MLB Trade Rumors: Three-Team Trade For Sonny Gray Almost Happened

Sonny Gray, a former first-round pick by the Oakland Athletics in the 2011 Draft, has been far from impressive and has been linked to a possible trade. He is coming off a poor showing last season and such may be the reason why general manager Brian Cashman is looking for potential deals for the 29-year-old pitcher.

It seems that there was as a trade in the offing but fizzled out. According to ESPN, it was a three-team trade involving the Atlanta Braves, New York Yankees and the Texas Rangers. Gray would have ended up in Atlanta while the Rangers would have gotten Jurickson Profar and the Yankees ending up with a prospect. This deal became immaterial when the Rangers shipped Profar to the Athletics in a separate three-way deal involving the Tampa Bay Rays.

Hence, the Yankees find themselves still looking at possibilities to deal off Gray. Right now, he remains as their best bet since they don't have a great sixth starter option. But the conflict here is that Cashman has repeatedly said that he wants to trade the 29-year-old. Hence, the Yanks may be simply waiting for an enticing offer, NJ.com suggested.

Gray did have his share of good games last season on the road. He went 7-5 with a 3.17 ERA in 15 games and 12 starts, all negated by his performance at the Yankee Stadium. But for the sake of argument, what if that three-way trade had been consummated. Would Gray be better off being a Brave?

Although seen as a decent addition, Gray is an addition that Atlanta may have not maximized. There are still other prospects, possibly better than him although one cannot discount the impact of seeing someone play for a different team. There is, of course, that risk.

Other than the rumored Gray trade, it does not look like the Braves are going to engage in trades for now. That is subject to change depending on what the front office decides. And even if a trade were to be done, it would likely be for an outfielder since this is one void Atlanta needs to address.

A trade with or without Gray in the picture may still happen moving forward. It may be another three-team trade or something else as they prowl for an outfielder. Among the names suggested by Fansided include Nick Markakis, A.J. Pollock, Carlos Gonzalez and Bryce Harper, one of the high profile free agents in the MLB market right now.