely that they trade Kubel in a smaller deal rather than trade Upton for well below his perceived market value.