Detroit Tigers: One trade to make and one trade to avoid

If Detroit Tigers General Manager Al Avila said the rebuild is over, then the Tigers should add a player at the deadline. The question is, what type of player?

On the July 20th broadcast, Detroit Tigers General Manager Al Avila said a quote that made Tigers fans happy.

"“Right now, we have no pressure at all to make any trades,” Avila said. “We don’t have the type of high-salary, aging player that we need to trade to rebuild, per se. We’re on the upswing. We’re actually hoping to acquire players at some point where and when it makes sense. “We like our young players. We’re trying to bring in more talented players. And really, that’s where we’re at right now. We’re trying to get better. We’re not rebuilding anymore. We’re building.”"

Judging by the reactions on social media, fans want to keep second baseman Jonathan Schoop, who is a free agent. A contract extension would be ideal, considering that Detroit has a few prospects away from contributing. Granted, I wrote a piece last month about trade ideas for Jonathan Schoop, based on the front office behavior and before Detroit went on their best winning streak since 2016.

You want to believe Kody Clemens or Zack Short will be regular contributors but until we see Clemens play on a regular and Isaac Paredes at full strength (currently on the IL), it is a giant game of “what if’s”.

Kody Clemens has been on a tear down in Toledo in his last two games going 5-for-9 with a pair of home runs and on the season, he has a wRC+ of 107 and a healthy OPS of .796.

Clemens has also been playing other positions including the outfield so it helps the Tigers in the long run.

So to move Jonathan Schoop or not?

In a trade that directly impacts the Detroit Tigers, Nelson Cruz was traded to the Tampa Rays along with Calvin Faucher to Tampa for a pair of minor league arms in right-handers Joe Ryan and Drew Strotman.

For the Twins, it gives them much-needed pitching depth in their system as Ryan was ranked 10th in the Rays system by MLB.com, and Strortman was ranked 17th. So why am I bring this up when it comes to Jonathan Schoop?  Let’s take a look at their numbers closely.