The Oakland Athletics officially put the "for sale" sign up last week when they traded Scott Kazmir to the Houston Astros. Right-handed reliever Tyler Clippard could be the next to go, but some of the league's top contenders are interested in utility man Ben Zobrist.
Jon Heyman of CBS Sports has the latest: the Chicago Cubs, New York Yankees, Kansas City Royals, Pittsburgh Pirates, Los Angeles Angels and "several others" have inquired about Zobrist, whose versatility and 2015 salary ($7.5 million) have his trade value likely at a considerable price.
Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle also had an update on Zobrist last night before Heyman.
"Ben Zobrist, the A's utilityman who went 6-for-11 in the three losses to the Giants, also is expected to be traded this week, with the Nationals, Cubs and Royals among the many teams interested."
Let's take a look at these aforementioned clubs and see how Zobrist fits in.
Chicago Cubs
The Cubs have long been heard in trade rumors involving Zobrist and could use some help in left field. The veteran would also provide depth in the infield where manager Joe Maddon, who spent many years with Zobrist in Tampa Bay, could give days off to Addison Russell, Starlin Castro and Kris Bryant down the stretch.
Prior to the beginning of the season, Cubs' prospect Arismendy Alcantara was viewed as a utility-type player and drew some comparisons to Zobrist (solely because Maddon is the team's manager), but he was sent down to the minors after batting .077 in 32 plate appearances in April.
While starting pitching is the top priority for Chicago, don't be surprised if Zobrist is wearing a Cubs uniform on Friday.
New York Yankees
This one is as clear as day. The need for Zobrist in New York would be at second base, where Stephen Drew is batting .188/.263/.380 in 85 games this year. If half of his hits weren't extra-basers (13 home runs and 12 doubles), he'd certainly be out of town by now. However, his defense at the position has been solid and prospect Jose Pirela (.212/.232/.303 in 70 plate appearances) failed to impress when given the opportunity earlier this season.
The Yanks called up second base prospect Rob Refsnyder earlier this month, but was sent back down recently because Carlos Beltran was activated from the disabled list. Additionally, Refsnyder still needs to polish his defense and manager Joe Girardi probably does not want a liability in the field, especially up the middle.
Zobrist probably won't require general manager Brian Cashman to surrender a top prospect, so the Yankees are very much in this.
Kansas City Royals
The Royals have a similar problem at second base. Omar Infante, who was somehow leading all second basemen in the American League All-Star voting at one point, has the second-worst OPS (.551) in the MLB (among those who qualify) and his negative WAR (-0.5) is nothing to be excited about either.
On top of that, Alex Gordon won't be back until mid-September, so acquiring Zobrist will help them add depth to the outfield. However, they just gave up three prospects to land Cincinnati Reds' ace Johnny Cueto, so it's unclear how much further general manager Dayton Moore will go to trade for top talent on the market.
But then again, Andy McCullough of the Kansas City Star says the Royals are "expected to stay in on Zobrist until the end."
They're also interested in Martin Prado of the Miami Marlins, according to FOX Sports' Jon Morosi.
Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pirates are certainly a fascinating destination for Zobrist. Pittsburgh acquired third baseman Aramis Ramirez last week from the Milwaukee Brewers to fill the void left by Josh Harrison, who is out with torn ligaments in his thumb. Shortstop Jordy Mercer is also out for a while with a sprained MCL, so the Pirates are a bit thin on infield depth at the moment.
As for the outfield, Gregory Polanco has not been having a good year (.243/.316/.358) and the team may want some offensive reinforcement out there if possible. With that being said, general manager Neal Huntington is still searching for a starting pitcher and possibly another option at first base, so it'll be tough for him to fulfill all of his wishes before the trade deadline.
Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review also mentioned the Pirates have "looked into" Red Sox veterans Mike Napoli and Shane Victorino.
Los Angeles Angels
The Angels are looking for both a left-handed outfield bat and a second baseman (given their recent interest in Chase Utley), and Zobrist fits both of those areas of need. Third baseman David Freese will also miss three weeks due to a broken finger and Zobrist can provide some infield depth in the meantime.
They've also been linked to a number of other names in rumors (especially ones under control beyond 2015), so they aren't limited to Zobrist.
Washington Nationals
The Nats have been inquiring about Zobrist for a while now, but the A's didn't budge earlier in the year as general manager Billy Beane felt the team could still compete. At the time it was probably to fill the void at second base while Anthony Rendon was on the DL and Yunel Escobar was moved over to third base. However, Danny Espinosa filled in nicely over that span and now Rendon is back.
Jayson Werth's prolonged absence created a vacancy in the outfield as well, but he's expected back soon. Perhaps the Nationals no longer want to rely on health considering Rendon and Denard Span have hit the DL twice and Werth and Ryan Zimmerman have been out for a long time. Adding Zobrist would be an insurance move for Washington to provide some stability in both the infield and outfield.
Don't forget: Zobrist's potential new home is not limited to these clubs. The New York Mets and San Francisco Giants have also been linked to the veteran, so he can pretty much end up anywhere before Friday at 4:00 p.m. ET.
