Detroit Tigers: Trade ideas involving the Washington Nationals

Detroit clears the way for some younger players while adding future pieces

At this point, the Detroit Tigers should be all about developing the youth on the team’s roster. The best way to do that is to give the younger players opportunities to stick and develop in the Majors.

However, Detroit will need some veterans on the roster. Cabrera seems likely to stick around. So could Shane Greene and Nicholas Castellanos.

It’s also conceivable that the front office will add a stop-gap veteran or two this offseason. A starting pitcher and a reliever, each on a one-year deal would certainly make sense.

If Detroit signs an extra veteran reliever like Fernando Abad, Seung-hwan Oh or Brandon Kintzler, the team should look to move Alex Wilson.

Even if the Tigers don’t make another bullpen addition, Wilson is a conceivably trade chip. He did suffer a fractured leg late last season, but that injury shouldn’t impact him long-term.

The right-hander has two seasons of club control left (according to Spotrac), which should hypothetically up his trade value some.

There’s also a potential need in Washington, where key bullpen contributors, Matt Albers, Kintzler and Oliver Perez will become free agents at the end of the World Series.

Wilson would give Washington a seventh-inning option to pair with or supplant Enny Romero and Koda Glover.

Replacing Wilson

What’s more, the Detroit Tigers aren’t short of options to replace the veteran.

Daniel Stumpf would seem the obvious candidate to step into the eighth-inning role, while a number of younger relievers could also replace Wilson.

Joe Jimenez, Jairo Labourt, Zac Reininger and Victor Alcantara were all hit around to varying degrees in their first taste of Major League action.

That being said, all four aren’t likely to struggle as significantly next season.

At least one of them should take a step forward next season.

Detroit will also have the likes of Bryan Garcia, Paul Voelker, Adam Ravenelle and Mark Ecker around at some point in 2018.

Additionally, if Blaine Hardy and Drew VerHagen can pitch effectively in relief as they each did earlier in their respective careers, it would go a long ways to helping the bullpen.

The hypothetical deal:

Detroit Tigers acquire RP Trevor Gott and P Nick Raquet.

Washington Nationals acquire RP Alex Wilson and UTIL Andrew Romine.