First Call: Idea floated for Steelers to acquire former WPIAL star; who may be interested in trading for Adam Frazier?

Monday’s “First Call” looks at the idea of the Steelers swinging a trade with the New England Patriots to bring a former WPIAL star back to Pittsburgh.

We wonder why the Steelers may want guard Trai Turner and who may offer a trade for Pirates infielder Adam Frazier.

Plus, we check in on the woeful Arizona Diamondbacks.

Chasing Chase?

On Thursday, Bleacher Report published a theoretical trade for every team in the National Football League.

The one it created for the Steelers will raise eyebrows locally.

Writer Chris Roling suggested the Steelers should send a 2022 fourth-round pick to the New England Patriots for former WPIAL star Chase Winovich (Thomas Jefferson) as a way to fill the void created by Bud Dupree’s departure via free agency.

“Chase Winovich played just 58 percent of the Patriots’ defensive snaps last year but had 5.5 sacks for the second season in a row,” Roling wrote. “After a roster reset, the Patriots might be willing to let a versatile piece like that go for the right price. It’s the type of low-cost move the Steelers are capable of making into a big win on the field given the unit Winovich would join.”

That roster reset includes front-seven free-agent signees Kyle Van Noy and Matthew Judon, as well as the selection of Oklahoma pass rusher Ronnie Perkins in the third round of the draft.

But that doesn’t mean New England’s Bill Belichick would simply be willing to ship Winovich to a conference rival for a Day 3 pick. Especially since that fourth-round pick was already dealt to Miami so the organization could select Wisconsin defensive end Isaiahh Loudermilk. So a different package would need to be presented as compensation.

And the Steelers also moved their fifth-round pick to get Avery Williamson from the New York Jets.

Where is this going?

On Friday, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that the Steelers had a visit with former Carolina Panthers and Los Angeles Chargers guard Trai Turner.

Turner has five Pro Bowls under his belt. But he missed seven games with the Chargers last year because of injury issues, and when he did play, it wasn’t pretty. Pro Football Focus graded him at 34.8, 79th out of 80 guards who were rated.

If the Steelers are looking at a rehab project of this magnitude, that may be a red flag for the state of David DeCastro’s health or Kevin Dotson’s development, despite promising signs in his rookie season.

Eyes are watching

The general belief around Pittsburgh is that it is not a matter of “if” but “when” Adam Frazier is traded.

The .322-hitting second baseman is believed to be one of the most coveted targets on the market. And even though he is young, affordable, under control through 2023 and on the ascent, the Pirates will likely trade him because they are going nowhere in the 2021 standings, and Frazier could yield a nice return of future prospects.

Two teams who have come up in trade discussions are the Cleveland Indians and Chicago White Sox. The Indians just came through town this weekend. The White Sox visit Tuesday and Wednesday. So both of those franchises are getting an up-close look as they battle atop the American League Central standings.

Chicago (43-29) holds a 2.5-game lead on the Indians (39-30). Frazier went 3-for-11 in the series against Cleveland after going 0-for-9 against the Washington Nationals.

Over the weekend, general manager Ben Cherington admitted that trade calls for the franchise have started to pick up somewhat in the last few weeks.

Still at it

While the Pirates broke their 10-game losing streak by stealing two of three games from the Cleveland Indians, the Arizona Diamondbacks still have a doozy going.

The Snakes have now lost 17 in a row, their latest coming courtesy of Albert Pujols and the Los Angeles Dodgers by a final score of 9-8 Sunday.

Albert rakes. pic.twitter.com/E8jrpmJ1pD

— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) June 20, 2021

The D-backs were down 9-1 and scrambled back to close within one run but couldn’t get over the hump.

It doesn’t get much easier from here for the Diamondbacks (20-53). Up next, they host the National League Central-leading Milwaukee Brewers (40-32) for three games.