Diamondbacks rumors: Arizona 'unlikely' to trade Justin Upton

Having now acquired a young shortstop in Didi Gregorius and traded away young right-hander Trevor Bauer, Arizona Diamondbacks general manager Kevin Towers stated are "highly unlikely" to trade outfielder Justin Upton, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports:

Towers: "Highly unlikely" #DBacks trade Upton. Needs filled, better team with him. "At this point, I don't think that is going to happen."

— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) December 12, 2012

The 25-year-old outfielder’s name has been ubiquitous in trade rumors since the July trade deadline, but the D’Backs have never been able to find the right deal for the young slugger.

The club’s main goal in dangling the outfielder as trade bait this offseason was to acquire a young, strong shortstop, with the D’Backs notably making a run at the Braves’ Andrelton Simmons and the Rangers’ Jurickson Profar.

In the end, the D’Backs acquired Didi Gregorius from the Cincinnati Reds in exchange for young right-hander Trevor Bauer and fellow right-handers Matt Albers and Bryan Shaw.

Arizona still has a wealth of available outfielders on the roster so could look to move someone like Jason Kubel or Gerardo Parra, whose names have recently been floated in trade rumors.