MLB Trade Deadline Rumors: 5 trades A’s should make

OAKLAND, AZ - JUNE 04: Yonder Alonso #17 of the Oakland Athletics hits a single against the Washington Nationals during the ninth inning of the MLB game at Oakland Coliseum on June 4, 2017 in Oakland, California. The Nationals defeated the Athletics 11-10. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /

3 of 5

OAKLAND, AZ – JUNE 04: Yonder Alonso #17 of the Oakland Athletics (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /

3. Trade Yonder Alonso to the Yankees

The Yankees traded for Todd Frazier Tuesday night, but another slugger on New York’s radar is A’s first baseman Yonder Alonso. True, “slugger” is a new adjective for Alonso, who entered the season with 39 home runs combined across his seven years as a big leaguer. In fact, he had never hit more than nine homers in any seasons.

Alas, after making a swing change designed to hit the ball in the air more often, Alonso has 21 home runs this year. The power increase is a big reason why Alonso was selected to the All-Star Game for the first time.

More power is a great thing, and it’s important to note that Alonso’s career high power numbers haven’t hurt his ability to get on base. Alonso has a .269 career batting average and .338 on-base percentage, and he’s hitting .269 with a .368 OBP this season.

His strikeout rate has increased, understandably, from 15.5 percent throughout his career to 24.2 percent this season, but Alonso is walking 13.2 percent of the time this year compared to a 9.4 percent career rate. Alonso also has 14 doubles, 44 RBI and has scored 48 runs through his first 82 games.

Alonso’s left-handed swing would play well in Yankee Stadium, and the Yankees are interested according to MLB.com’s Jon Paul Morosi, though other contenders are sure to be in the mix as well. The 30-year-old will be a free agent at the end of the season, and with the A’s already making moves to jumpstart their most recent rebuild, teams in need must act fast to add Alonso.

Home/MLB