3 surprise teams Astros fans should watch as Isaac Paredes trade market fluctuates

The Houston Astros appear to have made their intentions clear — Isaac Paredes is officially on the trade block. The Astros have a glut of infielders on the roster, and while they'd likely prefer to trade Christian Walker, moving the $40 million remaining on his contract has proven to be quite difficult. As such, it now appears that Paredes is the odd man out.

Reports emerged over the weekend of a three-team deal involving the Astros, St. Louis Cardinals, and Boston Red Sox that fell apart earlier this offseason. Paredes would've been shipped to Boston, while Brendan Donovan — who was recently traded to the Seattle Mariners — would've landed in Houston.

The Red Sox complicated matters on Monday after agreeing to a deal with the Milwaukee Brewers that will bring NL Rookie of the Year finalist Caleb Durbin to Beantown. The Pittsburgh Pirates also took themselves out of the Paredes sweepstakes after signing free agent slugger Marcell Ozuna to a $12 million deal.

Chandler Rome of The Athletic (subscription required) recently revealed that at least five teams were interested in trading for Paredes. Two of those teams — the Red Sox and Pirates — are presumably no longer in the running. Who might the other three teams be?

Red Sox and Pirates acquisitions just made it more difficult for the Astros to trade Isaac Paredes

San Diego Padres

The San Diego Padres feel like the favorites at the moment to land Paredes. Padres president of baseball operations A.J. Preller is always looking to make a splash during the offseason, but to date, the Friars frontman has been rather quiet.

San Diego was said to be involved in the Nolan Arenado trade talks earlier this winter, and that would seem to indicate the Padres are looking for a corner infielder. Having just lost Luis Arraez to their division rival, the San Francisco Giants, the Padres might be the top landing spot for Paredes going forward.

Athletics

The Padres weren't the only team that was kicking the tires on Arenado earlier this offseason. The Athletics were also said to be interested in trading for the nine-time Gold Glove Award-winner before he eventually landed in the desert with the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Arenado's no-trade clause may have been a factor in the A's inability to secure Arenado, but Paredes doesn't have that type of luxury. Trading within one's division isn't a standard practice, but it's happened before. The A's could give Houston the best opportunity to shed Paredes' salary while bringing back top-end young talent in return.

Minnesota Twins

If you're looking for a dark horse in the Paredes' sweepstakes, how about the Minnesota Twins? The Twins claim they're trying to win this season, though their roster may not help them in that endeavor. Minnesota, however, has an abundance of something the Astros have been needing all winter — left-handed hitting.

Trevor Larnach, Matt Wallner, Kody Clemens, and James Outman are all competing for a spot in the Twins outfield, and Houston might be able to find a solution for one of the biggest voids on their roster.