Diamondbacks deadline: Left-handed bats to watch in trade rumors

The Arizona Diamondbacks have played themselves deeper into the buyers conversation with the trade deadline bearing down on Aug. 3.

Arizona has climbed into the third National League Wild Card spot, controlling their destiny to reach October baseball for the first time since the 2023 World Series.

Despite the improved play over the past couple of weeks, the Diamondbacks have some roster questions to be considered at the deadline, primarily another bat and starting pitching.

The Diamondbacks are no longer on pace for the worst OPS from the first baseman spot since the 1920s, but their .615 mark is still 30th in baseball this season. Ildemaro Vargas, Tim Tawa and Tyler Locklear heating up recently has helped, but the position has lacked consistent results for most of the year.

Arizona is also bottom four in MLB in OPS from designated hitters at .644.

Additionally, the Diamondbacks are second in MLB with a .786 OPS against left-handed pitching but dead last versus righties with a .680 OPS.

Arizona signed outfielder Max Kepler to help with this and he has had him moments, but he joined the team coming off an 80-game performance-enhancing drug suspension. That means Kepler can help the D-backs reach the postseason, but he will be ineligible to play October baseball, increasing the urgency to add another bat.

Focusing on the offense, here is a list of players who could fill that run-producing role, specifically from the left side.

The players are from teams out of a playoff race or on the edge. This is keeping in mind the luxury tax threshold of $244 million, as the D-backs’ projected payroll is $231.6 million, per FanGraphs.

These are role-fillers more than blockbuster additions (like CJ Abrams would be), but some have the upside to provide more.

Left-handed hitters who could help the Diamondbacks at the trade deadline

(AP Photo/Daniel Kucin Jr.)

Giants 2B Luis Arraez

Arraez is competing for the batting title (.327), made the All-Star team and has a 95% chance of being traded before he enters free agency, at least according to ESPN insiders Jeff Passan and Kiley McDaniel.

For those reasons, it appears the competition for Arraez will be heavy.

Arraez is a premier contact hitter who does not hit many home runs or work walks, but he has won three batting titles already.

His fit with the Diamondbacks is a bit awkward since reporting indicates Arraez wants to stay at second base as opposed to moving to first, where he has played in the past. It makes sense for the player, as he is enjoying a breakout defensive season at second before he hits the market, but the Diamondbacks have Ketel Marte locked into the position already.

Nationals 1B Luis Garcia Jr.

Garcia is a pure platoon hitter, but few players in the league have mashed righties like him this year.

His .898 OPS against right-handers is 19th in MLB, and his 19 home runs are tied for ninth. His 21 total home runs this season have already set a career high.

Garcia has 297 plate appearances against righties and 51 versus lefties, against whom he has a .602 OPS. These extreme splits have been a norm for him throughout his career.

The Diamondbacks are a right-handed heavy team and have potential platoon partners in Vargas, Locklear or Tawa at first base.

Arizona had success with a left-handed platoon bat a couple years ago in Joc Pederson, who provided plenty of pop despite not facing lefties.

Garcia is also 26 years old and under team control for another full season.

The Nationals are still in the fight for a playoff spot and have already made a trade, dealing infielder Curtis Mead to Boston for young pitcher Connelly Early. Washington has the top-scoring offense in baseball but a struggling pitching staff.

Reds 1B Nathaniel Lowe

Lowe is a veteran first baseman who is also an extreme splits player.

The 31-year-old has 229 plate appearances against righties and 20 versus lefties this year for Cincinnati, and it has worked. Lowe has earned an .859 OPS against righties with 12 home runs this season.

He walks at a 10.4% clip (8.4% is average), as his walk and chase numbers have been above average throughout his career. He entered this season having his 18-27 home runs each year since 2021, a consistently solid-yet-unspectacular bat.

A Gold Glover in 2023, Lowe’s defensive metrics have not been favorable over the past three seasons, and he has been primarily a DH this year.

Cardinals OF Lars Nootbaar

Like the Nationals, the Cardinals remain in the hunt, although they have lost ground with a 9-14 record this month.

The Cardinals turned their front office over to Chaim Bloom last offseason, and the club sold off several veteran pieces, including Nolan Arenado to the Diamondbacks. With the Cardinals exceeding expectations to this point, there is a question of which direction they will go. This could be a big week for those decisions.

Nootbaar has one more year under contract, so the Cardinals could float him for more in return than some of their rental options.

He missed the first two months of the season but has been a solid hitter when healthy with a .721 OPS and 105 OPS+ (100 is average). His peripheral numbers are all strong, as he hits the ball hard (92 mph exit velocity), works walks at a 14.1% clip and does not chase pitches out of the zone.

He has played all three outfield positions this season.

Royals 1B Vinnie Pasquantino

Pasquantino is having a down season for the struggling Royals, but the 28-year-old is under contract until 2029 and hit 32 home runs with 113 RBIs just last season.

Despite the struggles this season, Pasquantino has remained a high-walk, low-strikeout player, and he had been trending upward before suffering a broken hamate bone in June. The lefty hit .292 with a .795 OPS in 19 games before hitting the injured list. He returned on July 11 and is looking to find that success again. With multiple hits in three of his last five games, perhaps the bat is coming around again.

Pasquantino was sixth in RBIs and 20th in extra-base hits last year. Could he be a buy-low, high-ceiling option this summer to address first base for the next few years?

Reds OF J.J. Bleday

Bleday is a former top prospect who is having his best season at 28 years old.

He has hit 17 home runs with an .812 OPS for the Reds, and his numbers are respectable against lefties, as well (.756 OPS). His expected numbers are all strong, and he walks at a 13.7% rate.

Bleday has another two years of control, giving the Reds a decision to sell high or keep him if they want to retool for next season.

The outfielder has played both corner positions this year but spent most of his time in left field.

Athletics OF Carlos Cortes

Cortes has built off an impressive first cup of coffee in the big leagues last season, hitting .269 with a .769 OPS this year for the A’s.

Like Garcia and Lowe, he has very few at-bats against lefties this season, while his defense has been shaky. His job would be to hit righties, and he does so well while also working walks (13.5%) and avoiding chase.

Cortes is under team control through 2031, but he is 29 years old as a late bloomer.

A quirk of Cortes’ game is that he is a switch-thrower, playing left-handed in the outfield but right-handed when he was developing in the minor leagues as an infielder.

Rockies OF Mickey Moniak

After hitting 24 home runs last year, Moniak is up to 16 this season, 14 of which have come off right-handers.

Even with park factors, Moniak’s OPS+ is a strong 124.

Moniak has some traits that go against the grain for the Diamondbacks, such as one of the highest chase rates in the league (42%) and a low walk percentage (5.5%). He is not a great defender but has played all three outfield spots this year.

What Moniak offers is that he has been easily an above average producer at the plate, especially against righties, for three of the last four years. Over the past two, Moniak’s .883 OPS against righties is 22nd in MLB, right above Tampa Bay star Junior Caminero. Plus, he has one more year of control.

The Rockies and Diamondbacks linked up on a trade over the offseason that sent Jake McCarthy to Colorado (who is having a very good season and will be in trade rumors this week, as well), so it’s no longer foreign for these front offices to come together.

Twins OF Trevor Larnach

The Twins are only one game back of the third AL Wild Card spot, but with some positional depth, this could be a spot to buy and sell to build a more well-rounded roster.

Larnach is having a career year and could be a sell-high candidate, as he is batting .293 with an .837 OPS.

He does not have the hardest exit velocities or the most speed, but he puts the ball in play and crushes fastballs (.545 slug). If there is any worry, his batting average on balls in play is .343 (average is .292), but he works walks (11.4%) and hits line drives to suggest he can continue to get on base. Larnach also has a decent track record with a 105 OPS+ over the previous four years.

He has team control for another season.

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