As the Padres season comes to an early end, other teams around the league are certainly looking over their roster, like baseball's version of vultures on the hot summer highway.
One player who has teams like the Boston Red Sox and the Cleveland Indians attention is Carlos Quentin.
The San Diego Padres leftfielder, who reportedly is willing to waive his no-trade clause if the right deal comes along, isn't blowing it up this year at the plate, but some desperate teams are probably willing to pass his current struggles off as mostly situational.
His seasonal numbers are down this year, at .179/.293/.321, with 3 homers, but the 2003 first round pick has a career .254/.349/.488 line, with a .268/.368/.498 line from 2012-2013. His biggest upside is that he gets on base and provides a steady bat, and seems to be peaking in his career, with gas left in the tank if he can stay healthy.
Given his knee issues and somewhat poor defense, Quentin will likely be traded to a team like the Cleveland Indians as a DH. This already significantly limits his trade potential, as only half the teams in baseball use a DH in the first place, but Jason Giambi is having a hard time in Cleveland, batting .128/.212/.277 so far this year. Even this year, Quentin is doing better, and the expectation would be for him to rise up a bit, to help the Indians fight it out in the AL Central. Currently they are 6 games behind the Tigers, but all the teams in the division are really still in contention.
Boston stands at 36-43 right now, and are fighting it out in the AL East. They are 7.5 games back, and are in need of a dependable bat, among other things. Although Quentin has not had much success with the bat this year, he might be an improvement in Boston, too. His success at the plate in the past is too hard to ignore, and if Boston is going to make a run in the east, it begins now.
The Padres fired General Manager Josh Byrnes last week, and are clearly looking at the season, and the players from a long-term, strategic perspective at this point. If Quentin is letting it be known he would go, then they have to consider it, and with their current state of affairs, they may cut an exceptional deal.
