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One of the names that has popped up more and more in recent days as we head towards the trade deadline has been the Blue Jays’ Eric Sogard. Sogard, a free agent after this season, has seen his stock soar as a rental piece thanks to him having a career year in 2019 where he has slashed .300/.363/.477.
For teams in need of versatile defenders (Sogard has played all around the infield as well as in the outfield a bit) or just in need of plugging a hole in their roster, Sogard has been regarded as an ideal candidate. Several teams including the Braves, Giants, and Cubs all inquired about Sogard in recent days, but another team appears to have won the bidding.
Infielder Eric Sogard has been traded to the Tampa Bay Rays, league sources tell ESPN. Multiple teams were on him but Toronto ultimately settled on a deal with Tampa Bay.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) July 28, 2019
The Rays are a really logical spot for a player like Sogard to land as they have long valued versatile players without long-term financial restraints. As of this moment in time, the return for the Blue Jays is still unknown (some reports had it as a player to be named later, some have said that there could be an immediate, but currently unknown return). However, with Jake Diekman traded earlier and now Sogard off the board, we may finally be seeing the movement on the trade market we were expecting.