Five Necessary Moves for Contenders

When the regular season resumes, 11 teams will be within five games of first place in their respective divisions. For those squads, the time to act is now.

With that in mind, here are five moves that would make a difference to those contending teams.

Colorado Rockies: Go get Dan Uggla

With Troy Tulowitzki out until mid-August, the Rockies have used Clint Barmes and Jonathan Herrera up the middle. For a mediocre team this might work, but that pair just doesn’t hit well enough to start for a team only two games out of first place in the NL West. The Rockies can’t afford to lose any ground right now, and need to improve on that unit.

Acquiring Uggla from the Florida Marlins would not only immediately replace Tulowitzki’s production, but would also help create a stronger offense once he returns. That would relegate Barmes to the bench and give the Rockies a strong up-the-middle duo. Uggla currently has a .375 wOBA, fifth among major league second basemen, and his 42.5 percent fly ball rate ranks third. The natural loft in his swing would play well at Colorado’s high altitude.

With the Marlins 10 games back in the NL East, they’re essentially out of contention. Uggla could make $10 million or more in his final year of arbitration this winter, and that’s a figure the Marlins probably can’t afford. It would be best to trade him now, while they still hold some of the cards. This winter, other teams know they’ll be desperate to trade him.

Texas Rangers: Call up Tanner Scheppers
The Rangers already struck big when they acquired Cliff Lee from the Seattle Mariners, but that doesn’t solve all of their pitching problems. C.J. Wilson’s 113 innings are more than he has pitched since when he was in the minors in 2003, and he could wear down in the second half. Rich Harden and Derek Holland are currently on the DL, and there’s no guarantee that either will pitch effectively when they return. If the Rangers could add one starter, they would help answer those question marks. Thankfully for them, that starter might already be in their system.

Scheppers, a 2009 first-round pick, opened the season in the pen, but has begun to stretch out in Triple-A, having started in his last five appearances. He’s gotten hit around a bit, but once he gets used to starting again he could be an asset for the Rangers’ rotation. He’s whiffed 11 men per nine innings in his minor league career. He can help the team solidify an already-strong unit, even if he has to move back to the bullpen. There appears to be little reason for the Rangers to leave Scheppers in the minors any longer.

Cincinnati Reds: Call up Aroldis Chapman
A few weeks ago the Reds announced that they’d move Aroldis Chapman to the bullpen to see if he could eventually help the major league team there. The Reds could certainly use him. Their current relief corps had a 1.49 WHIP, which ranks 12th in the NL.

Getty Images
Aroldis Chapman would bolster the Reds’ shaky bullpen.
The question, of course, is whether Chapman can pitch effectively at the major league level. He probably won’t help the bullpen’s WHIP — he has 14 strikeouts and seven walks in 9 1/3 innings of Triple-A relief — but his strikeout stuff would give Dusty Baker someone who could get the Reds out of jams. He might not be a sure thing, but it’s hard to imagine Chapman performing worse than the current relief options.

St. Louis Cardinals: Sit Skip Schumaker
The Cardinals have something of a problem in their infield. Their starting third baseman, David Freese, is on the DL until later this month. Felipe Lopez is a quality fill-in, but the Cardinals could use him elsewhere. The middle infield has been subpar so far, and the Cardinals need to improve in that area if they’re going to keep pace with, and eventually pass, the Reds in the NL Central.

They have already done something about their Opening Day shortstop, Brendan Ryan, who has a .251 wOBA. Tyler Greene, the club’s 2005 first-round pick, has been filling in for Ryan and has a .347 wOBA. Second baseman Skip Schumaker has also been a problem; he’s produced a well-below-average .318 OBP this season. The Cardinals can replace his production with Lopez’s. Once Freese returns, it’s a move that Tony La Russa has to make.

Tampa Bay Rays: Call up Desmond Jennings
At 54-34, the Rays would be leading any division in baseball except their own. They’ll face a challenge in the second half as they try to catch the first-place New York Yankees while subsequently holding off the Boston Red Sox. The pitching staff appears to be in good order, so the Rays will look to improve their offense. They have a number of options here, since they have a number of players who can handle multiple positions.

Their answer might lie within the organization. Desmond Jennings, their No. 1 prospect heading into the season, has hit his stride in Triple-A, and is batting .297 with 21 steals for the Durham Bulls. He could help in the outfield by playing right field and occasionally filling in for B.J. Upton in center. That would open up Matt Joyce (.365 OBP and career .348 wOBA) to play DH and Ben Zobrist to regularly shift to second. Both moves would make the Rays stronger.