Texas Rangers Laying Groundwork for Possible Giancarlo Stanton Trade?

Apr 13, 2013; Miami, FL, USA; Miami Marlins right fielder Giancarlo Stanton (27) sits in the dugout during the first inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Marlins Park. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

It has been obvious since the November fire sale trade that Giancarlo Stanton is not happy with the direction that the Miami Marlins are headed in. He voiced his displeasure in a tweet soon after the deal was consummated:

Soon after the trade, rumors ran rampant that the Marlins would listen to offers on the slugging superstar. Not much traction came of those talks, as the Marlins have no incentive to trade Stanton right now, as he is still making just the league minimum. Talks could heat up this offseason, as Stanton becomes arbitration eligible for the first time. Placido made a great point earlier this week when he addressed the Stanton to New York Mets rumor:

"The rumors will persist all season long and will likely pop up on a monthly basis early in the season, but will become more frequent as the trade deadline approaches. Every team’s top prospects will be heading to Miami in exchange for Giancarlo Stanton. Some will be utterly ridiculous and others will be interesting enough to contemplate"

The Texas Rangers lost outfielder Josh Hamilton to their division rivals this offseason and have been since searching for a replacement to take his place. The team showed strong interest in acquiring Justin Upton from the Arizona Diamondbacks before he was traded to the Atlanta Braves. They decided the price for Upton was too high and rather held onto their top prospects in the hope of landing either David Price or Giancarlo Stanton. This morning, in his insider post on ESPN, Buster Olney dropped this tidbit of news:

"• The Rangers are poking around and doing some early reconnaissance on how they could put together some kind of a deal for Giancarlo Stanton."

The Rangers have one of the better farm systems in baseball and possess the best prospect in all of baseball in short stop Jurickson Profar. In all likelihood, he would be the centerpiece of any trade for Stanton in order to get the Marlins to the negotiating table. Profar’s future with the Rangers now has some uncertainty surrounding it, as the team recently signed incumbent short stop Elvis Andrus to a contract extension. The Rangers also have Adrian Beltre and Elvis Andrus signed longterm, leaving no spot in the infield for Profar unless another move is made. For Miami fans, the next best thing to Stanton would be Profar. Zips Projections have him projected to be a 3 win player at the ripe age of 19. He has a bright future and that very well could be in Miami.

Evan Grant of the Dallas News is also in the belief that Profar’s future won’t be in Texas, but likely in Miami:

"Evan – now that the Rangers have Elvis and Kinsler locked up for quite a stretch, what do you think will happen with Profar? Do you believe the Rangers will trade him (potentially other assets) to get Stanton or Price? Or do you think they will reconfigure the infield to get him in games? Evan Grant: I think Profar will likely end up traded. If I was the Rangers I’d say to the Marlins right now: Pick four guys from the system, two position players (not named Alfaro) and two pitchers (not named Perez) and try to make a deal for Stanton."

This news will be something to keep an eye on going forward. If and when Stanton is dealt, expect the Rangers to be major players in the sweepstakes. But they won’t be alone in the pursuit of Stanton, as Peter Gammons points out on Twitter:

The Mariners not being interested is a bit disappointing, as they also have one of the better farm systems in baseball.

For more updates on Stanton, please stay tuned to Marlin Maniac.