JUPITER http://www.dodgersfanproshop.com/authentic-max-muncy-jersey , Fla. (AP) — Going into spring training, St. Louis manager Mike Shildt delivered the message second baseman Kolten Wong always wanted to hear.Wong wouldn’t have to prove himself. He didn’t have to be perfect. Wong would be the Cardinals‘ starting second baseman.“It’s something I’ve asked for since I got to the big leagues, just a chance to go out there and play everyday,” Wong said.Last year’s midseason managerial change relaxed Wong. And a comfortable Wong proved to be a valuable player.“Kolten, last year, he may have been the best second baseman in baseball the second half of last season,” said Shildt, who replaced Mike Matheny in mid-July.A career .255 hitter over six seasons with an above-average glove, the 28-year-old Wong hit no better than .210 in any one of the three months prior to Matheny’s firing and no worse than .280 in any month that followed.Wong doesn’t believe the improvement coincidental.“Shildt came in and it gave me that flexibility to be myself and play my game,” Wong said. “The rest is history, I guess.”Matheny’s intensity,Wong said, never allowed him to feel comfortable in his role.“I will just say the leash wasn’t too long for me, that’s just how it went,” Wong said. “It was a very short leash. It’s tough to play when you have that kind of pressure. Obviously, I want to play every day. In order for me to play every day it was a make-or-break situation every single day. It was tough.”Wong is taking an aggressive approach this spring. Unafraid of making mistakes, he’s looking to take the extra base. At the plate Kenley Jansen Jersey , he’s able to work on his swing or situational hitting without feeling the pressure produce statistically.Wong is hitting .269 with a homer, a double and two stolen bases in Grapefruit League play.“Before I felt like I was kind of getting tested from the very beginning and if I wasn’t doing good it was kind of, shame on me,” Wong said. “It was a tough time for me trying to figure out how to just go out there and play my game without having that pressure — if I don’t do good today, I’m definitely not going to play tomorrow.”Possessing a nice blend of power and speed, in years past Wong expressed his desire to hit at the top of the order. With Matt Carpenter and Dexter Fowler healthy, that won’t happen.Shildt expects Wong to create scoring opportunities from the bottom of the lineup.“Kolten’s our second baseman,” Shildt said. “I think it’s pretty clear that’s the case. He knows that. He’s had a solid spring across the board. He’s in a good place.” The Giants didn't sell at the trade deadline, but they didn't buy either, and with a 55-54 record, they sit five games back in fourth place in the NL West standings. In other words, it's hard to see them climbing back into the playoff picture between now and Aug. 31.As an upcoming free agent with a $14.75 million salary, Andrew McCutchen looks like a prime candidate to be dumped by a Giants team that is up against the luxury tax threshold.According to Jon Paul Morosi of MLB.com, the New York Yankees, Philadelphia Phillies and Cleveland Indians all showed some level of interest in the veteran outfielder leading up to the deadline.The Indians addressed their outfield need by acquiring Leonys Martin from the Detroit Tigers, but Yankees and Phillies could still be potential fits.The 31-year-old McCutchen is hitting .258/.353/.413 for a 109 OPS+ with 24 doubles, 11 home runs and 44 RBI. Defensive metrics have also been much kinder to his work in right field http://www.dodgersfanproshop.com/authentic-max-muncy-jersey , compared to his struggles in center field the past few seasons.SP Matt Harvey, Cincinnati RedsJohn Minchillo/Associated PressIt came as something of a surprise that Matt Harvey was not traded ahead of the non-waiver deadline.The rebuilding Reds picked him up in a no-risk trade with the Mets that sent expensive backup catcher Devin Mesoraco out of town, and little was expected from the former All-Star when he joined the team sporting a 7.00 ERA.However, he's gone 5-4 with a 4.44 ERA, 1.19 WHIP and 56 strikeouts in 73 innings over 14 starts since joining the Reds, and in a thin market for starting pitching, more than a few teams were interested, according to ESPN's Jerry Crasnick.Cincinnati general manager Dick Williams explained the team's position to reporters after the deadline passed and Harvey stayed put:"He's a free agent at the end of the year. We understand that and are open to moving him if the appropriate deal comes along. We said all along, you can't execute a good trade if you put yourself in a position of feeling like you have to have one done by the end of the day. We set, what we thought, were appropriate parameters and we held to it. In the interim, he is very much bringing positive contributions to our team."It sounds like they're happy to have him but more than open to trading him, so a deal could yet be made between now and his first foray into free agency.3B Josh Donaldson, Toronto Blue JaysDerik Hamilton/Associated PressAn injury-plagued season from former AL MVP Josh Donaldson has cost the Blue Jays what would have been one of the most valuable trade chips on the market.The free-agent-to-be has been sidelined since May 28 with a left calf injury, but he's expected to return at some point in August.Will he have enough time to prove to a contender that he's capable of making an impact?His $23 million salary and sketchy health situation make him a safe bet to clear waivers, so it will come down to whether the Blue Jays get an offer that's more attractive than the draft pick compensation that would come with extending him a qualifying offer at the onset of the upcoming offseason.The 32-year-old is undoubtedly the wild card of the waiver-trade period.Other Waiver Trade Candidates:OF Jose Bautista (NYM), 3B Adrian Beltre (TEX) Enrique Hernandez Jersey , RP Jerry Blevins (NYM), C A.J. Ellis (SD), SP Marco Estrada (TOR), 2B Logan Forsythe (MIN), SP Gio Gonzalez (WAS), OF Curtis Granderson (TOR), SP Jeremy Hellickson (WAS), SS Jose Iglesias (DET), RP Francisco Liriano (DET), C Devin Mesoraco (NYM), RP Bud Norris (STL), SP Ervin Santana (MIN), SP James Shields (CWS) All stats courtesy of Baseball Reference and FanGraphs, unless otherwise noted.