Suitor emerges for longtime Rockie, but Colorado unlikely to trade

Ryan McMahon is pacing for the best year of his career and he could very well represent the Colorado Rockies at the MLB All-Star Game, that is if he’s still a member of the team and not traded.

The Toronto Blue Jays are among the teams that are vying for the third baseman’s services. MLB Network’s Jon Morosi reports the Blue Jays interest but says it’s “highly unlikely he will be available at this year’s trade deadline.” The Rockies have McMahon inked on a six-year $70 million deal through the 2027 season.

Through 54 games left-handed hitter is on a tear, slashing .286/.366/.483 with 10 home runs and 33 RBI. The 29-year-old also has encouraging splits with a better road OPS (.905) than at Coors Field (.785) and a better OPS against lefties (.982) than righties (.785)

Since McMahon throws right, he can play all over the diamond—which he’s done in his eight seasons in the big league. He’s settled in at third base where he’s been nominated for a Gold Glove but he’s also played a bunch at second and first base.

The hitting performance, versatilely and strong defense would be appealing for the disappointing Blue Jays who are at 25-29. A team built to be good on defense has four strong infielders in Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Justin Turner, Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Bo Bichette and Cavan Biggio. And given McMahon’s attributes, team control and reasonable cost, the Blue Jays won’t be alone in phoning the Rockies.

Historically Colorado hasn’t moved players having hot seasons like McMahon, particularly if they’re longtime Rockies. But Bill Schmidt did trade several veterans at last year’s deadline and while the Rockies pubically aren’t calling it a rebuild at 20th and Blake there are signs that is what the club may be doing. At 19-35, the Rockies are well out of the playoff picture and there are a few young players who might benefit from McMahon being dealt.

McMahon and Charlie Blackmon are the last two position players with links to the 2017 and 2018 playoff runs. And it certainly seems like Blackmon could be in his final pro season with the possibility of even he being dealt ahead of the deadline.

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