MLB Trade Rumors: 3 Landing Spots Named for Giants' Luis Arraez
Arraez was brought in by the Giants on a one-year, $12M deal, with the hope that they'd be in contention this season. But on an expiring deal, and with the Giants out of it, he is a certainty to be dealt.
"Teams also understand how valuable putting the ball in play can be in the postseason, and nobody is better at that than Arraez, who is going to lead MLB in (lowest) strikeout rate for the fifth consecutive season," writes Jeff Passan.
Mark Feinsand of MLB.com tells us that Arraez "has also (shone) defensively after returning to second base (this season), his 10 outs above average ranking in the 99th percentile of the league."
With that, he suggests three landing spots for Arraez at the trade deadline:
New York Yankees
With Ben Rice and Jazz Chisholm Jr. locked in at 1st and 2nd base, could Arraez potentially shift to third base? He hasn't played the hot corner in five years, but he does have 79 games' worth of experience at the position. His bat would certainly be a significant improvement over the .210-hitting Ryan McMahon at 3B. Or Arraez could slot in at DH for the Yanks whenever Giancarlo Stanton is unavailable (yes, yes, we know...).
Tampa Bay Rays
The Yankees' rivals in the AL East just love their analytics. And with Arraez's Baseball Savant page bleeding red all over the place (that's a good thing), the Rays are likely quite interested in the three-time batting champ. 100th percentile in K% and Whiff%, 90th percentile in XBA, 99th percentile in Squared Up%, and then there's that stunning 99th percentile in Range (OAA). Current second baseman Richie Palacios is a well-below-average hitter, AND fielder. Arraez would be a massive improvement.
Arizona Diamondbacks
With the D-Backs 27th in batting average at first base this season, 29th in OPS and dead last in on-base pct., slotting in Arraez at first on an everyday basis would be a huge upgrade for their lineup. They're clinging to a .500 record and trying to stay in the Wild Card chase.
