The 2016 non-waiver trade deadline is only a few days away, and this is the time of year when we hear about each team's "untouchable" players. The guys they won't trade no matter what. Most teams have long lists of untouchables and that's usually just posturing. It makes the players appear less available than they really are, creating some leverage in trade talks.
Generally speaking, what makes a player untouchable? Here are the three main criteria I came up with:
- Performance: This one is obvious. Only great players -- or players who project to be great one day -- are truly untouchables. Solid players are valuable but never off-limits.
- Contact Status: Ideally untouchable players are going to stick around a while, either because they're under contract or are still years away from qualifying for free agency.
- Fan Appeal: How likeable is the player? Granted, this is much more subjective than performance and contract status, but there's no doubt teams want likeable players on their rosters.
Using that criteria, I've attempted to determine the most untouchable player for all 30 teams, with input for the other CBS Sports MLB scribes. It goes without saying some teams may not have a truly untouchable player while others may have multiple untouchables. We're trying to pick the best. Away we go ...
Arizona D-Backs: Paul Goldschmidt
Yes, Zack Greinke has the huge record contract, but Goldschmidt is the face of the D-Backs franchise. He's still only 28, he's been the NL MVP runner-up in two of the last three years, and he's still performing at an elite level. Best of all for Arizona: Goldy will make only $19.975 million total from 2017-18, and his contract includes a $14.5 million club option for 2019. What a bargain.
Atlanta Braves: Dansby Swanson
This was a tough one. I debated going with Julio Teheran, who is pitching like an ace this year and is signed cheap through 2019 with a club option for 2020. Pitchers break though, especially Braves pitchers. They haven't had a ton of luck keeping their top young arms healthy in recent years (Kris Medlen, Brandon Beachy, Mike Minor, Jair Jurrjens, the late Tommy Hanson, etc.).
So Swanson it is. He was the No. 1 pick in the 2015 First-Year Player Draft and came over from the D-Backs in the Shelby Miller trade. Swanson has since blossomed into an elite shortstop prospect who has received not totally ridiculous Derek Jeter comparisons for his work ethic and charisma. He's not the face of the franchise yet, but he will be soon.
Baltimore Orioles: Manny Machado
Easy call here, even with Machado due to become a free agent after the 2018 season. Machado is no longer a Scott Boras client, making the chances of an extension a bit better. I still think it's a long shot giving his earning potential. Either way, Machado is on the very short list of the best players in the world. I can't imagine there's any package of players that would realistically have the O's considering a trade.
Boston Red Sox: Xander Bogaerts
The Red Sox are one of those teams that legitimately have multiple players who can be considered untouchable. Ultimately, this came down to Bogaerts vs. Mookie Betts for me, and I went with Bogaerts even though he has one fewer year of team control and simply because I think it's harder to find shortstops as productive as him than it is to find outfielders like Betts. I don't mean that as a knock! Betts is awesome. Relative to position, I think Bogaerts is more valuable. He's under team control through 2019.
Chicago Cubs: Kris Bryant
Another team with multiple untouchables. This one came down to Bryant vs. Anthony Rizzo vs. Addison Russell. (Jake Arrieta will be a free agent after next season.) Russell has had a good, but not truly great season, plus Chicago has Javier Baez waiting in the wings. He shouldn't be untouchable in trades, just extremely tough to get.
Rizzo is going to finish in the top 10 of the MVP voting again and he's owed $25 million from 2017-19 with $14.5 club options for both 2020 and 2021. Bryant may be the NL MVP favorite at the moment, and he's under team control through 2021 thanks to last season's service time shenanigans. They're both face of the franchise type of players. Bryant plays a more premium position and plays it well -- he can also handle the outfield too -- and that makes him more untouchable in my opinion.
Chicago White Sox: Jose Quintana
I came into this exercise expecting Chris Sale to be the ChiSox's untouchable player, but after thinking it over and talking it through with my fellow CBS Sports scribes, I'm going with Quintana. I do think there's some bad blood between Sale and the organization following the Drake LaRoche stuff and the recent throwback jerseys incident, enough that the recent trade rumors are believable. They're not going to give Sale away, of course, but he doesn't seem to be totally off-limits.
Quintana probably isn't completely untouchable either, but he's pitching like an ace this year and has been comfortably above-average since breaking into the league in 2012. The White Sox also have him signed through 2018 with cheap club options for 2019 and 2020. Assuming the two options are picked up, they'll pay Quintana only $37.85 million from 2017-20. Carlos Rodon and Tim Anderson received some consideration as well, but Quintana's pitched at too high a level for too long to ignore.
Cincinnati Reds: Joey Votto
Votto gets the nod here almost by default. He's still the best player on the team and he's under contract for all eternity. (Through 2023, to be exact.) Maybe one day Nick Senzel or Robert Stephenson or Anthony DeSclafani will unseat Votto as the Reds' untouchable player. Today is not that day.
Cleveland Indians: Francisco Lindor
Boy oh boy do the Indians have some great pitching. You can easily make a case for someone like Corey Kluber or Danny Salazar being Cleveland's most untouchable player, but Lindor is the guy for me, and I don't think it's particularly close. He's excellent on both sides of the ball and under team control though 2021. Plus the guy is a little bundle of energy with an easy to love personality. Lindor is a franchise player in every possible way.
Colorado Rockies: Nolan Arenado
Yeah, the guy who is on pace to hit 40-plus homers again while playing top of the line defense at the hot corner is untouchable, especially when he can't become a free agent until after the 2019 season. With all due respect to Trevor Story, who I don't think is getting enough attention for having a remarkable rookie season because of the Coors Field stigma, Arenado's an easy call here.
Detroit Tigers: Michael Fulmer
Surprised? The Tigers have some big name veterans, most notably Miguel Cabrera and Justin Verlander, but they're on the wrong side of 30 and owed huge dollars. Fulmer is only 23 and he's pitching like an ace already -- he's 9-2 with a 2.50 ERA (165 ERA+) -- and he's under team control through 2022. With all due respect to Miggy and Verlander, Fulmer is the guy the Tigers are building around going forward.
Houston Astros: Carlos Correa
For most teams, Jose Altuve or George Springer would be an easy call for their untouchable player. Alex Bregman too. The Astros aren't most teams. Correa is hitting for historic power for a young shortstop and he's under team control through 2021. Among shortstops, only Alex Rodriguez (40) and Nomar Garciaparra (39) hit more homers than Correa (37) through their first 196 career games. Altuve can become a free agent after 2019, Springer after 2020. They should all be considered untouchable. Since we can only pick one, it's Correa.
Kansas City Royals: Salvador Perez
Not only does Perez play a crucial position and play it well, he's the only core Royals player signed long-term. Well, him and Alex Gordon, though Gordon's not having a great year and he's on the wrong side of 30. Eric Hosmer will be a free agent after next season. So will Mike Moustakas and Lorenzo Cain. Perez is borderline elite at his position and he's under contract through 2021, so there's your untouchable.
Los Angeles Angels: Mike Trout
I understand why some folks believe the Angels should trade Trout to kick start a rebuild, but I don't agree at all. It's far easier to rebuild a farm system than it is to have the best player in the world under contract for his age 24-28 seasons like the Angels do. Trout is the single most untouchable player in baseball in my opinion. I'm not sure any team can put together a package good enough to get him. This isn't a guy you trade for prospects and hope they work out. The Halos would need multiple young big leaguers who can step into the lineup as immediate above-average -- above-average at the very least -- contributors.
Los Angeles Dodgers: Corey Seager
Seager over Clayton Kershaw? Yeah, Seager over Kershaw. Kershaw is still the best pitcher in the world, though he's now dealing with a scary back injury and he can opt out of his contract following the 2018 season. Seager is already one of the most productive shortstops in baseball and the Dodgers have him under team control though 2021. This is essentially a 1 and 1A situation.
Miami Marlins: Christian Yelich
For years Giancarlo Stanton was the easy answer here. Now I think it's Yelich. Stanton is great. He really is. There are enough contact red flags to scare me long-term though, plus his massive contract is a deal-breaker for most teams. I don't think it's a given Stanton will use his opt-out clause. He'd be walking away from $218 million at age 31.
Jose Fernandez is going to be a free agent after the 2018 season, and as a Scott Boras client, he's almost certainly going to test the free agent waters and take the largest contract offer. Yelich, meanwhile, is due $46.75 million from 2017-21 with a club option for 2022. He's been a very good hitter throughout his career and he's taking his offensive game to another level in 2016. On top of that, Yelich is a premium outfield defender. He's a center fielder playing left. He's the Marlins' untouchable.
Milwaukee Brewers: Ryan Braun
It has to be Braun by default. Jonathan Lucroy isn't signed long-term, and I like Orlando Arcia, Jonathan Villar, and Domingo Santana as much as the next guy, but not enough to make them untouchable. Braun is still very productive and the fans in Milwaukee love him despite his past performance-enhancing drug transgressions.
Minnesota Twins: Miguel Sano
Ask the Twins, and I'm sure they'd tell you they were hoping Byron Buxton would blossom into their untouchable player this season. That hasn't happened, so Sano it is. He is one of the game's premier young power hitters -- it's the kind of power that makes his position irrelevant, he projects to provide big time value even at DH -- and is under team control through 2021. Pretty easy call here.
New York Mets: Noah Syndergaard
Every other team would love to have Jacob deGrom or Steven Matz. Same with Matt Harvey. The Mets have those guys and they're not even their most untouchable player. That's Syndergaard, who is pitching like an ace thanks to his off-the-charts power stuff. The Mets control him through the 2021 season as well. Pretty nice building block, I'd say. Syndergaard is the obvious choice for the Amazin's.
New York Yankees: Didi Gregorius
The Yankees are one of the teams without a true untouchable. Masahiro Tanaka's injury issues plus the fact he can opt out of his contract after 2017 take him out of the running, and as dominant as Dellin Betances is, I have a hard time considering any reliever untouchable. Gregorius gets the nod instead. He's come into his own offensively this year, and he's a high-end defender at shortstop. The Yankees control Didi through 2019, and while I don't think he's completely off-limits in trades, he's probably the player they'd have the toughest time parting with.
Oakland Athletics: Sonny Gray
This came down to Gray vs. Sean Manaea vs. Marcus Semien for me, and when push came to shove, and I went with the guy who was a Cy Young caliber performer a year ago over the rookie with a handful of starts under his belt. Gray is not having a good year at all, but I think his track record and the fact he can't become a free agent until after 2019 still makes him a very valuable player. Is he truly untouchable? Nah. He's just the closest thing the A's have to an untouchable player at the moment.
Philadelphia Phillies: Aaron Nola
Maikel Franco is really good and I'm a fan of Odubel Herrera -- the plate discipline adjustments he made from 2015-16 are very impressive -- plus J.P. Crawford might be the best prospect in the minors right now. I don't think you could go wrong labeling any of them untouchable. I'm opting for Nola though, because he's shown he's even more advanced as a pitcher than most believed when he came out of LSU in 2014, and because he's under team control through 2021. If Vincent Velasquez didn't have such a long injury history, he might be the guy instead. I'm buying Nola's future despite his recent rough patch.
Pittsburgh Pirates: Gregory Polanco
Andrew McCutchen was the guy for so long, and now he's only the third most valuable player in his own outfield. I don't mean that as an insult.Is there a more likeable player in baseball? I'm not sure. McCutchen is awesome but his bat his slipped a bit and he can become a free agent after 2018. He's not as valuable as he was two or three years ago.
Gerrit Cole, on the other hand, has pitched like an ace when healthy this year, though as a Scott Boras client scheduled to hit free agency after 2019, you wonder how long he'll be around. Starling Marte remains excellent on both sides of the ball and is signed through 2019 with club options for 2020 and 2021. Polanco is also excellent on both sides of the ball and he's signed through 2021 with club options for 2022 and 2023. Polanco's my guy.
San Diego Padres: Wil Myers
It would have been more difficult to come up with a Padres' untouchable prior to the season, but since then Myers has broken out as a premium young hitter who can make big ballparks look small. He was a deserving All-Star this year, and while he's only a first baseman, Myers is a very valuable player. The Padres have him under control through 2019.
San Francisco Giants: Buster Posey
The Giants have three players I would consider untouchable: Posey, Madison Bumgarner, and Brandon Crawford. I'll take the catcher on the Hall of Fame track myself, especially when he's still only 29 and signed through 2021. Bumgarner is three years from free agency and I do worry about how all those innings at such a young age will impact him down the road. He's thrown 1,410 career innings before his 27th birthday.
Seattle Mariners: Kyle Seager
For years and years and years the answer was clearly Felix Hernandez. Now? Now Felix is 30 with over 2,300 innings on his arm, and he's showing scary red flags in his strikeout and walk rate, not to mention his durability. Robinson Cano and Nelson Cruz are on the wrong side of 30, and I'm not the biggest Taijuan Walker believer, so Seager's my guy. He's having a career year at the plate and is an very good two-way player signed through 2021 with an option for 2022.
St. Louis Cardinals: Carlos Martinez
Did you realize Martinez is still only 24? It seems like he's been around forever already. Martinez has pitched like an ace since moving into the rotation full-time last season, and the Cardinals have him under team control as an arbitration-eligible player through 2019. Stephen Piscotty and Matt Carpenter are insanely good players, but when it comes to making someone untouchable, it has to be Martinez.
Tampa Bay Rays: Chris Archer
The Rays strike me as a team with a lot of players who are on the borderline of being untouchable but aren't actually untouchable. Evan Longoria is having a nice bounceback year, yet he is now over 30 and signed at big money through 2020. Too much of Kevin Kiermaier's value is tied up in his defense. Matt Moore and Drew Smyly haven't pitched too well this year and come with injury concerns. Brad Miller? Meh.
That leaves Archer, who was a Cy Young contender a year ago and is owed $19 million from 2017-19 with club options for 2020 and 2021. He's not having a good year at all -- Archer has been alarmingly hit and homer prone -- but he's still only 27 and the track record is very good. Plus there's the team friendly contract. Archer probably isn't truly untouchable -- his name has popped up in trade rumors recently -- but he's the closest thing the Rays have.
Texas Rangers: Nomar Mazara
I'm willing to listen to arguments for others. I am. This one just seems crystal clear to me. Mazara is young and dynamic, and he can't be a free agent until after the 2021 season. Others like Jurickson Profar (injuries), Joey Gallo (contact concerns), Yu Darvish (injuries), Cole Hamels (age), and Rougned Odor (bit of a hot head) fall short of untouchable for me.
Toronto Blue Jays: Josh Donaldson
Donaldson was a late bloomer, so he's already 30 even though he can't become a free agent until after the 2018 season. He was the AL MVP last year and he's having an even better season this year, unbelievably. The relatively short period of team control is a bit of a bummer, but the production is so great. Aaron Sanchez is also untouchable in my book. For now give me the MVP caliber producer over the young arm who needs his workload monitored.
Washington Nationals: Bryce Harper
The anti-Harper crowd could try to come up with reasons to go with, say, Trea Turner or Lucas Giolito or Stephen Strasburg or whoever. When you break it all down, Harper's "down" year is a career year for most, and he's still under control through 2018. He's a baseball playing robot put on this Earth for one reason, and that freakish natural ability makes him 100 percent untouchable in my book. This is the type of talent that is always off-limits.
