Trade Target: Nate Schierholtz

This is the first of several trade deadline target profiles that I will be doing everyday in July until I run out. The first man on my list is Nate Schierholtz. The Scierholtz rumors really flew when the Buster Olney tweeted that Theo Epstein and Neal Huntington have made deals in the past and that Schierholtz fills a need. He's a 29 year old right fielder who has been pretty pedestrian throughout his career but is having a breakout season and someone who could come in and help a team like the Pirates down the stretch.

Like I said, Schierholtz's career has been pretty pedestrian. His career slash is .272/.331/.428 adding up to an OPS of .749. He also averages 9 HRs and 42 RBIs per season. But, also like I said, he is having a monster year. His slash is .286/.335/.541 with the OPS of .876 plus 11 HRs and 34 RBIs. So he's raking right now. To put it into perspective, he'd lead the Pirates in OPS. And I didn't mention that he's a solid fielder as well. He's got a WAR of 1.6. He's never had a WAR above 0.9 before. The most impressive thing about him is his slash with runners in scoring position. He hits .327/.391/.509 in these situations. That's an OPS of .900. So he drives in runs, the Pirates big weakness. Another good thing? He's under team control for next year. So what are the drawbacks for him?

I see multiple red flags when looking at Schierholtz. The first thing I see is that he's a lefty. Ideally, you'd like a right handed bat to platoon with Snider but I can overlook this for these stats. Second big red flag for me is consistency. Schierholtz already has 11 HRs on the year. Before this season, he'd never hit more than 9 in a single year. He's also never had more than 42 RBIs in a season and he's already at 34. His career OPS is around .749. And his career slash with RISP is only .284/.360/.397 for an OPS of .757. So basically my question is, can he keep it up? Was this first half a fluke or is he just hitting his prime and putting up the numbers of his career? The Pirates will have to decide on that one.

Overall, I'm a fan of Schierholtz. He would be a solid upgrade in RF and would come cheap. I like his stats, his playoff experience, and his control, which I know Neal Huntington will like. I've read rumors of a trade where we would get Schierholtz and Matt Garza (another profile for later) from the Cubs as a repayment for giving them Aramis Ramirez and Kenny Lofton in 2003. The Cubs went to the playoffs that year thanks to that move while the Pirates dumped salary. With both teams in the opposite situation, could Chicago do the same? Only time will tell. One thing I know for sure is that Neal Huntington will make at least one call to the Cubs during this trade month.

Tomorrow's trade deadline profile will be RP Jesse Crain