Trade Thoughts: July 23rd

Eight days from the deadline, and everyone loves a good trade rumor.

• Carlos Quentin was one of the best fits that I saw for the Pirates for the last few weeks, but he just signed a three year deal with the Padres, so he's off the market. That heightens the price for other corner outfielders, which isn't great news.
• One of those corner outfielders that just saw their stock rise is Josh Willingham, however the Twins haven't made him seem very available. They have him signed to a three year deal worth $21 million that they are pretty happy with, so I don't see him leaving Minnesota.
• Shane Victorino would be a nice addition at the top of the Pirates lineup, but as of right now the Phillies are asking too much for him. That should come down a bit as we near the deadline, but the Pirates won't be the only team in one him.
• You always have to account for other teams that want the same players as the Pirates. Just because Neal Huntington isn't willing to overpay for a player doesn't mean other GMs aren't, which puts the Pirates at a disadvantage. The team might have to give up a little bit more than they would normally like to get a guy, and I'm sure management understands that.
• I'm becoming more convinced that Justin Upton will be in a Diamondback jersey for the rest of the season. Teams just aren't willing to give up what the Diamondbacks want for him, and there's no real urgency on Arizona's part.
• The name Wandy Rodriguez has come up a few times this week. If the Pirates could add him, it would be tough to find a deeper rotation in the bigs than the one we'd have in Pittsburgh.
• Ichiro Suzuki is a New York Yankee and will start against the Mariners tonight at 10:05 eastern. The game is in Seattle, and watching him bat against the M's will probably be one of the weirdest things you'll ever see. For what it's worth, I'm predicting a big spike in Ichiro's home run totals after he puts the pinstripes on. People have always said that he could hit 30+ homers a year if he had that kind of mindset, and playing in Yankee stadium and not being the best hitter on his team might start to push him towards that mindset.
• Eight days is a long time in the trade lands, but deals have started to be made the last couple days so you should start to see a flurry of moves. Not sure if the Pirates will do much before the last couple days before the 31st, but now is the time to stay close to the rumor mill. And if you can't find a rumor mill around where you are, just keep your cell phone on you.