Written by Dayn Perry at CBS Sports.com
First, the obvious: Marlins slugger Giancarlo Stanton has legitimate designs on 60 or more home runs this season, and his second-half surge has lifted Miami into wild-card contention. As such, the Marlins — even though Stanton has already passed through waivers — aren’t going to trade him during the season. However, once the new ownership group publicly fronted by Derek Jeter takes the reins, an offseason trade of Stanton and his mega-contract is a distinct possibility.
As for who would be interested in adding Stanton to the fold, it requires a mix of need, payroll flexibility and risk tolerance (Stanton had an opt-out of his backloaded $325 million deal after the 2020 season, which means his club assumes all of the risk). On that front, Bob Nightengale of USA Today has some tantalizing specifics. He writes:
The San Francisco Giants recently called, and privately informed the Miami Marlins of their interest.
So have the St. Louis Cardinals. The Texas Rangers. The Philadelphia Phillies didn’t want to be left out, either.
They all have one thing in mind.
They want Miami Marlins slugger Giancarlo Stanton, and while it’s not realistic now, it could be by the start of the 2018 season.
Nightengale’s piece has much more on the Stanton situation, so give it a read.
As for the four teams he names — the Giants, Cardinals, Rangers, and Phillies — they all make sense. That’s especially the case with the Phillies, who are working to emerge from a deep rebuild and have negligible long-term salary obligations. The Giants, though, are certainly pining for a reboot after their disappointing 2017 season and would love to resume contending around that core of Buster Posey, Madison Bumgarner and company. The Cardinals have plenty of outfield depth, but they badly need a true middle-of-the-order hitter to keep up with the Cubs and Brewers, who both figure to contend for years to come.
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