Midway through the offseason, I wrote in this space about the robust trade market for outfielders.
Many of the names I mentioned then are still available, so we should expect plenty of activity (or at least plenty of rumors over the next several weeks).
In particular, the National League West is a veritable Galleria of Outfielders:
* The Diamondbacks could trade one of their five: Ender Inciarte, David Peralta, A.J. Pollock, Cody Ross or Mark Trumbo. They actually may have six outfielders, if Yasmany Tomas struggles at third base — which would create further urgency for a trade.
* The Rockies still have an outfield surplus, with Brandon Barnes, Charlie Blackmon and Drew Stubbs among the trade possibilities.
* The Matt Kemp trade didn’t completely alleviate the Dodgers’ outfield logjam, as Andre Ethier (pictured) pointed out to ESPN’s Mark Saxon last month.
* Kemp’s new team in San Diego is likely to trade an outfielder, as long as the offseason acquisitions remain healthy. The Padres have nine outfielders on their 40-man roster, including trade candidates Cameron Maybin, Carlos Quentin and Abraham Almonte.
Meanwhile, a team on the opposite side of the country, the Boston Red Sox, may have the greatest outfield surplus of all. Hanley Ramirez is the new everyday left fielder, leaving six candidates — Mookie Betts, Jackie Bradley Jr., Rusney Castillo, Allen Craig, Daniel Nava and Shane Victorino — for the remaining two spots.
In other words: Don’t worry about your favorite team’s outfield depth. One of your Opening Day outfielders may be wearing another uniform right now.
