Detroit Tigers: 4 players team should have traded for this offseason

We all know that this year's free agent pool wasn't the greatest, especially if you were looking for a bat. However, the trade market was pretty solid this offseason. Big names like Juan Soto, Chris Sale, and most recently Corbin Burnes were all dealt to new teams this winter.

It wasn't just the big names that got dealt. There were quite a few trades that went down this offseason that included some good players that should help out their new teams. Another recent example, the Mariners acquired reliever Gregory Santos from the White Sox. He's a great arm that should add to an already stacked Seattle bullpen.

Sadly, other than acquiring Mark Canha all the way back in November, the Detroit Tigers didn't bring any new players in via trade. It's not like they didn't have to resources to do it either. Multiple outlets have ranked their farm system in the top five in all of baseball. They had the prospect capital to make a deal happen, but they didn't.

They didn't even have to trade for a star, though that would have been nice. Trading for a solid, quality big leaguer would have done the job.

So today, we're going to go over four players the Tigers should have traded for this offseason. This list will include some players that were traded to other teams, and some players that weren't traded at all.

OF Tyler O'Neill

I've been a big Tyler O'Neill fan for a long time, so when I saw that he and Cardinals' management were at odds last season, I immediately wanted the Tigers to trade for him. He's dealt with some injuries the past couple years, but the talent has always been there.

So when he was shipped off to Boston for pennies on the dollar, you can probably imagine my frustration. O'Neill was traded to the Red Sox for two nothing prospects in Nick Robertson and Victor Santos back on Dec. 8. What's that? You hadn't heard of those guys before now? Don't worry, neither had anybody else.

It was no secret the Cardinals were ready to move on, and he only has one year of control left before he becomes a free agent. It's not surprising that he was traded for scraps. But why couldn't the Tigers have done this? You're telling me they didn't have room for a 28-year-old power hitting outfielder with high upside?

Not only does he hit for power, but he walks a good amount and plays great defense. He's a two-time gold glove winner in the outfield. He could have a Tigers essentially for free, but they didn't want him.

This was second-biggest miss for me this offseason, just behind not acquiring a third baseman. O'Neill is a good player who could have helped the team's pathetic offense. Now we'll likely get to watch him pop off in Boston in 2024.