Where Will Beltran Go?

David Schoenfield of ESPN’s Sweet Spot speculates on which teams could be interested in carlos Beltran if the Mets fall out of contention and decide to move him at the trade deadline in July.

Angels: Anaheim has a mediocre offense and the willingness to spend, but they have Bobby Abreu locked in at DH and are very unlikely to punt on Vernon Wells in left field.

Rangers: Michael Young for Beltran? Sorry, nobody wants Young, even if he’s hitting .349. Julio Borbon and a pitching prospect? The Rangers have indicated they want to keep Josh Hamilton out of center field, so there’s no fit here.

Dodgers: The Dodgers have a big hole in left field (unless rookie Jerry Sands starts hitting) and first base with James Loney’s batting ineptitude, so Beltran would be a nice fit, with Sands potentially moving to first. Except I believe the Dodgers have this little thing going on with their problematic cash flow …

Rockies: They could move Dexter Fowler and slide Carlos Gonzalez over to center, except they seem to believe in Fowler more than the average analyst.

White Sox: According to FanGraphs, Juan Pierre has been the least valuable position player in baseball, with a WAR of -1.1. Trouble is, the White Sox don’t have system loaded with prospects right now, and we’re not exactly clear if Ozzie Guillen knows how bad Pierre is.

Tigers: They already have Magglio Ordonez, Ryan Raburn and Brennan Boesch filling the outfielder corners, and Victor Martinez pretty much locked in at DH with Alex Avila producing at catcher, so it seems unlikely Detroit would have a burning desire to take on Beltran’s salary.

Mariners: Well, they could certainly use a DH or a left fielder, but they’re 16-22 and sinking fast.

Rays: Their DHs (mostly Johnny Damon) are hitting .238 with a .272 OBP. Their left fielders (mostly Sam Fuld) are hitting .228 with a .289 OBP and two home runs. True, they have hot-shot prospect Desmond Jennings, who is hitting .289 with a .408 OBP at Triple-A Durham, but he’s not going to bring much power with him. Most importantly, the Rays have plenty of prospects to deal.

I’m a little surprised that he failed to include the Boston Red Sox and New York Yakees as potential landing spots for Beltran.

All I know st one thing, and that is where ever Beltran does ends up, that team will be getting a class act and a great player.