I know people keep saying to maximize Hardy's value (if Escobar is used at short and Hardy is either traded or moved to another position) is to trade him and sign another 3B, just as Ennder has stated above. I rarely post, but I often lurk and read, but I keep thinking to myself, "so who is this 3B we are going to sign / trade for? and are they going to be better than what Hardy could do at 3B, and if so, how much are they going to cost in FA or in a trade?" the only better 3B than Hardy (if he was moved there) that i can think of would be A-Rod, D. Wright, Youklis (when he plays there instead of 1B), Miguel Cabrera (who is a 1b now), Chipper (when healthy - big if, and coming to the end of his career), Longoria, and Aramis Ramirez. I would say none of those guys could be had. Ryan Zimmerman would probably be a bit of an upgrade, although he was injured last year, and I highly doubt the Nats would deal him, Alex Gordon has the potential, but he hasn't put up the numbers yet (yes, i know he's young and will probably get better over the next few years) but again, I don't see KC dealing him. That leaves the likes of Garrett Atkins (no thanks), Mark DeRosa, Jorge Cantu, Adrian Beltre (a possibility?), Aubrey Huff (no he's not a 3B, he's a DH or 1B), Troy Glaus, Casey Blake, Melvin Mora, E. Encarnacion, Kouzmanoff, Lowell, and I'll stop there. Would you really want any of those guys playing 3B instead of Hardy? Yes, it'd be ideal to get a "solid/average" 3B and trade Hardy for more value, but you have to look at what is actually out there, and I just don't see why Hardy couldn't help this team out at 3B, his range is about average and has a plus arm, isn't that what is usually looked for at 3B? Sorry for the long post, just needed to get that off my chest that this "ideal" 3B really doesn't exist out there at this moment