MLBTR Chats News & Rumors

Restless Yankee fan

• Any chance we get Tarik Skubal or Hunter brown at the deadline?

Mark P

• Zero chance the Astros trade Brown.  I can see the Yankees at least making a play for Skubal, though their rotation is already so good that starting pitching doesn’t seem like a tremendous need.  (Yes, I realize that it’s Skubal)

DING DONG

• who says elmer and jones and wells 4 dingler

Mark P

• Detroit with an emphatic no. Even if the Tigers sell at the deadline, Dingler isn’t going anywhere.

Howdy Doodie

• I’m surprised the Marlins didn’t bring up Agustin Ramirez when Liam Hicks went on the DL today.  Has Brian Navaretto shown promise as a catcher in Miami’s system?

Mark P

• Navaretto is just a depth guy, but the Marlins probably don’t expect Hicks to be out for very long.Navaretto is also a catcher, whereas Ramirez’s glovework is so mediocre that I’m not sure he really qualifies as a playable option.  He also hasn’t been hitting since his demotion, so Ramirez isn’t exactly in a good position for a call-up

Mr. Dressup

• Do the Jays upgrade at SS at the deadline?

Mark P

• The easier move would be to land a second baseman and move Clement to shortstop.  The issue is Gimenez’s salary, since that’s a lot of money being devoted towards a player who would suddenly be a backup.Gimenez still isn’t hitting, and his shortstop glovework hasn’t gotten the across-the-board raves one might’ve expected coming into the season.  The public metrics are split — OAA loves his defense, but DRS has him average.

FJF

• What players do you expect the A’s to sell off this summer?

Mark P

• I think the A’s are more likely to be buyers than sellers at the deadline.  If they do happen to fall out of the race, expect moves like trying to trade pending free agent types, even if Springs, Civale, McNeil, etc. have limited to no trade value.Since teams always need pitching, Springs or Civale might have a market since some clubs might feel they just need to get out of Sacramento.

  Severino’s injury ends whatever trade value he might’ve had, fwiw

George

• Does Atlanta get a clear cut #2 starter behind Sale?

Mark P

• How about a world where Sale becomes the #2 behind, say, Tarik Skubal?  Making a big splash for Skubal is definitely within Alex Anthopoulos’ range, and the Braves probably (?) have enough minor league depth and young talent to get Detroit’s attention in the event of a Skubal sale.
• Also, how fun is a headline of “Tigers’ Skubal sale results in Skubal/Sale”?

Walter

• You forgot about Travis Bazzana and Sal Stewart big day on Saturday in your  opener post this morning.

Mark P

• There’s only so much Opener space to go around, given our three-point format (or four points, if you count the intro paragraph)

Draft

• Do you think with the upcoming negotiations in the CBA, that the draft will get an overhaul?  Specifically, trading picks, removing high school players and setting up a pay system that is more like the NFL in which each slot is worth a certain amount of money instead of giving each team a specific amount of money and picking players who will ask for less to be drafted higher?

Mark P

• The draft will be altered in some form, and if you’re looking at an easy solution, making all picks tradable seems like the simplest “why aren’t they doing this?” fix that both the league and the players can agree on.Pretty much everything else in the owners’ proposal from earlier this week is an obvious non-starter from the MLBPA’s end.

Angels Fan

• Who brings back a better haul of players? (Assuming Arte greenlights any meaningful trades/improvements) Reid Detmers or Zach Neto?

Mark P

• Who has more trade value?

  ---

  Detmers (43.3% | 178 votes)

  Neto (56.6% | 233 votes)

  ---

  Total Votes: 411
• Interesting question, and I’d lead towards Neto because of the extra year of team control.  Teams love pitching, but teams also love cost-controlled players just a little bit more.Unfortunately, the real answer to your question is that the Angels aren’t going to move either of those guys since ownership doesn’t see a rebuild as necessary.

Mike

• What is more fun than Kyle Schwarber hitting bombs?

Mark P

• Not much, though Bryce Harper legging out triples is right up there

JeRRy Dipoto

• If you’re going to have a platoon system, you need guys who can actually do the job. What RHB’s can the Mariners pick up to replace Refsnyder and Joe, who aren’t getting the job done against lefties? I’d rather they just play Raley and Canzone every day.

Mark P

• Things will get more loaded from the LHH side once Donovan is back from the injured list, so a righty bat (or two) should be at or near the top of Seattle’s wishlist at the deadline.  The good news is that due to the platoon situation, the Mariners only “need” a part-timer, and those types of players come at a lower trade cost than a regular.Off the top of my head, Lane Thomas seems like a logical target when and if the Royals start selling.

Josh

• Why is there a separate 7 day IL for concussions? Does it act any different to the 10/15 day IL?

Mark P

• Due to the nature of head injuries or concussion symptoms, a player can be completely fine within a day or two.  So, putting them on a full 10-day or 15-day IL can be a little unnecessary, hence the creation of the concussion-specific seven-day IL.

Alec Bohm’s Mom

• Is that Brandon Marsh character really this good?  That .396 BABIP is pretty high.

Mark P

• Even beyond the BABIP, Marsh is really outperforming his peripherals, so some regression in the second half is likely inevitable.

Vogter

• Am I going to win the manager of the year for a third straight time?   I have no bats and we are still atop the AL Central

Mark P

• Will Venable would be the runaway winner if the vote was held today.

Cards fan

• what does the pitching market look like for May? Trade or extend?

Mark P

• An extension doesn’t really fit what the Cardinals are trying to do long-term.  If STL is still in the race by August 3 they’ll just keep him and see how things play out in a postseason run.In the event that the Cards are out of the running, May has quietly turned himself into a very nice trade chip.  Teams aren’t going overboard with offers for a rental pitcher with May’s injury history, but the Cardinals should be able to recoup a nice return on their free agent investment

Bryan C

• I do not understand why teams trying to get into the playoffs don’t try hard to trade for help in June and July? You will have the player for a longer period of time to help your team?

Mark P

• The problem this season is that 27-28 teams are still trying to get into the playoffs at this point, so there aren’t many clearcut sellers. And the teams who are selling have the leverage to demand big asking prices for their assets.

Pirates

• Do you see the Pirates playing meaningful baseball in August/September this year or still a year away?

Mark P

• The Bucs have enough to stay in the wild card race, even if winning the NL Central is probably already out of reach.  I guess it depends on what you mean by “meaningful,” since having a winning record is a nice step forward for the club even if it obviously pales in comparison to making the playoffs

Burleson

• Some have suggested Burleson from the Cardinals could be dealt this summer.  Does he have value and what could he fetch?

Mark P

• Burleson would have a ton of trade value, as a big bat who is under team control through 2028.  The three years is just lengthy enough that I wonder if the Cardinals view him as an actual trade chip, since this year’s success might have St. Louis thinking they’ll be proper contenders well before Burleson’s control window is over.

Reds fanatic

• Who goes down when Elly comes back? McLain? Arroyo? Do you see the Reds as a potential landing spot for Aroldis, we need bullpen help, and I don’t see Boston still contending, though I could be wrong.

Mark P

• Arroyo is probably the likeliest candidate to be sent down.  As for trading for Chapman, it’s not out of the question, but the Reds are going to need to start banking some wins before we talk about them as deadline buyers

Clearing House

• Ray to the Phillies, Chapman to the Yankees, Arraez to the Dodgers, Devers to the Blue Jays, Adames to the Braves, Ramos to the Mariners, Which one of these has legs?

Mark P

• Ray/Phillies and Ramos/Mariners both seem plausible. Chapman to the Yankees is unlikely but not totally inconceivable.  The other suggestions, no dice.

B-Wild

• Is Alcantara a sure thing to go?

Mark P

• Not all, given how the Marlins are in the thick of the wild card race.
• Er, not AT all

Grady’s lady

• Could you see Houston sending Parades to Cleveland for 4 years of SP Logan Allen and a prospect ?

Mark P

• Nope.  Houston would want more for Paredes, plus I don’t think the Astros will be selling at the deadline anyway

Chris

• What might a trade for Garret Whitlock cost?

Mark P

• Whitlock is owed the remainder of a $7.5MM salary this year, and he has two club options for 2027 and 2028 worth a little under $19MM in total.  That’s a very reasonable sum for someone who has shown he can be a lockdown reliever at his best, so the Sox would be within their rights to ask for quite a bit in a Whitlock trade.If you’re a rival team in need of relief help, who would you rather pursue if you’re calling up Craig Breslow?
• Chapman or Whitlock?

Elan

• Does Kyle Teel get called up tomorrow?

Mark P

• He’s banked five games on his current rehab stint, so if not Monday, Teel returning this week seems very likely.  Getting him back for the start of this big series with Cleveland would be a boost.

ponopoly

• White Sox are completely cooked and breaking the loss record again correct?

Mark P

• I love that it’s June 21 and Chicago is only two victories away from matching their 2024 win total.

Maizel

• Change of scenery trade; Dylan Crews to Cleveland for Bo Naylor and Kahlil Watson

Mark P

• The Nationals likely aren’t ready to move Crews so soon.  While he has yet to show he can hit MLB pitching, front offices usually don’t move players of that draft pedigree, even if the Nats’ current front office weren’t the ones who picked him 1-2

Tom

• How bout Wilson Contreras to the phillies

Mark P

• Philly doesn’t want to move Harper to the outfield again, so 1B/DH types aren’t on the menu

MaxClark

• Do you think the Tigers will call me him up anytime soon?  Seems to be heating up a little last two weeks

Mark P

• The Tigers would prefer to see Clark dominating rather than “heating up a little” against Triple-A pitching.  He’ll be up at some point in 2026, but I’d guess probably not before the trade deadline.

Guest

• Is Roki Sasaki part of the rotation in October?

Mark P

• If (and it’s a big if) everyone else is healthy, Sasaki is probably slated for the bullpen.  Yamamoto, Ohtani, Snell, Glasnow are kinda locked in as the top four if everyone is available.

Lovable losers

• Do you think Chicago would trade away an asset like Suzuki or Happ knowing their not World Series contenders but could still make the post season?

Mark P

• If the Cubs had faith in Ballesteros and/or Alcantara to help fill the offensive void, it would be a lot of fun to see Chicago and another contender swing a need-for-need “baseball trade” of an outfielder for a pitcher.Since we’re talking teams who need outfield help, I immediately loaded up the Guardians roster to see if I could work a trade fit, but I don’t think these two clubs exactly line up

RJ

• As an Angels fan, who has been waiting a long time for, for young good starting pitchers. I would rather the Angels sign Detmers and Soriano to extensions. Trade position players, to bolster the farm system. Am I wrong for thinking that way?

Mark P

• For all of the criticisms one can level at Arte Moreno’s decision-making, you don’t hear much about the lack of contract extensions.But, Max Stassi is the last player who get an extension from the Halos, and that was in March 2022.

  https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/contracttracker?name=&team=LAA&position…

• For a team so keen on bringing their top prospects to the majors as quickly as possible, you’d think the Angels might look into locking up some of these building blocks early in their careers (or even before they reach the Show).But, that would probably run counter to the Angels’ desire to get cheap and (in theory) quality production from controllable prospects.

Cashman

• Should I buy out through Schlittler’s arbitration years for sixty million with 3 reasonably priced option years tacked on at the end?

Mark P

• The Yankees don’t extend players, as a general team rule.

Jays

• Spencer Miles, a Rule 5 pick, has been a darn good pitcher for the Jays—but he’s now in middle-relief limbo. Will he ever start (or be a bvulk reliever) another game this season?

Mark P

• The way Toronto pitchers keep getting hurt, Miles will absolutely get more starts before 2026 is over

Royals

• I hate baseball. And injuries.  And baseball.

Mark P

• Tough year for KC fans, I feel your pain.  At least the Chiefs are….uh….

Just a Bit Outside

• If the 27 season is lost, what national tv outlet would want MLB, they know fans will walk away, it’s not 1994, too much to do for fans to come back.

Mark P

• Baseball offers so many games and so much content that they’ll always draw interest from broadcast outlets.  But you’re right that an extended work stoppage will be brutal for fans and casual viewers who will get used to watching other things

MSG

• Knicks in 5. You heard it here first.

Mark P

• Danhausen?  Is this you?

Prid50

• When Barger returns the Jays will have 5 left hand hitting outfielders. Which is about two too many. How do you think they will address the logjam?

Mark P

• Pinango has cooled off so he’ll just get sent down, leaving Toronto with Barger, Varsho, Sanchez, and Lukes.  It’s not an ideal situation, and I could see something creative like Sanchez being shopped as a trade chip to address other needs.
• Using Barger at 3B once in a while to spell Okamoto against some RHP is another answer.

SteveinAZ

• Right now do you think McGonigle would be the favorite to win AL ROY?

Mark P

• For sure, especially with Murakawi on the IL. We maybe shouldn’t rule out Bazzana as a dark horse if he can keep this up the rest of the season.

Preller Jr

• Do you see Padres keeping Tatis at 2nd and trying to package Cronenworth for a RF? Tatis seems to stay engaged more playing the infield.

Mark P

• At his best, Tatis is perhaps the best defensive right fielder is baseball.  So moving him to 2B doesn’t seem like an ideal answer for the Padres, especially since Cronenworth has basically zero trade value.

Nick Kurtz

• Wild guess just for fun… which team am I playing for in 2032?

Mark P

• This is the least fun answer possible for most fans, but….the Dodgers

fascinating

• what kind of return could Webb bring back to SF, and why on Earth wouldn’t the Giants be open to trading him? There’s no way they’re in contention during his current contract

Mark P

• Trading Webb would mean the Giants are blowing things up completely, which is something the front office surely doesn’t want to do

Bernard Brewer

• Why isn’t Chad Patrick in the rotation?

Mark P

• Milwaukee seems to value Patrick’s ability to work in whatever role is required more than his ability to work as just a regular starter. There’s nothing saying that Patrick might end up back in the rotation proper before the season is out, as there’s still a lot in flux with the Brewers’ pitching situation

Bill James

• What is your favorite random stat line? Either single season or career.

Mark P

• Stan Musial having 1815 career hits at home, and 1815 career hits on the road

Snakebit

• When do the DBacks give up on Lawlar? This dude can’t stay healthy and they have other young OF like Waldschmidt in their system.

Mark P

• The recurring hamstring injuries are certainly a concern, but fluky injuries like having a wrist broken from a HBP can happen to anyone.  It’s obviously not helpful that Lawlar hasn’t been able to stay on the field, yet the D’Backs are a long ways away from parting ways

Curious George

• Have there been more injuries than normal this year?  I hear the mediocre AL being blamed on injuries to the Jays, Orioles, Royals, Tigers, etc.

Mark P

• As someone whose job requires a lot of writing about injury-related posts, I don’t feel 2026 has been a particularly weird outlier of a year?  It may seem that way just because some bigger names have been sidelined

Vic

• When the Royals open for business will they listen on Mikael Garcia and what would they expect in return?

Mark P

• Garcia signed a pricey extension just six months ago, so he’s not available

AbefromanJr

• Has Andrew Benitendi played well enough to have any trade interest this year and would the Sox be willing to deal him since they are playing for the post season?

Mark P

• Benintendi has a 95 wRC+ through 237 PA, and he has about $8.5MM-ish remaining this year plus $14.5MM owed in 2027.In short, his trade value is still very minimal to non-existent.  If the ChiSox stay in contention and Chris Getz wanted to get creative on the trade front, he could maybe explore moving Benintendi as salary offset if the Sox took on a larger contract in a bit of a win-now move.

Zero

• When will Joshua Baez get called up?

Mark P

• Baez’s strikeouts have again spiked upwards and his walk rate has dropped against Triple-A pitching.  So there are some legit reasons why the Cardinals might want to see him get a little more seasoning in the minors, but it’s just a matter of time before Baez is up in St. Louis
• Time to call it a night.  Thanks for all the questions and comments, and more chattin’ will be had next weekend (in addition to all the other free and subscriber-only chats on MLBTR throughout the week).Speaking of which, if you’re interested in more baseball Q&A, one of the many benefits of our Trade Rumors Front Office subscription is the exclusive weekly live chats. The more limited field means you’re about 10 times more likely to get a question answered, as opposed to battling for space with hundreds of other questions in today’s chat. For more on our memberships, check out this link:

  https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/membership?ref=chat-6-21-26

Amateur GM

• You are Brewers GM, since you have Pratt, Williams, and Pena, you decide you could realistically part with Made to make a big move…who you targeting if you are trading the #1 prospect?

Mark P

• Made is the last guy I’d trade within that group.  Given how the Brewers usually operate, there’s logic in just going forward with all four youngsters and seeing how things play out.

Amateur GM

• You’re no fun! The question was not would you trade him or would MIL, it was under the assumption you would who is a target worth offering him?

Mark P

• Hey, I’m fun!  I wore a Hawaiian shirt yesterday!

Trout on the hook

• can the Phils realistically get Trout? Take on his full contract. What prospect package gets the angels to say yes? Even if you don’t think it will ever happen what package do you think would work?

Mark P

• I doubt Arte Moreno would approve a Trout trade.  But, in the world where that did happen, the Phillies would probably have to include almost nothing on the prospect front if they offered to absorb all of Trout’s deal.  Though Trout is having a bounce-back year, that’s still a lot of money owed for an aging player with a big injury history, so that still looms as a future albatross on the Angels’ books.

Thunderstorm

• With the 7th pick in the 2026 draft the Baltimore Orioles select Roch Cholowsky. I think this is very feasible

Mark P

• There has been reporting that the Giants love Roch, so there’s no chance he’d fall past them at #4 (if he even gets to #4 at all)

Steve

• If St Louis is still hanging around the wild card race come mid July, Joe Ryan from Minnesota to the Cardinals for Crooks, Hence, & Nootbar. Who says no? Ryan has 2 years of control plus they’re not giving up any of their three “untouchable” projects.

Mark P

• Like the Nationals, the Cards are another team who is unexpectedly still competitive.  They’d also likely be in the “sorta buying but open to sorta selling” mode come the deadline if they’re still in the race.Now, if the Twins were somehow willing to take this particular offer, the Cardinals do it in a heartbeat.  But Minnesota can get way more for Ryan

Quit harping on it

• Is a more feasible option moving Harper to OF and getting a first baseman?

Mark P

• Harper has said he’s open to playing outfield again, but Dombrowski has said the team prefers to just keep him as a first baseman.  Probably not a bad move if it helps keep Harper healthy, and there’s a certain “if it ain’t broke…” element to keeping Harper just rolling in his current state.Obviously the Phillies have a pretty glaring hole in their outfield right now, but the front office probably thinks they can get some help on the waiver wire or (for now) in a lower-level trade.

Matt Arnold

• With Pratt promoted and Rengifo being DFA’d on Tuesday, any chance somebody trades for Rengifo or will the Brewers eat the couple million left on his contract?

Mark P

• One of my biggest hot takes from the offseason was that Rengifo was a great dark horse signing, and I figured he’d have a terrific bounce-back year in Milwaukee.  All I can say is…oops.Rengifo is owed a little over a $1MM left in 2026 salary, plus there’s a $1.5MM buyout of his mutual option for 2027.  It’s not big money by any means, but unless there’s another team with someone in their front office that shares my Rengifo optimism, he’ll likely clear waivers if DFA’ed

Zach

• Whats the percentage chance as of right now that Skubal is traded?

Mark P

• I feel like last chat I answered a similar question and had it 55-45 in favor of being traded?  I think I might actually swing it back a bit to under 50 percent again, since the Tigers have played a bit better and Cleveland’s chances took a hit with J-Ram out for 4-6 weeks.

Angels

• Their SP are getting put into trade rumors. Due to upside, by moving them now, they’re going backwards to “hopefully” go forward? Prospects aren’t a sure thing

Mark P

• Realistically, the Halos aren’t in any position to contend until the 2030’s.  In theory that should make guys like Soriano or Detmers into trade chips, and as controllable starters with frontline potential, trading either would bring back a massive haul of much-needed prospects.Again, however, the Angels march to the beat of their own drum when it comes to buying or selling at the deadline.  I doubt we’ll ever see any kind of proactive fire sale under Moreno.

Re: nationals

• What is the point of fringe contenders that do light adding at the deadline? You’re already on the fringe— the one reliever or league average bat you might add isn’t gonna get you over the hump. this only makes sense for teams anticipating a big prospect promotion or injury return.

Mark P

• The idea is that the Nationals, Cardinals, etc. aren’t going to be actual World Series contenders, and could very easily fall apart over the last two months of the season. For two franchises clearly pointed in the rebuild direction, therefore, they aren’t going to go nuts on big deadline additions for a club that ultimately isn’t really in position to contend.

AL Central

• ….first to 78 wins is division champ?

Mark P

• The AL Central champ will have a winning record.  As to how many wins over .500 that will be, uh, don’t quote me on that. 🙂

Jacob

• Sanchez or Mis for CY young?

Mark P

• Who is your vote as NL Cy Young?

  ---

  Jacob Misiorowski (76.2% | 424 votes)

  Cristopher Sanchez (23.7% | 132 votes)

  ---

  Total Votes: 556

Arizona

• ERod and Soroka are looking exceptional as trade candidates. Would it be possible to grab either without a 50FV prospect going to AZ?

Mark P

• Soroka is a rental, so he wouldn’t net much prospect return.E-Rod is making the rest of a $21MM salary this year, $19MM in 2027, and there’s a $17MM ($6MM buyout) mutual option for 2028 that vests if Rodriguez either tosses at least 150 IP in 2027, or if he has at least 300 total IP in 2026-07.  That vesting threshold is reachable enough that it adds more money to E-Rod’s overall ledger, which lowers his trade value.

  The larger issue here, of course, is that Arizona are just outside of a wild spot and are intent on getting back to the postseason.  So they’re not going to be selling (even to get E-Rod’s deal off the books) unless they’re firmly out of contention by August 3

Guest

• Has there been any update since spring training on Kris Bryant? Will he play baseball again?

Mark P

• Unfortunately it seems like Bryant is all but officially done as a ballplayer.

George

• Everyone’s saying the Astros should sell at the deadline, but there’s still a lot of season to be played, and the additions from the deadline in theory should help them compete. What do you think

Mark P

• Doubtful that Houston sells to any real extent, even if they’re only a fringe contender by the deadline.

cy young

• ohtani!!!

Mark P

• He’ll get his share of votes, but Miz/Sanchez/other contenders will have an edge in innings pitched.  Even if Ohtani continues incredible numbers, IP will be the tiebreaker if Miz and Sanchez are also doing similarly incredible things but with 40 or so more frames

Cut2DaChase

• Has anyone shown you enough to actually beat the Dodgers when it actually comes down to it at the end of the season, assuming they’ve got everyone healthy going into the playoffs again?

Mark P

• The Dodgers could or should rightly be considered favorites, but anything can happen in a short series.  LA needed a few dozen things to break exactly their way to beat Toronto last year, after all.

Guest

• So is Sutter Health playing like Coors now?

Mark P

• The A’s played their last six games at the Triple-A ballpark in Vegas.  Compared to that place, Sutter Health is basically Kauffman Stadium.

Fainter

• How can the Phils keep running Painter out there and call themselves contenders??

Mark P

• Between Painter and Nola, the back end of Philly’s rotation is probably a bigger problem area than right field.  The Phils don’t have much rotation depth down on the farm, so getting a starter seems like a clear deadline need.

Chrissy G

• Do you think Strider is more effective as a reliever/closer in the future? And potentially saves a little more mileage on his arm

Mark P

• We’ll see what happens with this latest injury, but it’s starting to feel like relief pitching could ultimately be Strider’s most effective path.  It’s a tough call for the Braves since he’s already on a long-term extension and teams are loath to “give up” on a guy (as a starter) when he has shown the ace potential that Strider did in 2023.  But, for his overall health, it might be the correct move down the road

LA4LIFE

• Is there any chance the A’s possibly look to trade Jacob Wilson to maximize a return for pitching when Leo De Vries comes up to the majors soon?

Mark P

• The A’s aren’t trading Wilson just a few months after signing him to a $70MM extension.  That deal was made with the full expectation of having both De Vries and Wilson in the team’s future infield, and Wilson would just be moved to second base

Squints

• Thoughts on the Pratt call up?

Mark P

• Felt like just a matter of time after the extension was signed, but Pratt hasn’t exactly been tearing it up at Triple-A.  He can help the Brewers on defense and speed alone, and it would be hard for Pratt to produce less offense than Ortiz

John l

• White Sox buyers at deadline what think need another starter or middle relief what are your thoughts.

Mark P

• While I have my doubts that Chicago’s young lineup can keep this up, pitching (both rotation and the pen) are clearly the bigger needs for the team.As opposed to the Nationals/Cardinals, the White Sox are the kind of surprise contender I can see getting a touch more aggressive with their deadline moves. Not trading top prospects or anything, but if you’re the ChiSox, you have a realistic shot at the AL Central crown.  And hey, maybe even in an American League as a whole given all the parity.  Whereas the Cards or Nats are playing for a wild card at best.

FJF

• At some point, the A’s have to consider releasing Jeffrey Springs, right?  He’s been absolutely horrendous the past 4 outings.

Mark P

• Springs’ last two starts were in the Vegas bandbox, so they can be basically written off as aberrations

Mize-er-ly

• Phils farm is weak. Can they swing a trade for Mize?

Mark P

• Mize is a free agent this winter, so the Tigers would only get so much in return for a rental player.  That might help the Phillies, yet obviously plenty of teams will be looking at getting Mize if Detroit is a deadline seller.A battle of “who has the highest modest offer?” might still not favor the Phillies since subtracting even a moderate prospect cost is a big hit from their system.  If some pitching-needy teams are more focused on Skubal, however, perhaps the Phils could gain an edge by prioritizing Mize specifically?

Ex Giants?

• Kyle Harrison all star?

Mark P

• Harrison is having a fantastic year, but he might miss out on an All-Star nod just because the NL is so absurdly deep in quality starting pitching this year

Burghers Anyone?

• How much longer for Ozuna in Pitt? He’s brutal. O’hearn can move to the primary DH with others rotating in to get some time off their feet. When? When? When????

Mark P

• The Ozuna signing didn’t make sense at the time, and it has played out as an objective disaster.  One has to think the Pirates are going to cut the cord on him at some point, since their chances of contending aren’t being helped by having such a drag in their lineup.
• Obviously Cutch didn’t hit anything in Texas, but one has to wonder how things would’ve played out if Pittsburgh had just re-signed McCutchen for like $5MM and then had $7MM more to address other needs

Guest

• Given how Cade Anderson has been pitching would trading Kirby make sense for a legit OF upgrade?

Mark P

• Trading Kirby puts so much extra pressure on the rest of the rotation to stay healthy and effective, and it puts more pressure on Anderson in his first taste of MLB action.  Seattle would naturally get a lot in return if Kirby was dealt, but then it just takes one pitching injury to suddenly make the rotation “depth” much thinner.

Go Halos

• If you were Perry, who would you move at the deadline?

Mark P

• If I had the green light to operate as I saw fit, I’d make literally everyone on the roster (even Neto) available for the right offer.  As I said earlier, Anaheim needs a massive rebuild, since the team is years away from contention.  Start the heavy lifting as soon as possible, and there’s no such thing as an untouchable on this roster.

Guest

• What’s up with your Jay’s?

Mark P

• A bunch of injuries, an overworked bullpen, and pretty much every hitter has declined from 2025.  It’s not great.

Max Myers

• Where is my cy young love? Im undefeated

Mark P

• Meyer is another pitcher being somewhat overlooked because the top pitchers in the NL have just been so incredible.  But it’s great news for Meyer and the Marlins that he is finally looking healthy and pitching up to his potential.

Zach

• If the rangers are selling at the deadline, should they sell high on Josh Jung?

Mark P

• Rangers are 1.5 games out of first place in the AL West, and Jung is under team control through 2028. No chance.

Nestor Cortes

• Whatever happened to him? Seems like he fell off the face of the earth

Mark P

• Underwent tendon surgery last October, and he wasn’t expected to start throwing until mid-July.  In all likelihood, he won’t pitch at all in 2026.

Halifax

• Gausman, Varsho, Springer. Do the Jays extend any of these?

Mark P

• An in-season extension isn’t happening this close to free agency.  Of that trio, Gausman is the only one I’d explore re-signing this winter.  Springer’s bat has evaporated again and what Varsho brings to the table feels like it can be replicated at a much lower price point than what he’ll command in free agency.

Juan

• Thoughts on Knicks winning the finals?

Mark P

• One the most exciting NBA playoffs in recent memory, and a very fun final result.

Unconventional rebuild

• Is it possible that we could see Ron Washington get traded? Turning Luis Arraez into a gold glover is yeoman’s work and there’s precedent for trades for non-players paying dividends (look at Gil Hodges to the Mets), and this would allow SFG to recoup some prospects in a very rough stretch of bad years without actually waving the white flag on their current core

Mark P

• Teams swung a few manager-for-manager trades back in the day, but I’m not sure such deals are allowed with more formal contract structures in place.

They might be giants

• Thoughts on twins

Mark P

• An underrated Schwarzenegger movie

Mark

• Will Minnesota make any moves as a buyer or seller?

Mark P

• They’ll be selling, and Jeffers is the big trade chip assuming he returns from his hamate surgery in good form.For as much as ownership has made noise about wanting to stay competitive, the Twins are another team I would be open to seeing basically clean house (more than they already did last summer).  More realistically, however, another fire sale isn’t happening.  Ryan could may be dealt if another team emerges with a blow-away offer, but the Twins will probably stick to moving guys on shorter-term control

Paul Skenes

• I always ask but you never answer. Take a wild guess as to where you think I will be pitching in 2030.

Mark P

• Chavez Ravine

Napa Cab

• It seems the Red Sox are doing better without Trevor Story than they were with him, not that they are going gangbusters now but still are perhaps better by hus subtraction.  Story’s replacements are even helping and there are plenty of them (IKF, Marcelo Mayer, Nick Sogard, and with Franklin Arias waiting in the wings).  If the Sox kick in a bit of cash, should they — and do you think can they — try to offload Story at the trade deadline since there is only 1 1/2 years left on his contract?

Mark P

• It would have to be a lot closer to “all of the cash” than “a bit of cash.”  Story is owed the rest of a $25MM salary this year, plus $30MM in 2027 counting both his salary and the buyout of a 2028 club option.  His trade value is next to nil.

Magnum PI

• Can Tigers catcher Dillon Dingler bat keep it up the rest of the season?  AL All Star Starting Catcher?

Mark P

• Dingler’s been one of the few highlights of a rough Detroit season.  Adley and Langeliers both have good All-Star cases as well, but Dingler has just been markedly better by fWAR.

Z

• With Shohei Othani turning 32 in July, how long do you think he can keep up with his current peak performance? 5 years?

Mark P

• That seems reasonable, with the obvious caveat that Ohtani is unlike any player in history.  It’s harder to put any kind of a usual curve on him because…a) part of what makes all-time greats so great is that they have longer primes than the average player

  b) who knows how the toll of pitching and hitting may impact Ohtani going forward

Craig Breslow

• 1. Do I get fired in the off-season and 2. Do I sell everyone?

Mark P

• 1. I wouldn’t be surprised if Breslow is fired in-season, unless the Sox turn things around quickly
  2. The Red Sox have too much talent to go into a full rebuild.  And, ownership probably wouldn’t trust Breslow with such a task since he’s likely on borrowed time anyway.

JD

• The A’s were already having to massively overpay mid rotation starters in FA, after this last “homestand” does any pitcher willing sign with them ever again?

Mark P

• My guess is that the A’s have a very hard time signing pitchers until perhaps the 2028-29 offseason, when pitchers will at least have one year of sample size in seeing how hitter-friendly things are at the Vegas ballpark.

Bozz

• Will the Pirates consider a Scenes trade if the offer contains some true all star prospects from a 2026 pennant contender?

Mark P

• I misread this question before I posted it, as the obvious answer is that Skenes is absolutely not being dealt this year

Marins

• Why do people underestimate us? We are the hottest team in baseball.

Mark P

• Miami’s been banking a lot of wins despite a lot of players underperforming.  Feels to me like there are too many holes for them to mount a true run at a wild card, but hey, maybe that’s something that can be solved at the deadline.
• Went a bit longer than usual for his week’s chat, but it’s time to finally wrap things up.  Thanks for all the questions!
• if you’re interested in more baseball Q&A, one of the many benefits of our Trade Rumors Front Office subscription is the exclusive weekly live chats. The more limited field means you’re about 10 times more likely to get a question answered, as opposed to battling for space with hundreds of other questions in today’s chat. For more on our memberships, check out this link:https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/membership?ref=chat-6-14-26

Steve Adams

• Zero chance they move him if they’re four back. I’d say the odds are slim even if they’re 10 or 12 back, but it’d have to be something enormous like that before they even consider it.

TxDude

• Why is the AL so bad this season? I feel like it’s gonna be pretty awkward if a below .500 team makes the playoffs

Steve Adams

• I’m as surprised by everyone else with the generally weak level of competition in the AL, but I don’t see why it’ll be awkward if a .500ish team makes the playoffs. The ’06 Cardinals won 83 games in the regular season before winning the World Series. Baseball’s weird. Weird things happen.

Zach

• Who is more likely traded, Trout or Alvarez?

Steve Adams

• Neither?
• I suppose Trout could say he’s finally had enough and ask for a trade, but if he hasn’t by now, I’m not sure anything’s going to push him there.

Mlb fan

• What starting pitchers do you see being available at the deadline?

Steve Adams

• Joe Ryan, Tarik Skubal, Sandy Alcantara, Max Meyer, Casey Mize, Dustin May, Tyler Mahle, Robbie Ray, Adrian Houser, Jack Flaherty, Kris Bubic, Bailey Ober, Dustin May, Brady Singer, Zack Littell
• Skubal only if Detroit is completely buried, which I’m still not convinced will be the case, but at this point you’ve got to acknowledge the possibility of it.

Alex

• Do you see the Cubs doing a little buying AND selling at the deadline? Maybe making moves that could technically help the team down the stretch, but would be with an eye more for 2027 (i.e. controllable pitching)?

Steve Adams

• Most contending clubs are open to these sorts of scenarios. Cubs won’t be an exception. They should absolutely be eyeing controllable starting pitching, as their 2027 rotation right now is Edward Cabrera, Ben Brown and the shrug emoji guy. You hope Justin Steele’s in there, but he’s already run into some setbacks in the UCL rehab. Boyd, Imanaga and Taillon are free agents. Horton won’t be ready until several months into the season. Rea has a club option but TBD if it’s picked up

Frank

• Will the Giants move off of Matt c, adames, or devers at deadline?

Steve Adams

• Can’t see another club taking on those contracts. They could always include some cash to pay down part of them, but Adames and Chapman also have full no-trade clauses.

Dustin May

• You named me twice in the “available at the deadline?” question.  Do you see me being traded twice, should I not unpack my bags after the first trade?

Steve Adams

• Yes he will be traded no fewer than six times this summer
• (Sorry, going off the cuff there haha)

Frank

• What type of contract do u see mize getting in free agency?

Steve Adams

• Depends how quickly he returns from the IL, how he finishes, whether he’s traded (and thus whether he’s eligible for a QO, which he’ll likely receive if he stays in Detroit), but generally something in the $68-90MM range over four years?

Chris Getz

• Brayden Montgomery rookie of the year candidate?

Steve Adams

• Probably not even the leading ROY candidate on his own team (Mune!), and he’s got a lot of work to do to chase down McGonigle, who already has nearly 300 PAs. I don’t see it

Cory

• Any chance the brewers sign Castellanos?

Steve Adams

• I was surprised the Padres signed him and gave him as much leash as they did. I don’t see why anyone would look at what Castellanos has done in recent years, but especially in ’26, and think he’s going to help improve their club.

Guest

• No one is going to trade for Skubal unless the price is very low, which it wont be, or if they can agree on an extension at time of trade. Which i believe is a long shot as well.

Steve Adams

• Disagree on all of that, with the exception of an extension being a long shot … which I guess I also technically disagree with, since I’d put the chances of a Skubal extension at 0

Natitude

• What do the Nats do with Foster Griffin? Trade fodder at the deadline or offer him a multiyear extension?  He’s been pretty solid as a middle of the rotation arm.

Steve Adams

• Yeah he’s been a solid add. He’s also turning 31 soon and has a 91 mph fastball, so I imagine they’re looking at him more as a short-term trade chip than a long-term building block. Should’ve had him on my list of available arms at the deadline, but like I said, I was going off the cuff.

Zach

• Do teams get a period of time to get below a salary cap if its added and already exceed it?

Steve Adams

• I’m sure it’d be gradually implemented, yes, but I’ll be the broken record guy again here and say I don’t think there’ll be a cap/floor or games lost next year (offseason lockout/transaction freeze, absolutely though)

Freddy Peralta

• This feels like a “meh” platform year. Still not working deep into games, strikeout rate slightly down, and walk rate up. More likely to get SP2 than “ace” money this offseason?

Steve Adams

• I think probably closer to No. 2 money than “ace” money, yeah, but that could still mean $135MMish.

Matt

• White Sox need starting pitching. Do you think they make a splash and trade for a top dog? Peralta?

Steve Adams

• I doubt they’ll be giving up notable talent for rentals. They’re just (hopefully) opening their window, so it stands to reason they’ll either add rentals with minimal cost of acquisition or prioritize guys with at least one more year of control (ideally more than that).

anonymous

• No because they have yelich but castellanos would be a good dh

Steve Adams

• Castellanos has lost two miles per hour of bat speed in the past two years and has batted .240/.280/.390 over his past 711 plate appearances in the majors.
• He was just released by a team whose collective offense has posted worse rate stats over the past month than Zack Greinke did as a hitter in his career.
• The fascination with Castellanos — and it’s not just in this chat, it dates back to last deadline/last offseason — is genuinely perplexing to me. He hasn’t even been below-average, he’s just been a bad hitter for closing in on three years now.

Luis Lara

• What do you think of my contract extension? Give it a grade.

Steve Adams

• They paid a top prospect the same amount it’d cost to sign a 30-something fourth starter in free agency. In doing so, they secured control over three would-be free agent seasons and cost security over his arb years. Seems fine to me.

Blindreid

• Sign Arraez to an extension?

Steve Adams

• Feels likelier that they trade him. The Giants had zero interest in handing out any additional long-term contracts this past winter.

Posey

• Why didn’t I invest in a bullpen?

Steve Adams

• One of the top questions I’d have to ask for any team regarding their 2025-26 offseason

John

• What if Lara doesn’t hit MLB pitching?

Steve Adams

• Then the Brewers are basically out the same as if they’d signed Matt Boyd and he blew out his UCL a month into the first season of the deal.

Matthew

• Can you please explain the Braves/Carlos Carrasco situation.  Why do they keep designating him for assignment just to turn around and resign him (multiple times this season)?  What purpose does this serve?  Thanks Steve.

Steve Adams

• I explain it in the post every time it happens! Haha.He can’t be optioned. He’s content with riding the AAA/MLB carousel. Select him to the majors, get a fresh arm/length for the ‘pen, DFA him the next time they need a spot. Repeat.
• He’s the 41st man on their 40-man roster.

White Sox

• Sandy Alcantara seems to be a good trade target for the Sox? He also shouldn’t cost them any of their top prospects

Steve Adams

• I suppose he’s not costing them Bonemer or Montgomery, but the ask would still be relatively significant, and I imagine the Marlins would at least start out asking about Hagen Smith, Tanner McDougal, Billy Carlson, etc.

SDP

• Jason Adam and Will Wagner to Houston for Christian Walker and Ullola, who says no

Steve Adams

• I don’t think that makes Houston better in the aggregate, and at least as of this moment, I’m skeptical they’ll do anything to make the team worse.

Boston GM

• Red Sox looking for a right handed bat wouldn’t a trade for Royce Lewis work for them.

Steve Adams

• Doubt the Twins are anxious to sell low on him, and no harm seeing if he can play a passable 1B/2B and get some of his form back at the plate. He decimated AAA pitching after he was sent down.

Lovable losers

• Can the Cubs really afford to move on from value like Shaw, Ramirez, or Wiggins at the trade deadline for? Or do they stay mid tier and move Alcantara, Long or Triantos for a blah move?

Steve Adams

• I’m not super high on Shaw in general, as I’ve said in the past, but I don’t think there’s any reason they can’t move on from one of Shaw or Ramirez. The infield is set long-term with Bregman, Swanson, Hoerner and Busch — for better or worse. (Left side looking a bit shaky at the moment, but it’s a five-week skid for Dansby and Bregman has been serviceable at least).Moving one of those guys to a team with more infield needs and then using the other as a superutility and/or corner outfield piece would be fine.

  I can understand being reluctant to move Wiggins, given the lack of pitching in place beyond ’26. Personally, I hope they do it just so I don’t briefly conflate Jaxon Wiggins and Jordan Wicks, which I inexplicably do for about 1.5 seconds every time either one of them is mentioned, haha.

Trade

• Robbie Ray becomes an actual Ray for Brody Hopkins and a lower prospect. Thanks

Steve Adams

• I’m not giving up Hopkins for Ray even if the Giants pay the whole salary

Angels Fan

• Who would bring back a better return for the Angels, Neto or Soriano?

Steve Adams

• Who gets the bigger return?

  ---

  Zach Neto (controlled thru 2029) (60.1% | 127 votes)

  Jose Soriano (controlled thru 2028) (39.8% | 84 votes)

  ---

  Total Votes: 211
• I like watching this oscillate in realtime, because that’s basically what I did mentally, ha. I will give the nod to Soriano though, as the need for SP is always larger.
• I don’t think the Angels will trade either, though, since they’re content to just live in their own state of denial about the status of the organization.

Max

• Do you really think the Marlins will trade me? The way you think they will perpetually be a AAA club since anyone whois good or decent you expect them to trade for someone unproven and if thats the case they will never contend/

Steve Adams

• If someone makes a compelling offer, there’s no reason to think they wouldn’t. He’s only controlled for two more seasons after this one — same amount of control they had over Edward Cabrera and Ryan Weathers, both of whom they traded.I get the frustration of perpetually trading so many arbitration-level players, but that’s just their reality.

  I don’t think it’s any sort of foregone conclusion that Meyer is dealt, but they will 100% be asked about him, and they’ll entertain the idea if someone makes a significant offer.

Chupco

• chances angel blow up team and star rebuild this off season

Steve Adams

• 0.4%? They should, but we’ve seen this routine from Arte Moreno enough to know that doesn’t feel like anything but the longest of long shots.

Team Kaptain

• What could the Reds do at the trade deadline? Feels like nothing

Steve Adams

• No need for them to make that decision seven weeks out. They’ll hopefully be getting Greene back by then, which helps. Elly, too.Obviously a frustrating team, but there’s a decent core in place there and if they’re within arm’s reach they’ll try to contend, even if it’s just with more small-scale bullpen/bench acquisitions.

D

• If/when the White Sox draft chose a SS with the #1 pick in this year’s draft, what do we do with the SS surplus?

Steve Adams

• I don’t believe there’s any such thing as a true surplus in a sport where injuries and prospect stall-outs are this common, and that’s especially true when you’re talking about shortstops who haven’t even been drafted yet. Even if they take Cholowsky and he’s a true franchise shortstop by late 2027/early 2028, then you just make it work. Montgomery plays some 3B, Vargas and Mune rotate at 1B/DH (with Vargas still mixing in some occasional 3B reps). You’ve got Bonemer and Carlson in there, too, of course, but they can be moved around as well.Half the regulars you see around the league were drafted as shortstops but have since moved to other INF positions or the outfield.
• (“Half” is hyperbole, but it’s extremely common, and shortstops tend to be the best athletes on the field, so moving them to other positions tends to be easier than relocating someone who’s further down the defensive spectrum)
• You also can’t assume they’ll all hit and stay healthy. Someone in the group will bust. We’re less than 10 years removed from “wow Eloy, Moncada, Anderson, Robert, etc. — this team is going to be unstoppable for years.”Prospects get hurt and bust. A lot.

CHISOX FAN

• The old adage ” You never have enough pitching” has been misinterpreted by Chris Getz to read “you never have enough Shortstops.”

Steve Adams

• Generally agree with both those sentiments.
• Too many starters/shortstops is not a bad thing, and there’s no such thing as a surplus of either.

Nate

• If the Pirates are in contention late, would you bring up Seth Hernandez to the pen. Ala Rays & David Price?

Steve Adams

• Price was drafted 1-1 as a college ace and had already dominated AAA when he was called up shortly after his 23rd birthday. Hernandez was a high school draftee who’s 19 and hasn’t pitched above A-ball yet.

Chris

• Twins will move Buxton yay or nay?

Steve Adams

• I don’t think so, no

Mets

• Will sterns be gm on opening day 2027?

Steve Adams

• Can I be pedantic and say no, because he’s the president of baseball operations and not the GM? :)I don’t envision Cohen moving on, no. I’d be surprised if Stearns were ousted.

Boegarts

• Get him to drop the no trade clause would anyone want him and who could we get?

Steve Adams

• No one is touching that contract

redrum

• who’s better: miz or chase burns?

Steve Adams

• I love Chase Burns, but there aren’t many I’d take over Misiorowski. Might not be any. Hmm.

balti more catchers than one needs

• Say Orioles still playing like this at the deadline, 3 to 4 games under and a few games back from wild card. Could you see rutschman being traded for some good controllable pitching given basallo breakout and extension, and adley’s deal expiring after 2027?

Steve Adams

• Feels like it’d be more of an offseason thing, as trading Rutschman negates much of the value you’d be bringing in via trade. It’s also generally rare for starting catchers to be traded midseason. A lot of work goes into learning a staff, building a rapport with the group, etc.

Nats

• Is the offense for real and sustainable?

Steve Adams

• James Wood is an absolute monster. CJ Abrams is great. I am cautiously optimistic about the random Curtis Mead breakthrough, but it’ll take more than 180ish PA for me to fully buy in. Rest of the group, meh. I think Lile is a better hitter than he’s been on the whole this season but not as good as he was last year. Luis Garcia is an average-ish hitter who’ll probably be moved.In general, the Nationals’ success in terms of scoring runs seems largely tied up in timely hitting with runners on base. I don’t think they’re as good as their overall run total suggests.

  But James Wood and CJ Abrams are great.

Smoke and mirrors

• What is happening in Stl?  Starters are bad, bullpen only has like 4 guys you can trust and are just ok, lineup is real bad outside top 4 (5 with Noot).  This can’t be sustainable.  Right?

Steve Adams

• I probably like the bats a bit more than you do — Walker, JJ, Burleson, Winn, Herrera, Noot are all just good or better — but the pitching on this team is going to cost them. Almost everyone in the rotation is a major regression candidate

Johnny5

• Who gets the better contract this winter: Jake Bauers or Andrew Vaughn?

Steve Adams

• Vaughn’s not a free agent! So … Bauers. Haha
• Alright I’ve got to call it for the week. I’m on X @adams_steve and bluesky @adams-steve.bsky.social.If you want more opinions and analysis from the MLBTR team, you can check out our Trade Rumors Front Office subscription package. In addition to ad-free viewing, you get two subscriber-only chats per a week, a weekly mailbag from Tim, fantasy advice from Nicklaus Gaut, exclusive articles from Anthony and myself, and access to our Contract Tracker, agency database, GM tracker and the new payroll pages we’re launching in the next couple weeks. Subscribers will also get access to our team-by-team Trade Deadline Outlook series.

  You can learn more and sign up here.

  Thanks for chatting everyone!

Angels GM

• Who says no? Jo Adell to the Guards for  Genao, Ingle and Stephan?

Steve Adams

• Vastly overestimating the trade value Adell has here. He wouldn’t fetch a prospect of either Genao or Ingle’s caliber in a one-for-one swap, let alone that kind of package.

Meow

• For a long time now, FIP has been the go-to start for an at-a-glance assessment about sustainability of pitching results. As we know, it does this by ignoring results where the batter put the ball in play. While the general correlation to future ERA is undeniable, I’ve always thought FIP failed to capture the relative talents of contact-oriented pitching. Now that Statcast has been collecting more detailed swing data, do you think we should expect to see better/more comprehensive “fielding independent” pitching stats coming along?

Steve Adams

• I’ve like SIERA over FIP for … well, ever. FIP doesn’t normalize homer-to-flyball rate, despite the fact that HR/FB year after year tends to stabilize around 12%. SIERA (and xFIP) do account for that. I feel they’re far better metrics.There are plenty of other ERA estimators/alternatives already out there. xERA (Statcast), DRA, DRA- … FIP is more useful than ERA, but it’s got its own flaws

Crafty Lefty

• Now that the new CBA negotiations are “joined” can you see a settlement that includes some sort of cap, but materially improves the salary structure for younger players?

Steve Adams

• I don’t think the union will ever consent to a cap, and I think they’d be more willing to lose games than ownership would if it came down to it.
• I also wouldn’t call either of the initial proposals any kind of beginning to negotiations
• They were PR stunts. Both wildly unrealistic and total nonstarters for the other party. I don’t even understand the point in putting those out there. It’s nonsense — entirely for show.

Bucs Fan

• Hi. Do you think Mlodzinski lost any respect from his teammates after his reaction to being sent to the bullpen?

Black and Gold

• Has Cartmen Mlodzinski damaged his trade value by his perceived attitude problem?

Steve Adams

• Obviously can’t speak to how he’s perceived among his teammates with any real firsthand knowledge, as they’ll keep that behind closed doors, but just logically speaking, how could he not have pissed off some guys in the clubhouse? He hung the team out to dry, forced them to call up Cam Sanders and then send him back down … his fourth option of the year. They can only option him one more time now.I get it, he wants to start, but good clubhouses have everyone rowing in the same direction, and that sure doesn’t feel like something that’s happening here.

  As for his trade value, I don’t know that it was sky-high to begin with. He’s a back-end, five-inning starter whose numbers the second and especially third time through the order are glaring.

• I can still imagine some clubs being less interested, though. If you trade for the guy and he struggles for his first 5-6 starts, what do you do? Put him in the bullpen and hope he doesn’t make a big deal of it this time? It’s just a bad look.

MarkTrain

• DeGrom a Hall of Famer?

Steve Adams

• He should be, especially considering he has a few years left. Though frankly, if he retired today and got voted in, I’d say that’s fine. But I’m a bigger hall guy than most. I also neither have nor want a Hall of Fame vote (or any vote), so my opinion doesn’t matter much haha

Josh

• Think Buxton will waive his no-trade at the deadline for a team like the Braves?

Steve Adams

• I lean no. He was pretty adamant last year about staying in MN. Obviously he backed down on that stance a slight bit after the fire sale and with all the ownership tumult, but the Twins have (somehow) been moderately competitive. Lot of interesting young pitching, lots of high-end prospects near the majors.Maybe if the front office/ownership tells him “Hey we’re going to drag this rebuild out a few years,” he’d concede, but I don’t know that that’s even necessary. They have some interesting young arms already with several top-100 type bats in AAA (Walker Jenkins, Kaelen Culpepper, Emmanuel Rodriguez). They’re not all healthy, but they’re close, and the system will only get better if they trade Joe Ryan, Ryan Jeffers, and a few other shorter-term pieces. No money on the books next year, so even if they’re going to reside in this $110MM payroll range, they could still sign some meaningful free agents.

Spider

• Whatvdo you think the phillies can get for nola

Steve Adams

• No one is taking that contract with the way he’s pitched since 2025.

JD

• If the Astros trade Yordan, would they be able to get more than the Nats received for Soto?

Steve Adams

• I think it’d be comparable, perhaps a bit less. Same amount of club control. Alvarez has more cost certainty because of the contract, but he’s older with some injuries of note on the track record. Soto wasn’t a particularly great OF at the time of the deal, but he was at least an everyday OF. Alvarez is more part-time out there.The trade package would have to be absurd, though.

Brian

• 3 years 60 mil look about right for Randy Arozarena’s next contract? Do the Ms sign that contract?

Steve Adams

• I’d probably take the slight over, but three years at $20-25MM seems reasonable, depending how he finishes.

Cap

• What will cap be at with new contract? I’m thinking around 295 but floor will be hard for many teams to reach at 177.

Steve Adams

• I don’t think there will be one.

Ebenezer_Batflip

• Randy is gonna be one of the best hitters in free agency, i think he can do better than 3/60

Steve Adams

• He’s a 32-year-old (well, he will be) corner-only outfielder. Teams don’t really up their bids on players and overpay because the market has few options anymore. They just work the trade market or spend to reinforce other areas of strength.A quick look in our Contract Tracker shows that the only outfielder age 32 or older to sign for more than three years in the past half decade is Starling Marte (4/78 with the Mets)

  https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/contracttracker?name=&team=0&position=O…

• I guess you’ve got Schwarber at 5/150, but he’s a complete outlier and doesn’t impact Arozarena at all in my mind.

Zach

• Who’s the NL Cy Young if the season ended today?

Steve Adams

• Flip a coin? Haha
• I’d probably go Cristopher Sanchez, just because he has eight more innings. It’s that close. But I like Miz’s chances of continuing to dominate at absurd levels a bit more than Sanchez’s, so Miz would be my pick now to win at season’s end.
• My preseason Yamamoto pick does not feel like it’s going to hold up, ha

Cash

• How much cash is typically involved when players are traded for cash?

Steve Adams

• It varies. Can be as low as a dollar or could be $50K+ … it’s never a very significant amount. Teams aren’t buying guys who were DFA for $2.5MM or anything.

Guest

• What is going on with Framber Valdez? Is the pressure of Detroit getting to him? complacency of being the #2? His walk rate and HR rate have been outrageous and his groundball rate has seemingly decreased.

Steve Adams

• Valdez had an 8.5% walk rate in 2025 and has an 8.5% walk rate in 2026.
• Grounders are down, as are the strikeouts. I haven’t taken a deep dive into him or anything, but his pitch selection and velo are right in line with prior seasons. He’s been mostly fine outside two awful starts, but fair to say the Tigers were obviously hoping for more than this.Certainly doesn’t help his cause that Detroit has been one of the two or three worst defensive clubs in baseball, but that doesn’t explain the dip in whiffs

Guest

• does Robbie Ray get traded by the deadline ?  Do the Giants have to include a prospect to make such a deal ?

Steve Adams

• I do think he’ll be traded. Can’t imagine they’ll attach a prospect of note. He’s a FA at season’s end anyhow. If no one will take him, even with some cash paid down, they can just keep him.How much cash — if any — they need to include will hinge on how he pitches for the next two months. I’m not extremely bullish, so I’ll say they trade him for a marginal return and eat half the money he’s still owed

Mike

• Yoshida and $10mm for Bryan Abreu & Yainer Diaz?

Steve Adams

• Broken record time: Yoshida does not have trade value, and adding $10MM isn’t enough to change that.
• I wouldn’t trade Abreu+Diaz for Yoshida if the Red Sox ate his entire contract.

CBA

• So the Marlins etc get about $15M+ a year from competitive balance tax and yet still only have $80M payroll so you’re telling me they only make enough money to pay $65M on their own? That seems suspect

Steve Adams

• They get more than that from revenue sharing. And as of 2022, every team was getting $65MM apiece from national broadcast and streaming deals. Those contracts increase incrementally every year.The Marlins just aren’t spending the revenue sharing money they get

Zach

• Could Will Venable win manager of the year?

Steve Adams

• Manager of the Year is basically just “manager of the team that exceeded preseason expectations the most,” so sure. He’s probably the front-runner in the AL right now

AA

• Should I be looking to trade Kim for either LF or RP help. Then let Dubon and Mateo take over SS.

Steve Adams

• Kim’s not bringing back major league help right now with the way he’s playing.He also still can’t be traded without his consent for another 13 days, but that’s beside the point.

RedsFan

• So Steve, you love this sport. Without a cap, what is a reasonable solution for the millions of us that are sick of the dodgers/Mets/yanks spending gazillions and th brewers and reds spending 25 cents?

Steve Adams

• Drastically more significant penalties for exceeding the luxury tax — draft picks, much steeper percentages of taxation, probably.I don’t even inherently hate the idea of a cap. If it comes, fine, but I don’t think the players will ever concede to it, and on the snowball’s chance they actually cave, I think it’d take about 1-2 years before everyone realized, “Hey the Brewers, Reds, Marlins, etc. still aren’t spending on free agents, they’re just absorbing the final year of the Dodgers’ and Mets’ unwanted contracts to buy a prospect and hit the salary floor”

  While the owners all toast to their substantially greater franchise values.

• I don’t think there is ever going to be a way to get a crappy owner to spend money at the levels most of said team’s fans would prefer.

B-Wild

• What kind of value does Sandy Alcantara have? He’s been a horse, but not an ace horse. The return to form hasn’t quite happened.

Steve Adams

• Yeah, better than last year but not to where the Marlins hoped. I still imagine there are some teams that think they could get him back to form and would pay a nice price for it. And even if he’s “just” the current version of himself, that still has value.At this point, I don’t see how they’re getting multiple 50-FV (i.e top-100) types for him. If you can get one 50 as a headliner with 2-3 other lesser young pieces, that’s probably a decent framework.

Bobby Cox

• Ozzie is a free agent at year’s end. Do the Braves make him an offer with Southesine waiting in the wings?

Steve Adams

• He’s not a free agent. They have a $7MM club option that they’ll exercise. It’s a bargain for Albies.Could always look to trade him, but Tate Southisene is 19 years old and still playing in A-ball. He’s not going to be an Opening Day consideration next year anyhow. Picking up Albies’ option works pretty well with Southisene’s timeline, really. He could be a major league option by ’28 … maybe late ’27 if he’s a quick mover, but ’28 or even ’29 seems more realistic.

Coppy’s Ghost

• What would a trade for Jo Adell from the Angels or Noelvi Marte from the Reds look like from the Braves perspective and would either player be a beneficial platoon partner in left field for Mike  Yastrzemski?

Steve Adams

• Adell is a monster against LHP. Would be a great fit in that role. I don’t know why the Reds aren’t giving Marte another look, but I’d just start him over Yaz if they got him. In a platoon setting, I don’t love that fit, since Marte’s career numbers are much better in right-on-right matchups. Not sure that continues to be the case long term, but I also just think Marte can hit and he should be given a chance to on a regular basis.Marte has far more control and would (or should … but again, the Reds seem nonplused with him for whatever reason) cost substantially more.

  Adell shouldn’t cost much in the way of prospects. Even last year when he hit 37 homers, he did it with a .290ish OBP and poor defense. He’s pretty one-dimensional. I don’t mind the idea of tossing a couple guys ranked between 15th and 30th in the system to the Angels for him.

Benton man

• Do you see Nolan Gorman getting  traded this summer ?

Steve Adams

• I don’t think he’d fetch anything of note, but it wouldn’t surprise me, no. He’s trending toward a non-tender, so if another club wants to give up even a modicum of value to try to fix him, the Cards would probably shrug and say sure.

T Robertson

• When Cabrera and Boyd comes back, do the Cubs go to a 6-man rotation, or do they send Taillon or Rea back to Triple A/Bullpen?

Steve Adams

• Can’t send either of those guys to AAA
• You’re assuming everyone is healthy at the same time, which feels optimistic for any team — but especially the Cubs, given how this season’s going.
• If they did somehow get everyone healthy, it’d be Rea back to a swing role in the ‘pen. Boyd, Shota, Taillon, Cabrera, Brown in the rotation probably, then play it by ear whenever Steele’s back. Could always ‘pen Brown again. He’s been great, but you can’t option any of the more veteran guys

Marlins Fan

• Why do the Marlins keep Morel when they can just bring Ramirez back up

Steve Adams

• Never understood the Morel signing, and don’t understand the leash they’ve given him.

Cincy Fan

• So you don’t see Ohtani winning CY?

Steve Adams

• He’s 25ish innings behind Sanchez right now, and he’s not missing bats like Miz or limiting walks like Sanchez. He’s great, obviously, but not sure he’ll have the innings and don’t think he (or anyone) can sustain the sub-1.00 ERA.

Mile High

• Are you surprised with how Mickey Moniak has performed this season & should the Rockies absolutely be moving him this deadline?

Steve Adams

• Yeah. I’ve been down on Moniak forever. When Angels fans got excited about his half season there, I was the debbie downer pointing to his .400 BABIP and 35 K%. Even last year in Colorado, I didn’t think he had much value because of the poor OBP and defense.This year he’s just exploded. Walking a bit more, keeping the K’s manageable, hitting for way more power. Bat speed’s up a touch. More contact both in the zone and off the plate.

  He still swings WAY too much — take a walk, Mickey! — and can’t hit lefties, but he looks like a really nice guy to plug into the big half of a corner/DH platoon at an affordable salary. Rockies should absolutely trade him.

Arraez-A-Roni

• Since Arraez is producing better than *checks notes* ANYONE thought at 2B, who would be a good trade fit at the deadline? Yankees? the Surprising A’s? Pirates?  And would he net SFG a prospect in the teams 5-10 range plus another in the 10-15 range?

Steve Adams

• Rays? Haven’t gotten much from 2B this year and Lux isn’t coming back anytime soon.Red Sox, Phillies, Royals and Reds have gotten little to nothing from 2B this year, but it’s not clear they’ll all be buyers. Royals sure seem like they’re headed the other direction.

  Any team with ABs available at 2B, 1B or DH makes sense though. I’m generally of the “Arraez is fairly overrated as a one-dimensional/one-trick guy”, but that one trick is working a lot better than it has in awhile and he’s played a solid 2B while walking a slight bit more (although his overall swing rate is actually up, so that probably won’t last)

Davis Martin

• Where an I right now in the AL CYA voting?

Steve Adams

• Probably behind Schlittler but near the top. And kudos to Martin. I waved him off early on as an April fluke because he wasn’t really missing bats or doing much different in the past — and since I kind of shrugged off his start he’s struck out 31% of his opponents over a stretch of 36 innings. He’s had two starts against the Angels in there, and I’m pretty sure there are people in this chat who could pick up five strikeouts in a start against the Halos, but still, he’s missing bats against everyone now.He’s throwing his slider and curve more often and throwing both pitches harder. Swinging-strike rate is up to 13.1%, which is quite good, and the command has always been pretty good (though it’s even better now).

  He increasingly looks like a genuine breakout — which would be a huge success story for the Sox’ player development. Martin looked like a garden variety fifth starter from 2023-25.

Bouncy

• Why do we get ao many players who are DFAd, choose free agency, then wind up siging a minor-league contract with the same organization teh y just left?  Why not just accept the outright assignment in teh first place?

Steve Adams

• Renegotiating a new minor league deal lets you negotiate new opt-out dates or upward mobility clauses that weren’t in the original deal. Can also angle for slight increases in minor league and/or major league salary.

Cris E

• I don’t think you need a cap if there’s a TON of revenue sharing and a serious floor. Take enough of LAD money and they can’t afford to spend like they have been.

Steve Adams

• People also love to focus on the Dodgers ruining baseball without acknowledging that the Mets spend nearly as much and have been terrible. Or that Kyle Tucker has been worth about 10% of what they’re paying him this season.

My name?

• JJW has to be ROY as of right now, right? And his skill set isn’t really prone to dramatic swings, and if anything his xwOBA is 20 pts higher than his wOBA

Steve Adams

• As of now, sure, he’d probably win, but there’s a whole lot of season left and Nolan McLean’s not going to keep working to a 4-something ERA. Sal Stewart’s going to heat up again at some point.And Griffin’s on the IL now, but he was hitting .317/.370/.488 over 135 PAs beforehand.
• Alright I’ve got to call it for the week. I’m on X @Adams_Steve and Bluesky @adams-steve.bsky.social.If you want more opinions and analysis from the MLBTR team, you can sign up for our Front Office subscription package, which gives you ad-free viewing, two weekly subscriber-only chats, exclusive articles (including Tim’s weekly mailbag), and access to our suite of tools (Contract Tracker, Agency Database, GM Database, forthcoming payroll outlook pages), fantasy advice from expert Nicklaus Gaut, and more. You can learn more and sign up here.

  Have a good week everyone!