Detroit Tigers should make this trade with the San Diego Padres

Detroit Tigers executive vice president of baseball operations and general manager Al Avila could conceivably make some trades this offseason. One potential trade partner is San Diego.

Detroit Tigers players and fans have seen many of the team’s best players traded in the last year.

From the salary-saving move to deal Cameron Maybin to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, to some key in-season trades during the 2017 campaign, plenty of veteran talent has left the Motor City.

In addition to Maybin, that group includes ace starting pitcher Justin Verlander, catcher Alex Avila, closer Justin Wilson and outfielders J.D. Martinez and Justin Upton.

With the Tigers now entering a rebuilding phase, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Al Avila trade away more of the team’s veterans for future prospects.

Second baseman Ian Kinsler and closer Shane Greene are two of the franchise’s best trade chips, while right-handed reliever Alex Wilson could conceivably be dealt as well.

Jose Iglesias

Another one of Detroit’s more conceivable trade candidates is shortstop Jose Iglesias.

The former Red Sox player provides plenty of value defensively (14.3 Def, +4 DRS). However, he wasn’t exactly a Silver Slugger finalist at the plate.

In 489 plate appearances, Iglesias registered a 71 wRC+ and a .283 wOBA.

Still, there’s plenty of value to be had with Iglesias, especially considering he doesn’t strike out much (12.3 career strike out percentage) and can add some pop at shortstop.

Last season the veteran turned in a career-best .114 ISO at the dish.

Whether Iglesias is traded this offseason remains to be seen, but here’s a hypothetical trade involving the Detroit Tigers and the San Diego Padres.

Blaine Hardy

The second player that the Detroit Tigers would move in this hypothetical trade is left-handed reliever Blaine Hardy.

For the longest time, San Diego churned out plenty of quality relievers. While the team still has a number of promising arms, the Padres’ bullpen ranked 29^th in the league in both WAR and FIP.

While Hardy wouldn’t be the answer in San Diego, there’s a chance he could find more success at spacious Petco Park.

The left-hander was among Detroit’s most reliable relievers from 2014 to 2016, turning in a 1.5 fWAR, 7.57 strikeouts per nine frames, a 3.00 ERA and a 3.30 FIP in 126 innings.

However, Hardy’s stats cratered last season.

His fWAR dipped into the negatives at -0.2 as he also turned in a 5.94 ERA, a 5.38 FIP, a 5.37 xFIP and a 4.66 SIERA in just 33.1 innings.

There’s always the possibility that he could pitch more effectively in Detroit, but the Tigers have younger left-handed options at their disposal.

Stumpf and Labourt

Daniel Stumpf showed well for significant stretches last season, and is perhaps the team’s most dependable relief pitcher outside of Shane Greene and Alex Wilson.

There’s also Jairo Labourt. The former Toronto farmhand debuted in the majors last season.

He still has some issues with walks, but if he can reign things in the same way he did at Double-A Erie this year, he has a chance to be an impact reliever.

Depth

Detroit could also conceivably turn to a pair of starting pitchers in Chad Bell and Matt Hall to serve as left-handed options out of the bullpen as well as hypothetical replacements for Hardy.

Both are different pitchers as Bell has much more velocity, while Hall racks up strikeouts with his curveball.

Still, both could find success in shorter stints.

In terms of pitch count, when Bell was working with 25 pitches or less in a game, he held opposing batters to a .238 batting average, a .306 on-base percentage, a .361 slugging percentage and a .667 OPS in 134 plate appearances.

When you add that with the fact that the southpaw’s fastball could play up from its average velocity of 93.4 (per FanGraphs), there’s plenty of potential in the bullpen for Bell.

Matt Hall

Hall ended the season as the 27^th-best prospect according to MLB.com’s Pipeline.

The same publication wrote the following about the Double-A Erie pitcher:

“Upon first glance, hitters likely think Hall is the kind of pitcher they will light up, largely because of a below-average fastball that doesn’t even scrape 90 mph. What he does have is an outstanding curve that he will throw at any time. He can really spin it and will find continued success if he keeps commanding it well.”

Hall earned a promotion to Erie for the first time this season, and found plenty of success, with 38 strikeouts and a 3.09 ERA in six starts spanning 35 innings.

Like Bell, he could find success in a shorter relief role.

The Detroit Tigers’ side of the deal

In the this hypothetical transaction with the San Diego Padres, the Tigers would net a pair of Major League contributors, who both happen to be named Travis, in Travis Wood and Travis Jankowski.

Both could play key roles in 2018.

We start with Travis Wood, who parlayed a successful, two-year stint in the Chicago Cubs bullpen into a multi-year contract with the Kansas City Royals.

However, the left-hander couldn’t find the same form that helped him turn in a 2.95 ERA, a 3.56 FIP, 8.9 strikeouts per nine innings and a 1.17 WHIP from 2015 to 2016 with the Cubs.

In 94 total innings split between Kansas City and San Diego, Wood pitched to a 6.80 ERA, a 5.90 FIP, a 5.85 xFIP, 6.22 strikeouts per nine innings and a 1.73 WHIP.

Those numbers don’t exactly jump off the page, but it is worth noting that Wood’s pitching coach all those years in Chicago was Chris Bosio, who was just hired as Detroit’s new pitching coach.

A reunion could help Wood regain his past form.

Money

On the surface, Wood’s $6.5 million salary (per Spotrac) in 2018 isn’t ideal for a rebuilding Detroit Tigers club.

However, when you consider that MLBTradeRumors projects Iglesias to pick up $5.6 million through arbitration this winter, the trade looks much better financially.

For what it’s worth, the same publication projects Hardy will take home $800K, this trade nearly breaks even from a monetary standpoint for the Tigers.

According to Spotrac, Wood’s contract does contain an $8 million mutual option for the 2019 season, which his employers can buy out for $1.5 million.

However, if the former Cub can get back to pitching effectively under Bosio’s tutelage, that contract may not be an issue for the Tigers.

Wood could develop into a trade chip by the time the trade deadline rolls around and be flipped for more prospects.

Stop-gap

Still, even if Detroit employs Wood for the duration of the deal, the southpaw has plenty of experience as both a starter and a reliever—including two different seasons as a starting pitcher in which he topped a 2.0 fWAR.

He could be a rotation place-holder until the likes of Franklin Perez, Grayson Long and Beau Burrows are ready for the Majors within the next two seasons.

What’s more, Wood could also fill in as Shane Greene’s top setup man if the need is more dire in the bullpen.

Travis Jankowski

The second Travis in this hypothetical trade is Travis Jankowski. Like Wood, he could step in and play a prominent role from Opening Day onwards.

A 26-year-old outfield with four years of controllability remaining (according to Spotrac), Jankowski isn’t eligible for arbitration until next offseason.

A speed merchant, the outfield was limited to just 87 plate appearances in 2017. However, he showed plenty of upside in 2016.

Over 131 games, including 383 plate appearances, during that season, Jankowski accrued a 3.1 BsR, 30 stolen bases, an 11.0% walk percentage and an 83 wRC+ en route to notching a 2.1 WAR.

It also didn’t hurt that he posted a strong 12.2 Def, a 20.9 UZR/150 and a +3 DRS in 697 innings in center field.

He’d make for an intriguing outfield troika with JaCoby Jones and Mikie Mahtook where defense and base running are concerned.

Jankowski’s controllability and relative youth could also make him a long-term piece in Detroit.

Next: We interviewed Jake Rogers, one of the three prospects acquired for Justin Verlander

However, at worst he’s an outfield stop-gap option that will improve the team’s defense and base running while also bridging the gap to prospects like Christin Stewart, Daz Cameron, Derek Hill and Jose Azocar.