Detroit Tigers: Five Spencer Turnbull Trades
By Chris Brown
![OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 06: Spencer Turnbull #56 of the Detroit Tigers pitches against the Oakland Athletics at Ring Central Coliseum on September 06, 2019 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images) OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 06: Spencer Turnbull #56 of the Detroit Tigers pitches against the Oakland Athletics at Ring Central Coliseum on September 06, 2019 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape/cover/sport/https-3A-2F-2Fmotorcitybengals-com-2Fwp-content-2Fuploads-2Fgetty-images-2F2020-2F07-2F1174269829-850x560-13a9b9c1d0b30f01b8bfda204d48d1a3.jpg)
Spencer Turnbull and Jose Cisnero to the Philadelphia Phillies for UTIL Scott Kingery, SS Luis Garcia, and RHP Francisco Morales
This one adds a bit of a twist, because Detroit would actually be taking on some salary. The Phillies gave Kingery a six-year, $24 million deal before he ever played an MLB game, and though he was primarily a second baseman in the minors, he has played mostly shortstop and center field in the bigs. He was an above-average player in 2019, though he struggled mightily in the second half, and his 2020 has been a disaster. A change of scenery may help, and in Detroit he could return to his natural position. Garcia is a promising young switch-hitter who struggled in low-A but should be able to stick at shortstop, and Morales is a probable future reliever, but one with the raw stuff of a future closer.
Cisnero would help Philly’s woeful bullpen, and Turnbull would allow them to push Vince Velasquez and possibly Spencer Howard to the pen for now, and give them a solid rotation replacement for Jake Arrieta next year.