The Arizona Diamondbacks are open to trading their star players this offseason as they look to rebuild following a disappointing 2018 season, but they may have a tough time unloading their ace.
Zack Greinke would, in theory, be one of the players on the Diamondbacks’ roster that teams are most interested in. However, Jon Heyman of Fancred sports reports that Arizona would have to eat a significant portion of the $105 million remaining on Greinke’s contract if they want to trade the right-hander.
One executive estimates that the D-Backs would have to pay down roughly one-third — or around $30 million — of Greinke’s deal. Arizona could argue that the deal is not that unreasonable since Clayton Kershaw just signed an extension with the Los Angeles Dodgers that will pay him $93 million over the next three years, but Greinke is 35 and Kershaw is 30.
Greinke went 15-11 with a 3.21 ERA in 2018, so he is still pitching at a high level. He also made 33 starts this season and 32 in 2017, which would make it easy for the Diamondbacks to market him as a durable, front-of-the-rotation starter.
While Arizona will probably receive plenty of interest in Greinke, they may have an easier time trading another one of their star players.
