Nationals slugger Adam Dunn is one of the biggest names being thrown around in the days leading up to baseball's trade deadline (4:00 P.M Eastern on Saturday). Let's first note that Dunn, who will become a free agent after this season, may very well stay in Washington until then:
Nationals GM Mike Rizzo has stated that he needs to be blown away to move Dunn -- same with outfielder Josh Willingham and closer Matt Capps -- saying, "We don't make calls."
That said, at least three teams appear in the running for his services. Jim Bowden, who goes back with Dunn to his days as a Cincinnati Red, tweets:
Yankees, Rays and White Sox are all three in the mix for Adam Dunn in trade talks as of this hour
Dunn's relocation to the Yankees or Rays would certainly make an impact on an especially fierce A.L. East race, in which both teams are over the .600 mark and within two games of each other as of this writing. He would likely serve as a designated hitter on either roster, and would be an especially substantial improvement over current Rays DH Willy Aybar and his .715 OPS.
It's a little more interesting to consider how Dunn fits with the White Sox. He would certainly be an upgrade if he were to usurp Andruw Jones in the DH role, but if he were to serve as a left fielder, his .925 OPS would be a dramatic improvement over Juan Pierre's .612.
Keep up with Dunn and the teams involved in this rumor with our Nationals blog, Federal Baseball, our White Sox blog, South Side Sox, our Yankees blog, Pinstripe Alley, and our Rays blog, DRaysBay.