3. Marco Estrada, SP, Toronto Blue Jays
A team can never have too many starting pitchers, and though his base numbers aren’t very good this season, there are plenty of clubs across baseball that will be interested in adding Blue Jays veteran Marco Estrada.
In 18 starts, Estrada has posted a 5.17 ERA and 4.35 FIP and has allowed 106 hits and 17 home runs in 101 innings. Estrada has surrendered 9.4 hits per nine innings this season, which would be his most for a full year in the big leagues, and sharp spike after the 33-year-old right-hander after he led the American League in each of the past two seasons, with 6.7 and 6.8, respectively. His 3.5 walks per nine would also be a high since Estrada became a big league starter seven years ago.
On the plus side, Estrada’s strikeout numbers are also up. He has 110 strikeouts this season, which equates to 9.8 K’s per nine innings – a high for a season in which he made more than one start. Estrada has struck out 24.9 percent of the hitters he has faced this season, which would be his best mark since 2012. Given his fastball velocity sits in the low 90s and Estrada mixes in a high 70s curveball and changeup, that’s a surprising shift.
Estrada is in the final year of his contract and will be a free agent after the season. With the Blue Jays likely to be out of contention by the end of July, it seems very likely they would be willing to part with Estrada for a mid-level prospect or two.