The Case of Jurickson Profar

You know you're in good shape as a franchise when you may not have room for the number one prospect in all of baseball.

This is the dilemma of the Texas Rangers. 

In just three days since being called up, Profar has already showed off his skills, especially his incredible defensive range. He also, in just three days, has had the top play on SportsCenter.

So why would anyone want to get rid of someone who could easily join Trout and Harper as the next Three Kings of baseball? 

Bernard and I will break down to case to keep or trade Profar. 

The Case to Trade

As a fair warning...I don't really think the Rangers should ditch Profar, but trading him does present some very interesting options. 

Trade him for a Catcher: As much as I like AJ and Soto, the catcher is the backbone of the team and neither of those guys will be franchise players. 

So do the Rangers get a catcher to have forever? And if so, who do they get?

Well the options are pretty slim. Guys like Buster Posey, Yadier Molina,  and Joe Mauer aren't leaving their homes. 

It doesn't ring a lot of other options. 

Trade Him for a Pitcher The Rangers don't really need a position player other than catcher, so that really only leaves the case for a pitcher. 

While the options of finding a franchise catcher are slim to non, options to adding another ace are plentiful. 

If the Rangers do trade Profar, it isn't going to be for some untested hype machine...they're going to be the real deal. It's going to be for one of the better pitchers in baseball who have actually proven themselves over time. 

Case For David Price 

The rumor that the Rangers have been eyeing David Price has been floating around for some time. If the Rangers do in fact trade for Profar, this may be the most likely scenario for it to happen. 

Price, the 27 year-old reigning Cy Young winner doesn't become a free agent until 2015, meaning the Rangers would have three years to convince him to stay.

The pros of getting Price are numerous. The Rangers would be adding to what is already one of the best staffs in baseball and building it to be legendary. Price is getting paid about $10 million a year right now, but this will be a much higher number after this year. 

The only real con is that Price is going under the knife soon and it's always a risk to invest in a pitcher after surgery. But Price has proven to be pretty resilient in his years with Tampa Bay and he's the kind of player that would fit well with the synergy of the Rangers. 

The Case for Clayton Kershaw 

How cool would it be to have a kid from Highland Park be an ace on the Texas Rangers? It's just about as cool of a scenario as you can get it in professional sports. 

Kershaw is not only the greatest pitcher in the National League, but the case could be made that he's the best in all of baseball. Like Price, Kershaw has only gotten better with the more major league experience he's had. 

Sadly this is very very unlikely. Given the current state of the LA Dodgers, they likely won't be willing to get rid of Kershaw any time soon. 

Bottom Line: If Jon Daniels and the Rangers are going to take the risk on trading Profar, it's going to be for David Price. In addition to giving up what could be the best second baseman of this generation, Daniels and company will also have to invest a lot more money in Price when he's up for Free Agency in 2015. 

The Rangers do in fact have plenty of weapons and depth to the point where they don't really need Profar in the immediate future and having another proven ace is an obvious plus.  Price will be good for a very long time, but what Jon Daniels and company have to decide is if it's worth losing someone who could perhaps be one of the greatest infielders of our time. 

-Marsh

The Case to Keep

Jurickson Profar is not just the top prospect in baseball. Profar is one of the top middle infield prospects in the history of the game.

Admittedly that is a strong statement, but I stand behind it 100%.

Profar has a rare combination of tools that would give any Major League GM a full on chubby, and make any manager splooge harder than a Star Trek junkie watching Alice Eve strip down in Into Darkness (side note: if you haven’t seen the new Star Trek movie then cancel whatever plans you have for later tonight and go see it in Imax 3D. I personally guarantee your mind will be blown. I saw it two days ago and I’m still fully torqued). Let’s take a moment to break down the elements of Profar’s game that make him so special, shall we?

Defense: His range is off the charts. He moves fluidly and naturally, gliding to either his left or right to get any ball hit in his general vicinity. Honestly, if the Rangers played with only three infielders and just stuck Profar behind second base, I would still like our odds.

Additionally, Profar has an absolute cannon for an arm. He was drafted as a possible pitching prospect but his athletic ability proved to be so phenomenal that short stop was the only logical choice. Profar also has softer hands than a Taiwanese masseuse who specializes in happy endings.

I cannot overstate how good Profar is on defense. If a ball is hit anywhere near him, it will be an out. End of story.

Defensive Grade: A+

Offense: His offensive numbers haven’t really been overly eye-catching at any level yet, but don’t mistake that for lack of ability.  Profar has an incredible eye at the plate and patience as a hitter that is well, well beyond his years (and playing with Lance Berkman this season will only help that plate approach improve). To go along with that plate approach, Profar has a natural swing from both sides of the plate and has terrific bat speed, allowing him to turn around a pitch from anybody and gives him the pop to hit for double digit homeruns every year. When he fills out physically and finishes growing into his body, he could hit 20+ homeruns a year in his prime. That is not an exaggeration.

When Profar hits his stride as a regular Major League shortstop he is going to be a career .300 hitter who hits for power, gets on base, and is just an all around pain in the ass for pitchers, as he won’t help them by swinging at anything out of the zone.

Offensive Grade: B+ (for now)

Intangibles: The biggest thing that should be noted when evaluating Profar’s skill set is the fact that he is really, really young. People forget that, because he has been a top prospect for so long, but he is even younger than me and most of my friends (I won’t mention the effect that has on my ego). As I mentioned, he is still growing and developing physically and getting stronger, faster, quicker, etc. meaning that as good as he is now, this dude’s ceiling is through the roof (see what I did there?).

Furthermore, he has the perfect laissez faire type of swagger that the current Rangers team has embraced, and he plays the game for the love of the game. Profar is a fierce competitor and consistently makes the impact plays needed to win ball games.

Also, he is versatile. Because of his freakish raw athleticism, he can play anywhere on the field. The Rangers are even toying with the idea of moving him into center field when they inevitably part ways with David “the Murph Dog” Murphy at the end of the year.

Intangible Grade: A

Bottom Line

Trading this guy would be a mistake. Even though there is not a spot for him now, the Rangers will make one. Years from now when he retires as one of the best defensive shortstops EVER, and records over 3,000 hits and 300 homeruns, people are gonna feel pretty stupid for wanting to trade him back in the day.

Profar is going to be one of the greats. Quote me on that.

-Bernard