Should the Rays have traded for Todd Frazier?

Todd Frazier was traded to the Chicago White Sox today in a three team, seven player trade. Three White Sox prospects went to the Dodgers, who then gave the Reds the return they were seeking for the quality third baseman.

In return for Frazier, the Cincinatti Reds received INF Jose Pereza, OF Scott Schebler, and UTIL Brandon Dixon. The return looks kind of underwhelming for the Reds. They gave up an all-star 3B with two more years of control, who has experience at LF should the infield be overstocked, for what look to be standard prospects. This is also at a time where the only other 3B option was FA David Freese.

The Return for the Toddfather

Jose Pereza is a speedy 2B, with an above average hit tool. He was listed as a top 10 prospect in the Dodgers system, sitting at number 6 on the Dodgers' prospect list on MLB.com with an overall Scouting Grade of 55.

Scott Schelber is an OF prospect with a nice, left handed power swing. He was listed in the 15-20 range of the Dodgers system with an overall Scouting Grade of 45.

Brandon Dixon wasn't listed on the Dodgers' prospect list at all. In 2015, Dixon hit .244/.272/.375 with a 28% strikeout rate, paired with a 3% walk rate in 349 plate appearances at AA.

This was the cost of what looks to be a middle of the order bat for Chicago. What would this have looked like with Rays prospects?

Rays' Offer?

Now that we know what the Reds were expecting, what would that trade looked like using Rays prospects?

• Jose Pereza = SS Daniel Robertson
• Scott Schebler = OF Joe McCarthy
• Brandon Dixon = INF Tommy Coyle

Consecutive teams had traded Peraza in less than a year, leading many to speculate the infielder may not be a perfect fit for a starting role. His pedigree leans toward a Daniel Robertson type, even if his future currently leans toward what Ryan Brett might offer. The truth is somewhere in between.

McCarthy is a bit aways from the Show and carries injury risk, so if the Reds wanted a more MLB ready player, Mahtook could have been used instead.

The last one I had to dig for, but consider Tommy Coyle. He hit .229/.337/.347 with a 26.5% strikeout rate and walked at a 13.7% clip in 415 PA at AA. Dixon is a tad bit younger, but the system depth is essentially the same. A more versatile option would be Taylor Motter, who like Mahtook is a near-show substitute. Even so, thats not a lot to give up on the Rays' side.

Now, would the Reds' be interested in what the Rays had to offer, if the Rays were interested in Fraizer? Probably not.

As it was mentioned in the comments of today's Rays Tank, the Reds were possibly already interested in Pereza/Schebler when they were in talks to deal away Chapman to the Dodgers, and just figured out a new way to acquire them. But even if that weren't the case, they were choosy enough to not want the White Sox side of the return which objectively looks stronger than this Dodgers haul.

That being said, would you make the proposed Rays trade if Todd Fraiser had been offered to Tampa Bay?