Cole Hamels has been garnering a lot of trade interest for the last few months or so, beginning in about April. He has always been a great pitcher, but he’s getting older, so he has obviously fallen a bit with his stats. He is now at the age of 34, and this year has posted a decent 4-7 record, 4.05 ERA, 1.30 WHIP, 104 strikeouts, 37 walks, and a .237 BAA in 97.1 innings pitched and 17 games started. With these stats, there are definitely some teams interested in gaining his veteran skillset and his notable statset, especially his ERA. When talking about finances, the Rangers are 100% gonna have to eat up a good portion of his salary, as he is owed $42.5M for the next 2 years. For the sake of not fixing it for every team, I’m just gonna assume that Texas eats up $18M for 2 years, which would cause any team trading for him to eat up $24.5M for 2 years. With all that in mind, I’m going to dive into some solid trade candidates for Hamels.

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Philladelphia Phillies

Hamels returning to Philly would be a dream come true to any diehard Phillies fan. He spent 9 and a half years on the team before being traded to the Rangers on July 31, 2015. He would definitely improve Philly’s rotation, which right now consists of a 2.41 ERA Aaron Nola, 3.54 ERA Jake Arrieta, 4.66 ERA Nick Pivetta, 4.69 ERA Vince Velasquez, and 2.97 ERA Zach Eflin. Having Hamels on the team would not only give their rotation another arm with a solid ERA if they make the playoffs, but it would also allow him to share his veteran experience with the young arms.

His veteran experience could prove to really help the Phils. Except for Arrieta, everyone in their current rotation is or is under 26 years old. Some of these young arms have been proving to be doing exceptional, like Nola and Eflin, but some have definitely been struggling, like Pivetta and Velasquez. I’m not saying that Hamels is going to completely change these two pitchers to become studs, but I am saying that he really could help. He definitely knows how to pitch well over a long span, showcasing a 3.40 career ERA, so he could help them.

New York Yankees

The Yankee empire has been back in full force for the first half of the year, posting a 56-28 record and a .667 winning percentage. Not many cracks need to be filled for them to go on another deep playoff run and possibly acquire their 41st pennant. Their rotation is definitely one of these cracks however. Right now it consist of a stupendous Luis Severino, a 3.02 ERA CC Sabathia, an underperforming and 5.44 ERA Sonny Gray, a 5.37 ERA Domingo Germán, and a 3.00 ERA Jonathan Loaisiga. One of those 5 ERA arms needs to be replaced for the Yanks to make a pennant run. Hamels would definitely fit in well, as he would likely replace Germán.

Hamels would definitely help the Yanks a lot in their conquest of the MLB. Having his arm would add some experience with Sabathia as two left-handed veterans, adding more diversity between righties and lefties in their rotation. His stats in the postseason also add some hope for the Yankees when it comes to holding their opposing team’s run count low. He has a 7-6 record, 3.48 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, 92 strikeouts, 26 walks, and a .221 BAA in 98.1 innings pitched and 16 games started in October baseball. Adding him could push the Yanks’ goal towards a World Series a little bit closer.

Atlanta Braves

The Braves are breaking out of their losing seasons that we’ve seen from them for a bit to finally take ahold of a playoff spot and possibly the NL East. They currently lead by 1 game with a 49-37 record and a .570 winning percentage with many of their new prospects breaking out well, Ronald Acuña Jr. and Sean Newcomb just to name 2. Their rotation currently consists of a 4.47 ERA Julio Teheran, 2.02 ERA Mike Foltynewicz, 3.10 ERA Newcomb, 2.89 ERA Aníbal Sánchez, and 3.92 ERA Max Fried. Really solid, but Hamels could help. First of all, he could replace Fried back to the bullpen to replace somone like a 4.75 ERA Sam Freeman.

Not only could Hamels help the rotation for the Braves come the playoffs if they make it, but he could also help their youthful pitching core. Foltynewicz is 26, Newcomb is 25, and Fried is 24. Like I said before with the Phillies’ rotation, Hamels could help them develop more, especially since Newcomb and Fried are lefties, so they share a similar pitching windup and style to Hamels’. Their rotation also has had little to no experience in the playoffs, so Hamels’ playoff stats could also help the Braves in that department. They also have plenty of prospects and plenty of payroll room to trade for Hamels.

San Francisco Giants

The Giants are a team that is coming close to contention but still needs a few more pieces to make it. One of these would definitely be a pitcher, as their rotation is above average, but not a contending one. Right now, it consists of a 2.58 ERA Madison Bumgarner, 1.95 ERA Johnny Cueto, 4.93 ERA Chris Stratton, 3.92 ERA Andrew Suárez, and 3.16 ERA Dereck Rodríguez. That’s pretty solid, but having Hamels would make it even better, especially since the Giants are most likely to be a Wild Card team at best, so if you have Bumgarner or Cueto pitching the Wild Card game, you could have Bumgarner or Cueto and Hamels to start against the best NL team, getting some good playoff stats to start it off.

Hamels won’t be able to teach the Giants’ rotation very much, as most of them are doing well in their primes. There are some guys however, like Suárez (25) and Rodríguez (26), who could use some experience. Even though Rodríguez is a righty, Suárez is a lefty, and as the youngest in the rotation he could definitely use the most help from Hamels, as he looks to be a permanent part of their rotation, especially if his stats keep up like they’re doing now. Although the Giants’ payroll is a bit high, they could definitely pay Hamels, although they have to be risky if they wish to resign someone like Cutch, and they might have to ask Texas to eat up Hamels’ contract this year and they’ll pay a higher amount for the next 2 years, so they don’t end up going over the luxury tax.

Colorado Rockies

The Rockies desperately need pitching, far more than any team on this list. They currently have a 4-man rotation consisting of a 3.90 ERA Tyler Anderson, 5.14 ERA German Márquez, 3.25 ERA Kyle Freeland, and 4.44 ERA Antonio Senzatela. Now, that isn’t unbelievably awful, but for a team trying to reach the playoffs again, it is. The rotation and bullpen that the Rockies have struggled with all year have led to them having a 44-43 record, making them 3.5 games back from the NL West and 4.5 games back from a Wild Card spot. If they want to return to the postseason and contend for a playoff run, they definitely need a pitcher like Hamels, who doesn’t have a bad ERA and has good postseason stats.

Hamels could help the Rockies’ rotation improve and grow as solid players. Their rotation is still relatively young, as every single member of their rotation is under the age of 30 and two of the four members of their rotation are lefties, so Hamels could definitely help them improve, which is something the Rockies desperately need because of the fact that their rotation desperately needs some help. If they win the NL West or make the Wild Card, Hamels could be a good guy to start off their postseason, especially considering his good postseason ERA and experience as an October starter for the Phillies and the Rangers.