But there is one reliever on a non-contending team that could change the complexion of any bullpen: Brad Hand of the San Diego Padres.

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The 27-year-old left-hander increased his strikeout rate year over year (from 30.5 to 31.6 percent) while decreasing his walk rate (from 9.9 to 7.1 percent) resulting in a corresponding drop in ERA (from 2.92 to 2.20). He’s pitched 49 innings of relief this season, holding opponents to a .589 OPS against, the fourth-lowest among relievers pitching at least as many innings this season.

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Plus, he’s reduced the number of times an opposing batter has hit the ball on the sweet spot of the bat, also known as a barrel, to just 0.52 percent of his pitches thrown this season, significantly lower than 2015 (1.09 percent) and 2016 (0.83 percent).

The improvement comes from Hand’s slider, which he now uses almost half the time (43 percent), holding opposing batters to a .120 average against with 55 strikeouts in 92 at-bats ending on the pitch.

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But he is far from a one-pitch hurler — his four-seam fastball allowed just nine hits in 50 at-bats (.180) with 11 strikeouts, and features an average spin rate of 2,533 rpm in 2017, the ninth-highest among 389 pitchers with at least 100 four-seam fastballs thrown this year. The average spin rate on four-seam fastballs is 2,260 rpm in 2017, with a higher spin rate more positively correlated with swinging strikes and flyballs, making Hand’s fastball coveted by most pitchers in the majors.

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He won’t come cheap. Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports reported last month San Diego wants a “Will Smith-type return” for Hand, which included right-handed pitcher Phil Bickford, a consensus top-50 prospect, and a young position player in catcher Andrew Susac. ESPN’s Buster Olney tweeted the Padres want something “similar to what the Phillies got for Ken Giles.” Philadelphia received five players from the Houston Astros for Giles, including 23-year-old flamethrower Vince Velasquez and Mark Appel, the No. 1 pick in the 2012 MLB June amateur draft.

Perhaps Hand isn’t worth the price to a team contending for a World Series title. If not, here are six other names to consider as the trade deadline approaches.

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Zach Britton, RP, Baltimore Orioles

Last season, Britton was nearly unhittable. The left-handed reliever allowed a .162 average against with 74 strikeouts in 67 innings pitched, allowing 31 fewer runs than expected after accounting for runners on base and outs left in the inning — making him the most valuable reliever in 2016.

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He isn’t as spectacular this season, allowing just 3.5 runs fewer than expected, but he induces a large number of groundballs (68 percent of balls put in play) and can keep the ball in the yard — his last home run allowed was to Mookie Betts in April 2016, and the one before that was in September 2015.

Sonny Gray, SP, Oakland Athletics

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The quintessential ace, Gray is striking out more batters this season (22.7 percent) than he has since 2013, his first year in the majors, despite losing velocity on his fastball since then.

Relying on a combination of fastballs, breaking balls and off-speed pitches to keep hitters off balance, Gray’s 3.66 ERA is higher than his 3.36 FIP, which measures what a player’s ERA would look like over a given period of time if the pitcher were to have experienced league average results on balls in play and league average timing. In other words, there might be room to improve after the trade deadline.

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According to FanGraphs depth chart projections, no available starter is expected to provide more wins above replacement than Gray (1.2 fWAR) for the remainder of the season.

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Alex Avila, C/1B, Detroit Tigers

Avila is having the best season of his nine-year career. The 30-year-old is batting .286 with 11 home runs and a .932 OPS, creating runs at a rate that is 49 percent higher than the league average after accounting for league and park effects (149 wRC+).

His plate discipline is much better — he is swinging at a career-low 12.8 percent of pitches out of the zone — and his quality of contact is on the rise, with more than half of his hits classified as “hard hit” by Baseball Info Solutions. His average exit velocity has also improved to 92.3 mph, up from 90.4 mph in 2015.

Justin Upton, OF, Detroit Tigers

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An all-star for the fourth time this season, Upton is batting .273 with a .852 OPS, creating runs at a rate that is 28 percent higher than the league average after accounting for league and park effects (128 wRC+), the 18th highest rate among 63 outfielders qualifying for the batting title. Rest-of-season projections see Upton finishing the year hitting .264 with 13 home runs and a .832 OPS, producing an additional 1.3 wins above replacement.

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He’s also valuable in the field, where his 11 defensive runs saved ranks sixth among outfielders this season.

Jarrod Dyson, OF, Seattle Mariners

Dyson is batting .243 with five home runs and 22 stolen bases with 12 defensive runs saved in the field, making him the 20th most-valuable outfielder in the majors this season (2.0 fWAR).

His role as a table-setter is also solid — the 32-year-old left-handed hitter has an OPS that is 68 percent higher than the league average when leading off an inning with just eight strikeouts. Only Anthony Rendon and Melky Cabrera have struck out less often with a higher OPS at the start of an inning.

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Marco Estrada, SP, Toronto Blue Jays

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Estrada has struggled lately, allowing a 1.045 OPS against in June and 1.054 OPS against in July. His outing against the Detroit Tigers on July 16 was abyssal: four earned runs and five hits in 3 2/3 innings, requiring him to make 94 pitches before getting the hook.

He’s striking out 25 percent of batters faced while walking 9.3 percent, numbers comparable to last season’s campaign, and his .330 batting average on balls in play (league average is .299) does suggest he is getting unlucky bounces.