Sandy Alcantara's worst trade fit is AL East team that's not the Yankees

Multiple times over the past few years, it seemed the Miami Marlins were going to trade All-Star starting pitcher Sandy Alcantara. 

However, they held on to the 2022 National League Cy Young Award winner. Now that Alcantara is a free agent at the end of the season, now may be the best time for the Marlins to cash in. 

Several clubs around the Majors could use a starter like Alcantara in their rotation. But the right-hander should hope that he doesn't end up on a below .500 AL East team that's looking to climb their way back up the standings. 

"Alcantara should be available as the Marlins look to finally cash out in the final guaranteed year of his contract (he has a team option for 2027 as well), but this would be a pretty poor fit," FanSided's Chris Landers wrote about the potential of the Baltimore Orioles targeting Alcantara in a trade.

For the season, Alcantara's strikeout rate (16.3%) is down, and his ground ball rate (44.7%) is slightly lower than in other years. Even so, he historically induces grounders at an elevated rate. 

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"Alcantara relies heavily on his defense converting ground balls into outs, and Baltimore has been one of the worst defenses in the sport so far this season by both Outs Above Average and Fielding Range Value," Landers added. 

It's easy to see why the Orioles and Alcantara are not a match made in heaven.

Baltimore should still be looking to improve its rotation, but Alcantara may not be the most logical fit for the defensive players on the O's roster. 

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