Detroit Tigers: 5 teams that could be good trade partners this offseason

Baltimore Orioles

Mike Elias has done amazing work as GM of the Orioles. But one thing most people can agree on is that he flubbed this year's trade deadline pretty hard.

The O's really needed an impact starter to put them over the top, and their answer was...Jack Flaherty, who ended up moving to the bullpen. Not exactly an inspiring move.

The result was getting rocked by the Texas Rangers in the ALDS. 101 wins in the regular season, only to lose three straight in the playoffs. Kyle Bradish was fine, but their other starters...not so much.

It's common knowledge that the Angelos family doesn't like to spend money, so the odds of the O's going out and signing someone like Blake Snell are pretty slim. However, they have the richest of rich prospect pools. They can go out and trade for someone pretty easily.

The Tigers would be wise to consider a trade with Baltimore. They could get a major league-ready prospect in return for one of their starters, say, Matt Manning. He's got three years of control still left.

If I'm Scott Harris, I'm having lots of conversations with Mike Elias this offseason. It could lead to a blockbuster deal.

Cincinnati Reds

Speaking of teams that should have done more at the trade deadline, the Red finished with the third-worst starter ERA in the league this season. Despite that, they finished just two games out of a wild card spot. If they had just gotten one quality starter at the deadline, things could have changed dramatically for them.

Much like the Orioles, they, too, have a rich prospect pool. The Tigers could get a nice haul from the Reds for one of their starters.

Second baseman Jonathan India is said to be available this offseason, and he would be an interesting get. But the 2021 NL Rookie of the Year has dealt with a lot of injuries and incosistentcy the past couple of years. He's not a free agent until 2027, so the Reds may just end up holding onto him anyway.

Still, the Reds would make for a great trade partner this offseason with all of their young bats. Let's try to make a deal.

Los Angeles Dodgers

Ah, the trade that wasn't. Scott Harris had a deal with the Dodgers that would have sent Eduardo Rodriguez to LA, but E-rod nixed the deal at the last minute. We may never know what the Tigers would have gotten in return in that deal.

However, maybe Harris and Andrew Friedman could restart those conversations. Start with a different player — preferably a player that doesn't have a no-trade clause in their contract.

The Dodgers ranked 20th in baseall in starter ERA this season. Most of that had to do with the majority of their rotation being on the injured list. Walker Buehler, Tony Gonsolin, and Dustin May all missed significant time this season. And then to add insult to injury, Julio Urias decided to be a bad person again. The Diamondbacks jumped all over their makeshift rotation in the playoffs.

Gonsolin is expected to miss most, if not all of 2024. May and Buehler will likely pitch at some point, but who knows if they'll anywhere close to where they were pre-injury. The Dodgers need more pitching, and they have a great farm system with lots of young bats. I think we have a winner.

Harris will have to be careful, because Friedman is very crafty, but this seems like a very good pairing. It almost worked at the deadline. Let's see if it can work at the Winter Meetings.

Arizona Diamondbacks

The D'backs have made a surprising run to the NLCS. They won just 84 games this season, and have a young core emerging, with more on the way. Their biggest weakness, by far, was their starting rotation.

After Zac Gallen and Merrill Kelly, the D'backs really struggled finding a consistent starting five. They don't have a ton of good arms down on the farm either. Hey, I think we have another partner here!

Arizona has a ton of hitting prospects. There was a rumor that the Tigers really liked OF Alek Thomas at the trade deadline, but we never bought that. With Parker Meadows, Thomas would be kind of redundant anyway.

But their farm system is pretty loaded. No, don't expect them to land Jordan Lawlar, but someone like INF Blaze Alexander or OF Jorge Barrosa? We'd happily take them. Both players could play for the Tigers right away.

Arizona is yet another team with a need for starting pitching that just so happens to have a loaded farm system. Hopefully Harris gives D'backs GM Mike Hazen a call sometime this offseason.