MLB rumors: 5 players the Cincinnati Reds should trade away

2. OF Yasiel Puig

As previously mentioned, outside of 11 home runs and nine steals, Yasiel Puig is not producing much of anything offensively right now, as he strikes out at a high rate (62 times; 25.2 percent) while taking few walks (13; 5.3 percent). But he does have a hit in five of his last six games entering Thursday, which serves as a sign of life and, more importantly, hope for what has to be a minuscule trade value.

Puig is somehow still only 28 years old, albeit with the fading potential of untapped upside to go with a personality that can rub others (teammates and opponents) the wrong way. But with an expiring contract, he’s a tradable asset based on name value and whatever may linger regarding the perception of his potential with the remaining 28 teams (excluding the Dodgers, of course). As a rental, another team could make a bet on getting a focused version of Puig as he puts an eye on a new contract.

If Puig manages to get on the kind of hot streak he has been known get on, there will be a team or two that thinks he has figured something out for the long haul regardless of below-the-surface evidence that he probably hasn’t. The Reds have to be betting on that kind of hot streak to inspire confidence from a contender or two over the coming weeks. Then they can sell high, and get a slightly better asset to add to a solid Minor League system.