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Both Prince Fielder and the Seattle Mariners are off to very slow starts in 2010.

While slow starts have become the norm for Fielder, the Mariners were picked by many to win the AL West, but they are already 11 games behind first-place Texas. Only the Orioles are off to a worst start in the American League.

After so many signings and trades in the offseason, expectations were sky-high for a team that surprisingly won 85 games in 2009. General Manager Jack Zduriencik made the moves he thought would ensure a division title. 

Even with all the moves that were made, critics still said Zduriencik and the Mariners lacked the big bat in the middle of the lineup needed to power the offense. He could solve all his problems by acquiring Fielder, the player he drafted with the Brewers in the first round of the 2002 draft.

On the surface, the Brewers and Mariners seem to be perfect trading partners. The Brewers need pitching, the Mariners need hitting, and Zduriencik knows the Brewers’ roster and farm system as well as anyone in the game. 

The two teams were almost trade partners last season as the Brewers tried to acquire Jarrod Washburn at the trade deadline. However, Zduriencik’s asking price of either Alcides Escobar or Mat Gamel was simply too much for Brewers GM Doug Melvin to part with for a three-month rental.

The Mariners currently have several pitching options that could be sent to Milwaukee for Fielder, despite the fact that they traded away their top pitching prospect, Phillippe Aumont, to the Phillies in the Cliff Lee trade this past winter.

Ryan Rowland-Smith and Jason Vargas are each under team control until after the 2013 season. Rowland-Smith has struggled this season with a record of 0-4 with a 7.62 ERA after putting together two solid seasons in Seattle in 2008 and 2009. Vargas is 3-2 with a 2.93 ERA in seven starts this year.

Both pitchers are lefties, but even though the Brewers have a number of lefty options, either would be better than what the team currently has been sending to the mound.

Doug Fister is a 6’8″ righty that has been dominant so far in 2010. Fister is 3-1 with a 1.72 ERA in seven starts. He has gone at least seven innings in five of his seven starts this season. This is Fister’s first full season in the majors, and he’s only given up nine earned runs in 47 innings pitched.

The Mariners could give the Brewers a built-in replacement for Fielder by sending Casey Kotchman to Milwaukee. Kotchman is off to a horrible start in 2010 but is a far superior defensive player to Fielder. He’s making just over $3.5 million this year, and he is under team control until after next season.

Although the Mariners don’t have a top-ranked farm system, they do have several players that could be sent to Milwaukee in exchange for Fielder.

The team’s top prospect is Dustin Ackley. Ackley was the second overall pick in last year’s draft. He is struggling this season at Double-A West Tennessee. In 34 games this year, he’s hitting only .198 with one home run and 10 RBI. He has been converted to a full-time first baseman, and that fact could be very appealing to Melvin.

Michael Saunders was recently called up by the Mariners. The 23-year-old outfielder is hitting .235 in 54 career big league games. He is considered by many scouts to be a five-tool player, and he could possibly make the switch to first base in the future, although he is a solid defender in the outfield. 

The teams seem to be quite logical trade partners. A trade proposal such as Fielder and Gamel for Kotchman, Saunders, and Fister could help both teams salvage this year as well as build for the future, even if Fielder departs via free agency after the 2011 season.

With the continued struggles of both teams, something needs to be done soon before the season is lost for both teams. Each is still very much alive for its division, and if the deal is right, a trade could help both clubs head back towards the top of their respective divisions.

It wouldn’t be out of the realm of possibility that Fielder could sign long-term with the Mariners. After 2011, the only long-term deals the team has belong to Felix Hernandez, Franklin Gutierrez, and Ichiro. Ichiro is able to become a free agent after the 2012 season, so other than Hernandez, the Mariners will need someone to step in as the face of the franchise.

Could Prince Fielder be the perfect fit?

To read more by Jesse Motiff, click here.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

The San Francisco Giants are off to a great start in 2010. They have the best record in the National League, and are led by perhaps the best starting rotation in all of baseball.

While the team has a stranglehold on great pitching, their offense is below the league average in most categories. They have grounded into more double plays than any NL team, and have the fewest number of walks of any team in the league other than the Houston Astros.

With the exception of Pablo Sandoval, no hitter on the team strikes fear into opposing pitchers. While their great pitching will keep them competitive all season, if the hitting doesn’t come around, the Giants will have a hard time making the playoffs.

San Francisco has long been mentioned as a possible destination for Brewers’ first baseman Prince Fielder. Fielder was born in California and many have speculated that he could end up playing for a team on the West Coast once he becomes a free agent after the 2011 season.

With the Brewers off to a slow start, trade winds are swirling about the Brewers unloading Fielder before he can exit via free agency, and leave Milwaukee left with nothing in compensation. 

The Giants have the great farm system needed to pry Fielder out of Milwaukee, but would trading for the slugger make them the favorite to represent the NL in the World Series?

Fielder would give the Giants that big bat in the lineup that they are desperately lacking, and they would easily be able to compete against the Cardinals and Phillies for the NL crown. However, how much of their farm system would they have to give up, and would it be worth it to take action this season or would they be better off waiting until after the 2011 season and just sign Fielder as a free agent?

Brewer fans should immediately give up any thoughts of getting Sandoval, Tim Lincecum, or top prospects Buster Posey and Madison Bumgarner from the Giants. Those players are simply untouchable, and they won’t be traded for anyone.

In addition to a great farm system, there are several players on the Giants that could be involved in the trade either on their own or as part of a package.

Travis Ishikawa, Eugenio Velez, and Emmanuel Burriss are all players that are under team control through the 2014 season and could be included with prospects to head to Milwaukee.

Matt Cain and Jonathan Sanchez have each been mentioned in the past as possible trade candidates for the Brewers in exchange for Fielder.

Cain is off to a great start this season. He’s 2-1 with a 2.79 ERA in six starts. He’s struck out 30 and walked only 10 in 38 2/3 innings in 2010. Opposing teams are only hitting .209 against the 25-year-old righty. The Brewers may actually have to include more talent than just Fielder in order to bring him to Milwaukee.

Sanchez has gone from a fringe starter to one of the best left-handed starters in less than a year. Since his no-hitter last year, his confidence has grown immensely, and he’s given the Giants a fourth very good starter. However, with lefty prospect Bumgarner expected to make his debut soon, he may still be expendable for the Giants. 

In 2010, Sanchez is 2-2 with a 2.48 ERA in five starts. He’s struck out 37 batters in only 29 innings. Opponents are hitting a mere .170 this year against the 27-year-old Puerto Rico native. 

Many of the Giants best prospects are at the lower levels of minor league baseball, but their talent may very well be worth waiting for the Brewers.

Zach Wheeler was the top pick for the Giants in last year’s draft. Wheeler was drafted out of high school, and most scouts feel he was more advanced coming out of high school than Bumgarner was.

Dan Runzler is a lefty reliever that made the Giants team out of Spring Training this year. Some feel he could be the eventual successor to Brian Wilson as the team’s closer, or he could be used to help land Fielder. In 12 appearances this year, he’s 1-0 with a 2.19 ERA and has struck out 12 in 12 1/3 innings. 

Thomas Neal is a power-hitting prospect that was taken by the Giants in the 36th round of the 2005 draft. He projects as a middle-of-the-order bat eventually, but he’s still at least a year or two away from making is debut in the majors. 

Other prospects that could be sent to Milwaukee include: outfielder Roger Kieschnick, second baseman Nick Noonan, and outfielders Francisco Peguero and Rafael Rodriguez.

Trading Prince Fielder to the Giants may be the best option for the Brewers’ front office; they have the best combination of major league talent and prospects to help Milwaukee both now and in the future.

Giant fans may not like the thought of giving up a player like Matt Cain or Jonathan Sanchez, but putting Fielder in the middle of the lineup would more than make up for losing either one.

Add to that the realization of being on the same level or better than the Cardinals or Phillies, and the Brewers and Giants would both be wise to become trading partners sooner rather than later. 

To read more by Jesse Motiff, click here . 

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

After looking at the merits of the Boston Red Sox trading for Milwaukee Brewers first baseman, Prince Fielder, there could be another team with colored socks in the mix for Fielder’s services, the Chicago White Sox.

GM Kenny Williams isn’t afraid to bring in a big-name player to his organization, as evident by his acquisitions of Jake Peavy and Alex Rios last season.

Fielder would just serve as the latest player to come to Chicago thanks to one of the most aggressive general managers in baseball.

Much like the Red Sox, the White Sox currently have an established first baseman already on their roster. Paul Konerko has been entrenched as the team’s first baseman since joining the club prior to the 1999 season.

Konerko, who turned 34 in March, is in the final year of his five-year, $60 million contract. Most feel he won’t return to Chicago after the season. Fielder would be able to take over for Konerko at first for the foreseeable future for the White Sox.

To his credit, Konerko is off to a torrid start.

He leads baseball in home runs (12), slugging (.790), and OPS (1.206). Unfortunately, he’s one of the few players on the team doing anything at the plate for the struggling White Sox.

If Williams would trade for Fielder this season, it’s likely he would take over at first base, moving Konerko to DH. Konerko would be allowed to leave in the offseason, and extension talks could take place for Fielder.

That would be the best-case scenario for Williams and his team, but the better move would be to wait until after the season to pull off such a deal.

However, if the White Sox are in contention, he may feel the need to make a big splash at the trade deadline, and acquiring the 25-year-old Fielder would be a huge splash on multiple levels.

Much like a potential trade with the Red Sox, any deal with the White Sox would have to involve pitching. When talking about potential pitching trading chips, one must look no further than John Danks and Gavin Floyd.

Danks is off to a great start in his fourth season with the White Sox. The 25-year-old lefty is 3-0 with a 1.85 ERA in five starts to start the season. He has struck out 27 and walked only nine in 34 innings.

This was the first year Danks was arbitration eligible. He’s under team control until after the 2012 season.

He would be a great addition to the rotation for the Brewers. Although the Brewers have lefties Randy Wolf, Doug Davis, Chris Narveson, and Manny Parra already, Danks would slot right behind Yovani Gallardo at the top of the team’s rotation.

Gavin Floyd has seen mixed success since joining the White Sox from the Phillies in the 2006 Freddy Garcia trade. After two strong seasons in 2008 and 2009, he is off to a rocky start in 2010.

The 27-year-old Floyd is 1-2 with a 6.49 ERA in five starts this year. He has struck out 23 and walked 12 in 26 1/3 innings. This is a far cry from the 28 wins he posted over the last two years, and almost two runs more than his 4.75 career ERA.

Floyd is in the second year of the four-year, $15.5 million deal he signed prior to the 2009 season. In addition to the deal he signed, there is also a club option for the 2013 season, which would be very appealing to the Brewers.

Chicago would not part with Gordon Beckham, so any thought that Brewer fans have acquiring the young second baseman should be pushed out of their heads immediately.

The White Sox don’t have as deep of a farm system as the Red Sox, which could complicate a possible deal.

The Brewers won’t want to take on an excessive amount of salary, and they would prefer to acquire young talent that will be controllable for several seasons.

Most of the young talent in the White Sox farm system are position players. There are very few young pitchers high enough in their system to make a splash in the majors in the next couple seasons.

Dan Hudson is the team’s highest ranked pitching prospect.

Hudson is a 23-year-old starter that saw time in the bullpen for the White Sox last season. He started this year at Triple-A Charlotte and has a 6.56 ERA in five starts this season. He has struck out 28 hitters, but his opponents are currently hitting .305 against him.

Jared Mitchell, Brent Morel, and Jordan Danks are all young position players that are projected to one day play in the majors.

However, none have made it to Chicago at this point and only Danks has played above Double-A.

Mitchell is an outfielder that could eventually replace Corey Hart in right field. He was the top pick for the White Sox last season, and he played quite well for the Class A affiliate Kannapolis Intimidators.

Morel is the current third baseman at Double-A Birmingham. He’s hitting .280 with eight extra base hits in 20 games in 2010. He was selected by the White Sox in the third round of the 2008 draft.

Jordan Danks, the younger brother of John, is currently at Triple-A Charlotte for the White Sox. He was the seventh round pick of the club in the 2008 draft.

Danks is currently hitting .276 with 12 extra base hits and six steals in 22 games. Although he is a center fielder, he could easily transition to a corner outfield spot, and be a center-of-the-order hitter for the Brewers for several years.

The Brewers and White Sox have been trading partners before, and each came out as a winner.

The Brewers acquired Carlos Lee from the White Sox prior to the 2005 season. Lee was an All-Star both seasons with the Brewers, while the White Sox were led to the World Series by Scott Podesdnik at the top of their lineup.

Although the White Sox can’t offer a package for Fielder with an immediate impact like the Red Sox could, they could send Milwaukee several players that could have a longer-lasting impact with the Brewers.

Kenny Williams shouldn’t be underestimated in his ability to acquire a big-name player to improve his ball club.

In regards to Prince Fielder, he may be better off just sitting back and waiting until after the 2011 season and sign the slugger as a free agent and keep all the young talent in the organization.

To read more by Jesse Motiff, click here .

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com