It would appear from MLBtradeumors (courtesy Olney's insider article on ESPN) that "rivals" believe that BJ Upton is available in the right trade. It appears the Rays will be going through a mini-rebuild/restructure this off-season and so there is probably some truth to this rumor, in my opinion. With D Jennings coming on in center for the Rays and Matt Joyce/Zobrist in the mix for the outfield, there are some indications that the Rays could theoretically afford to lose Upton. Upton himself isn't the prototypical power guy it seems a lot of us are clamoring for, however, his ISO was at a pretty respectable clip last season (.187) and he's shown in the past that he can hit homers (2007 and 18 last year). He's also a speed demon and solid defender, so he seems to be a guy Beane might be eyeing.

So what do you think it would take to grab Upton? And along those lines, it certainly seems like Upton and Kemp are in similar situations (two years of arb/control left) and are somewhat similar players, so I'd like to open up the discussion to include ideas/proposals/thoughts on both of these guys.

Both the Rays and Dodgers in my opinion, have a need for a 1st baseman or an upgrade over what they currently have at the position - and particularly one that doesn't cost a lot - for differing reasons. Would they be interested in Chris Carter?

The Rays don't need starting pitching, but they could use relievers. The Dodgers need pitching in general. It's been awhile since I was a dedicated prospect-watcher, so I have no idea about the systems of the Dodgers and Rays...but judging from their big-league units and service time situations, they both could be in the market for middle infield help. Here are some ideas I have regarding possible trades:

Oak receives BJ Upton

TB receives Chris Carter, Henry Rodriguez & Adrian Cardenas

OR

Oak receives Matt Kemp

LAD receive Chris Carter, Rajai Davis, Adrian Cardenas & Henry Rodriguez

Something along those lines...

Is Chris Carter too much of bounty to give up for either of these guys? It certainly seems like he's not in the plans as an outfielder for the A's nor at 1st base immediately with Barton at the position. His future is probably as a DH and with the way DH's/veteran bats seem to be readily available, it may best to shop him around.

With either Kemp or Upton, the A's would definitely be aiming for the short-term and would obviously be taking chances on both the players returning to prior form in order to really pay big dividends. But both guys are potentially plus defenders in the outfield and have the tools and have shown the promise of being dynamic power/speed/run producers.

With an awesome pitching staff and defense, I feel that either guy could really make a big difference for this team in 2011 and 2012. Projected lineups:

2011:

CF - Crisp

1B - Barton

RF - Upton/Kemp

DH - Fill in the blank

LF - Dejesus

C - Suzuki

3B - Kouz

2B - Ellis

SS - Pennington

2012:

2B/CF - Weeks

1B - Barton

RF - Upton/Kemp

DH - Fill in the blank

LF - Corey Brown/Michael Taylor

C - Suzuki

3B - Green/Parker

2B - Sogard/Rosales/Ellis (extended)

SS - Pennington

Ideas/thoughts/concerns/lambastings?