Ranking Guardians' Shane Bieber Top 10 Landing Spots Amid MLB Trade Rumors | News, Scores, Highlight

10. Houston Astros

No one seems to expect the Astros to do much this offseason, but this is the type of impact move along the margins that could make sense for them.

Two of Houston's starters, Luis Garcia and Lance McCullers Jr., are injured. Their ace, Justin Verlander, turns 41 in February. Seeking pitching depth for a team that has its lineup mostly locked in makes a lot of sense, especially an Astros team in win-now mode.

9. San Diego Padres

The Padres are in need of a starter.

Trading for Bieber probably feels hollow in an offseason that saw them punt on the failed Juan Soto experiment, while the division rival Los Angeles Dodgers ran up over a billion dollars in free agency, nabbing the top prize Shohei Ohtani.

Still, the Padres don't have much in their rotation behind Joe Musgrove and Yu Darvish. Bieber would ideally slot right behind them and add some starting credibility and a guy who is more than capable of eating innings.

8. Cincinnati Reds

It seemed far more likely the Reds would pursue Bieber before they signed Frankie Montas and Nick Martinez.

They had been linked to Bieber since November, when MLB Network's Jon Morosi reported Cincinnati was among the teams active in trade conversations. The Reds could still be interested in Bieber as a depth piece.

Left-handed pitcher Andrew Abbott showed some promise early as a rookie last season, but fatigue eventually set in and he faded toward the end of the season.

Abbott, along with Nick Lodolo and Brandon Williamson, are three strong, young talents, but how many innings can they realistically give you in 2024?

Bieber offers the Reds more assurance in the back end of their rotation.

7. Toronto Blue Jays

Count the Blue Jays among the contenders that have been quiet this offseason. Trading for Bieber would not exactly be a splash for them, especially considering they once had faint hopes at landing Ohtani.

But we saw how things unraveled with Alek Manoah last season, and the Blue Jays could use some insurance with Manoah and the up-and-down Yusei Kikuchi expected to be in the rotation.

The Blue Jays made sense as a trade partner at the summer deadline and not much has changed since then. Concerns about his dip in velocity can also be more thoughtfully investigated in the offseason.

The Blue Jays also fit the bill as a team squarely in win-now mode.

6. Texas Rangers

No team knows the value of starting pitching depth quite like the Rangers, which made up for a shaky bullpen with a gluttony of starters to help fill in down the stretch of a World Series run.

Texas is in the market for starting pitching, though a Jordan Montgomery reunion seems to make the most sense. That would not prohibit it trading for Bieber, though.

According to Rosenthal, the Rangers are targeting Chicago White Sox pitcher Dylan Cease in the trade market. But so are the New York Yankees, San Francisco Giants and Atlanta.

The race for Bieber is much slower and less competitive, making him a viable fallback option, especially if Montgomery doesn't return.

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