Detroit Tigers have personnel to trade some veterans, still contend

Detroit Tigers players are in the midst of an eight-game losing streak. The season still has a ways to go. Detroit could trade veterans like J.D. Martinez, Justin Wilson and Jose Iglesias while staying competitive.

Detroit Tigers fans haven’t seen the most complete, on-field product as of late.

The Tigers haven’t exactly been playing a poor brand of baseball that one would associate with an eight-game slide. Their run differential over the span is -24, but Detroit has kept it close or had a lead in all but one of the eight games.

With July right around the corner and the trade deadline approaching, it will be interesting to see how the Tigers progress from here.

Nothing is set in stone at this point. The team probably wasn’t going to be buyers, even if they owned one of baseball’s best records, due to the payroll and a thin farm system.

However, the team clearly aren’t sellers yet.

Given the nature of the standings, Detroit is just a hot streak away from being right back in the thick of things.

Regardless of the team’s record or place in the standings come trade season, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Tigers make a trade or two.

While J.D. Martinez has performed at an elite level offensively in his tenure in the Motor City, Detroit probably needs to trade him if they aren’t going to hand him a hefty contract when his deal expires in the offseason rather than risk losing him for nothing.

Potentially the best position player on the trade market, Martinez could conceivably draw a significant haul in return.

Purely from a speculative standpoint, a number of teams who could be fits for the slugger include the Astros, Dodgers, Diamondbacks and Blue Jays.

Two other potential trade candidates are Justin Wilson and Jose Iglesias.

Controllability carries a lot of value these days, and both Iglesias and Wilson are under control through next season.

Why the Detroit Tigers can trade Justin Wilson and stay competitive

The potential loss of Justin Wilson could sting the most given Detroit’s inability to lock down a consistent closer over the years.

However, the team has the means to replace him. What’s more, the Tigers could snag a premium return for one of the top relief arms in the league.

Detroit could slide Shane Greene into the closer’s spot and utilize Bruce Rondon, Joe Jimenez, Alex Wilson and Daniel Stumpf in setup roles.

Rondon struggled in three outings to begin the year, but he turned in elite numbers (31.3 strikeout percentage, 11.15 punch outs per nine innings, 2.95 SIERA, 0.96 WHIP) in 36.1 frames down the stretch in 2016.

If he can pitch at a similar level, Detroit’s bullpen will be more than able to replace Justin Wilson.

Elsewhere, it might benefit the Tigers to give Jimenez an extended look in high-leverage situations.

The flame-throwing prospect is only 22, but he doesn’t have much—if anything—to prove in the minors. Like Stewart, it could be beneficial to give him some meaningful action ahead of the 2018 campaign.

Ideally, Detroit would be able to snag Major-League ready talent in return for Wilson, whether that be prospects in the upper minors or young players with big league experience.

A similar trade to last season’s Mark Melancon swap between the Pittsburgh Pirates and Washington Nationals would probably appeal to the Tigers.

Potential trade returns for Justin Wilson

Pittsburgh sent Melancon to the National League East franchise for 25-year-old reliever Felipe Rivero and pitching prospect Taylor Hearn.

Melancon helped stabilize the back end of Washington’s bullpen, while Rivero immediately moved into the back end of Pittsburgh’s relief corps.

Rivero has pitched to a 1.74 ERA and a 3.01 FIP in 67.1 innings since joining the Pirates, while Hearn is currently rated by MLB.com as the team’s 11^th-best prospect.

Justin Wilson doesn’t quite come with the same track record closing games as Melancon did, but unlike the fellow ex-Pittsburgh hurler, Wilson isn’t a rental.

The hard-throwing left-hander is controllable through the 2018 season, upping his value considerably.

As it would happen Washington hasn’t effectively replaced Melancon and could be a trade fit.

The Nats don’t have a ton of upper-level prospect depth, but the fit is there.

Other hypothetical trade partners include the Astros and Dodgers, who could utilize Wilson as the team’s top southpaw reliever. Both clubs have intriguing talent on the cusp of the Majors who could fit in Detroit.

In Houston’s case, a hypothetical trade involving Wilson and outfielder Derek Fisher would certainly make sense.

Fisher blends plenty of power and speed and is hitting .322 in Triple-A.

Houston has George Springer and Josh Reddick penciled into two outfields spots long term, while top prospect Kyle Tucker is showing well at Double-A.

Because of this, Fisher may be slightly more attainable given the team’s depth.

In the Dodgers’ case, center fielder Alex Verdugo and second baseman Willie Calhoun are both potential building blocks.

Why the Detroit Tigers can trade Jose Iglesias and stay competitive

Of all the players the Detroit Tigers could trade, Jose Iglesias is the easiest to replace.

Dixon Machado is already on the Major League roster, and offers similar defensive ability to Iglesias.

Granted he isn’t as flashy of a fielder as Iglesias—no one is—Machado still has the ability to be a superb defensive shortstop.

This defensive reputation helped him reach the Majors. So far this season, the 25-year-old has also shown that he can handle the bat.

In 67 plate appearances, Machado is batting .302 with a .338 on-base percentage.

He’ll never be much of a power hitter, but the shortstop does have four RBI, a double and a triple o the campaign. He’s also chipped in with five runs scored and three walks.

Machado is also much cheaper than Iglesias.

According to Spotrac, Iglesias is making $4.1 million this year. He’ll go through arbitration one final time before reaching free agency following the 2018 season.

Meanwhile, Machado isn’t arbitration eligible for two more seasons. Per Spotrac, he’s making $537,800 this year.

Trade fits

In terms of hypothetical trade partners, the Baltimore Orioles, Tampa Bay Rays, San Diego Padres and St. Louis Cardinals all make sense as speculative fits.

Iglesias probably won’t snag as much in a trade as Martinez or Wilson, but the Detroit Tigers could still net an intriguing prospect return for the shortstop.

Current and future implications

The Detroit Tigers would obviously be a much different looking team without J.D. Martinez, Justin Wilson and Jose Iglesias, but there’s reason to believe that the team can be successful.

Minnesota likely won’t stay atop the American League Central all season, and the jumbled standings in the American League at the moment still has every team still in the playoff picture.

Additionally, with some of the veterans—and perhaps expectations—gone, Detroit could potentially benefit without any pressure heaped on them and start stringing wins together.

The team would be in an excellent position moving forward from a salary standpoint.

According to Spotrac, Martinez will make $11.75 million this year. Per the same source, Wilson is earning $2.7 million, while Iglesias is making $4.1 million.

Dealing the trio would shave $18.55 million off Detroit’s salary this season.

This puts the team in an excellent position heading into 2018, with a number of other deals coming the books.

Detroit will no longer have to pay Mike Pelfrey and Mark Lowe, two pitchers who are no longer with the organization.

Pelfrey is being paid $8 million this season according to Spotrac, while Lowe is making $5.5 million (also per Spotrac).

Francisco Rodriguez’ deal will also come off the books, while Anibal Sanchez could also reach free agency.

The veteran starter has a $16 million option on his deal for next season that can be bought out for $5 million (according to Spotrac).

However, at this point, if Sanchez continues to turn in quality outings, the team could trade him as well, with Matt Boyd serving as a replacement.

Regardless, the Detroit Tigers are in a position to add some premium talent while still staying competitive.

Next: Regardless of if team buys or sells, young position players are needed to build around

Making these trades could help both now and later as the Tigers look to build a sustainable winner.