Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Royals Agree To Deals With First-Round Picks Sean Gamble, Josh Hammond

By | at

The Royals agreed to deals with first-round selections Sean Gamble and Josh Hammond, reports Jim Callis of MLB Pipeline. Kansas City also has deals with second-rounders Michael Lombardi and Justin Lamkin, Callis adds.

Gamble was selected with the 23rd overall pick, K.C.’s standard first-round selection. Hammond went 28th with a supplemental selection that the Royals received under the Prospect Promotion Incentive thanks to Bobby Witt Jr. finishing runner-up in last year’s AL MVP voting. Gamble’s bonus is reported as $3.9975MM, though that presumably excludes a $2500 contingency bonus that’ll get him to an even $4MM on signing. That comes in a little above the $3.85MM slot value. Hammond signed for $3.1975MM, slightly below the $3.28MM slot.

A left-handed hitter, Gamble is a Florida prep product who had been committed to Vanderbilt. Most pre-draft scouting reports pegged him as a second-round talent. MLB Pipeline did have Gamble 27th, but each of FanGraphs (60), The Athletic’s Keith Law (48), Baseball America (45) and ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel (35) were a little lower. Evaluators praise his athleticism and bat speed, but there’s some concern about his pure hitting ability and questions about his defensive fit. While Gamble has mostly played second base in his prep career, most reports acknowledge that he may end up in the outfield.

Hammond, who was a two-way player in high school, drew varying opinions on public scouting reports. McDaniel slotted him as high as 17th, projecting him as a third baseman with potential plus-plus power. While FanGraphs felt he’s a better pitching prospect, Hammond enters pro ball as an infielder. Most other evaluators indeed are higher on him as a position player. His bat speed and defensive ability give him significant upside, but some reports question his pitch recognition and selectivity. Hammond bypasses a commitment to Wake Forest to enter the professional ranks.

Rangers Sign First-Round Pick Gavin Fien

By | at

The Rangers announced the signing of four draftees, including first-round pick Gavin Fien. Jim Callis of MLB Pipeline reports that the 18-year-old infielder received a $4.8MM bonus. That’s a decent amount below the $5.75MM slot value associated with the 12th overall selection.

Fien was a divisive prospect. Before the draft, Kiley McDaniel of ESPN and The Athletic’s Keith Law each slotted the right-handed hitter as the #12 player in the class. MLB Pipeline had him 22nd, while both Baseball America (31) and FanGraphs (34) viewed him as more of a fringe first-round talent. Evaluators all agree that the 6’3″ Fien will not stick at shortstop. Most reports project him as a long-term third baseman, though FanGraphs feels there’s a chance he’ll be pushed to the corner outfield.

There’s more of a split camp on Fien’s offensive acumen. While there’s not much doubt about his above-average to plus raw power projection, some scouts have expressed concern about atypical hitting mechanics and a stiffness in his swing. Fien raked on the showcase circuit last summer but disappointed some evaluators with his performance in the high school season this spring. There seems to be a wide range of outcomes on his pure hitting ability, but the more optimistic evaluators feel he could be a power-hitting infielder with a plus or better arm at third base.

The Rangers are clearly on the high end of those evaluations. They signed Fien away from a commitment to the University of Texas. He’s one of three high schoolers whom the Rangers selected in the top 10 rounds. They took infielders Josh Owens (third round) and Jack Wheeler (sixth) and could reallocate some of their cost savings on Fien to one or both of those players.

Mozeliak Planning To Meet With Arenado Regarding No-Trade Preferences

By | at

With the trade deadline 10 days away, Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak said he plans to meet with Nolan Arenado in the coming week (relayed by John Denton of MLB.com). That’ll be an exploratory discussion to see if the 10-time Gold Glove winner has changed his mind at all regarding a potential trade. Arenado has full no-trade rights and famously invoked that clause to kill an offseason deal that would have sent him to Houston.

Arenado reportedly wanted more time to evaluate the Astros’ direction after they’d traded Kyle Tucker. Offseason reporting suggested he was only interested in approving a deal to five clubs: the Yankees, Padres, Dodgers, Red Sox and potentially Astros once he had a better feel for their competitive outlook. Aside from Houston, none of those teams seemed to show much interest. They moved on to signing Christian Walker when Arenado didn’t immediately accept a deal.

The Red Sox, Dodgers and Padres all have established third basemen. (Max Muncy is currently on the injured list for L.A., but he’s expected back in August and the Dodgers don’t intend to trade for third base help.) While Houston did just lose Isaac Paredes to a hamstring strain, they’re within a few million dollars of the luxury tax threshold and are highly unlikely to trade for Arenado. The Yankees absolutely need a third baseman, yet Jon Heyman of The New York Post wrote earlier this month that New York’s front office is concerned about Arenado’s declining offensive output in his mid-30s. That aligns with reporting from various Yankees beat writers dating back to the offseason which downplayed the team’s interest.

If Arenado’s trade preferences are unchanged, it’s very difficult to see a deal coming together. That’d probably remain the case even if he were willing to broaden his list of destinations. His bat has declined in three consecutive seasons. Arenado took a .241/.299/.381 slash line into tonight’s game — his worst numbers in a full season since his 2013 rookie year. He is playing on a $32MM salary, $5MM of which is covered by the Rockies. He’ll make $27MM next year (again with $5MM paid by Colorado) and $15MM in 2027. In this season and next, $6MM is deferred. It’s still a significant sum for a player who looks like a league average hitter at this point, even if he remains a quality defender.

Mozeliak acknowledged that as things currently stand, he “would envision (Arenado) being a part of this in the future.” That reflects the challenges of aligning on a deal, though the front office head added that “if something were to pop up, I would definitely discuss it with him.” In any case, the Cardinals appear increasingly likely to deal some veteran pieces. They’re trying to find a taker for struggling starting pitcher Erick Fedde. Reporting last week indicated they were fielding interest on impending free agent relievers Ryan Helsley, Phil Maton and Steven Matz.

That was before they got swept by the Diamondbacks in their first series out of the All-Star Break. The NL Central looks to be a two-horse race between the Cubs and Brewers. The Cards have dropped four games behind the Padres for the final Wild Card spot with the Reds and Giants in between them. They’ve gone 4-10 this month (pending the result of tonight’s game in Colorado). After outperforming expectations for much of the season, they’re hitting a skid right as the time comes for the front office to pick a direction.

Mozeliak acknowledged the downward trend, especially the recent sweep, in sounding more amenable to selling. “Clearly the weekend was not what we wanted to see, and now we’ve got to understand what the future looks like,” he told reporters (link via Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch). “Where we are in the standings definitely affects our decision-making moving forward at the deadline. Playing those three games and losing all three is not helpful. (We) wanted to come out of the break having a positive start to it. We didn’t. As we reflect on what’s best for the organization, there is the longer view in terms of: Are there decisions that we can make that will better situate the franchise in 2026 and beyond?”

The team still has a bit of runway to pull back into the race. They should expect to win the series against the Rockies, and a sweep isn’t outlandish. They’ll then have a direct matchup with one of their top competitors, as they host the Padres for four games to close out the week. They’ll welcome the Marlins to Busch Stadium for the final three games before the deadline.

Jesse Chavez Elects Free Agency

By | at

Right-hander Jesse Chavez has elected free agency after being outrighted to Triple-A Gwinnett, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. That indicates he cleared waivers after being designated for assignment last week.

Chavez, 41, has been on and off Atlanta’s roster this year. Three separate times, they have signed him to a minor league deal, selected him to the roster and then bumped him off after a brief stint. His most recent selection was on July 6th. A little over a week later, he was designated for assignment when Atlanta acquired Dane Dunning from the Rangers.

Around those transactions, Chavez has tossed eight innings over four appearances. He has allowed eight earned runs on 14 hits and five walks while striking out eight opponents. He has also logged 30 2/3 innings at the Triple-A level with a 2.05 earned run average, 28.8% strikeout rate, 9.6% walk rate and 37.3% ground ball rate.

Chavez will now have a chance to speak with all 30 clubs, though he always seems to find his way back to Atlanta. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see the two sides reunite on a fresh minor league deal in the coming days. The club is lined up to be a deadline seller in the rest of the month. Closer Raisel Iglesias seems likely to move while guys like Rafael Montero, Pierce Johnson or Aaron Bummer could be on the move as well. That could open up some more major league opportunities for Chavez or other pitchers down the stretch.

Photo courtesy of D. Ross Cameron, Imagn Images

Cardinals Reportedly Shopping Erick Fedde

By | at

The Cardinals are shopping right-hander Erick Fedde, reports Katie Woo of The Athletic. The Cardinals are on the buy/sell bubble but Woo says they will pursue Fedde trades regardless of which path they take.

A couple of weeks ago, it was reported that the Cards feel Michael McGreevy is ready for a rotation role in the big leagues. However, he was blocked by the club’s other starters and that remains the case. St. Louis has had remarkable rotation healthy this year. Each of Fedde, Sonny Gray, Miles Mikolas, Andre Pallante and Matthew Liberatore has made at least 18 start this year. McGreevy and Steven Matz have chipped in with a few spot starts, but it has essentially been the same core five all year long. McGreevy was recalled today to make a spot start tonight in order to give Liberatore some extra rest.

With the deadline now just over the horizon, there’s logic to flipping someone to make room for McGreevy, a former first-round pick who is putting up good numbers this year. In 15 Triple-A starts, he has a 3.72 earned run average, 25.5% strikeout rate, 4.9% walk rate and 53.8% ground ball rate.

As mentioned, the Cards appear to be on the border of buying or selling. They attempted to do a reset in the winter but found it difficult to trade their veteran players with no-trade clauses. They decided to mostly stand pat and have hovered in the race this year. They were swept by the Diamondbacks this weekend but are still just 3.5 games back of a playoff spot. If they believe McGreevy is ready for the show, they could flip a starter to add some young talent but still leave the rotation in a decent spot for a stretch run.

Fedde is the most logical guy to move out. Both Gray and Mikolas have full no-trade clauses. When the club was trying to hit the reset button in the offseason, both expressed a preference to stay, quickly squashing trade speculation. Pallante and Liberatore are each young and controllable for years to come. For a club looking to do a reset, it wouldn’t make sense to move those guys out. Fedde, on the other hand, is 32 years old and an impending free agent. He’s not a part of the club’s long-term plans.

The problem is that he has tanked a lot of his value this year. After a successful stint in Korea in 2023, he returned to North America with aplomb last year. Between the White Sox and the Cards, he tossed 177 1/3 innings with a 3.30 ERA, 21.2% strikeout rate, 7.2% walk rate and 42.1% ground ball rate. Here in 2025, everything has gone in the wrong direction. In 98 2/3 innings, he has a 4.83 ERA, 13.5% strikeout rate, 10.7% walk rate and 39.2% ground ball rate.

Given those results, rival clubs won’t be tripping over themselves to acquire Fedde. He might have some value as a live arm on an injury-depleted team, but only as a back-end filler type of role. No one will view him as a capable playoff starter right now. He is making a $7.5MM salary this year, which leaves less than $3MM to be paid out. That would be a bargain if he were pitching to his 2024 levels but it doesn’t look especially attractive now. If the Cards really want to move Fedde and open more starts for McGreevy, perhaps they would be willing to eat some of that money in order to secure a better return.

Photo courtesy of Jeff Curry, Imagn Images

Tigers To Promote Troy Melton

By | at

The Tigers are going to promote pitching prospect Troy Melton, reports Jason Beck of MLB.com. Melton will start for the club on Wednesday, making his major league debut. The club will need to open a spot for him on both the 40-man and active rosters.

Melton, now 24, was the Tigers’ fourth-round pick in 2022. Since then, he has climbed the minor league ladder, putting up strong numbers along the way. Overall, he has thrown 273 minor league innings over 66 games. 63 of those were officially starts, with the other three technically being long relief outings. In that time, he has allowed 3.63 earned runs per nine with a 28.1% strikeout rate and 6.5% walk rate.

That includes his 75 1/3 innings this year, split between Double-A and Triple-A. He has a combined 2.99 ERA on the season. His 6.4% walk rate is still good and he has nudged his strikeout rate up to 32.4%.

Coming into 2025, many evaluators put Melton in the middle of the Tigers’ top 30 lists but Eric Longenhagen of FanGraphs was especially bullish. He gave Melton the #80 spot on his preseason top 100 list. Longenhagen notes that Melton sits in the upper 90s with his fastball with a slider and “splinker-style” changeup.

It’s unclear if Melton will be getting a rotation gig for a while or if this is just a spot start. The Tigers are three games into a stretch of playing 13 straight right after their pitchers where thrown off their normal routines by the All-Star break, so perhaps this is just to give everyone else a breather. Since this is his first major league call, he has a full slate of options and could be sent back down to the minors after his debut.

As of now, the Tigers have a rotation consisting of Tarik Skubal, Jack Flaherty, Reese Olson, Casey Mize and Keider Montero. The first four aren’t going anywhere but Montero’s not cemented in there. He’s been optioned to the minors and moved to the bullpen at times this year, so that could perhaps happen again if the Tigers want Melton to get more than just a spot start.

Photo courtesy of Junfu Han, Imagn Images.

Rangers Place Chris Martin On IL With Calf Strain

By | at

4:15pm: Manager Bruce Bochy says Martin will miss four to six weeks, per Shawn McFarland of The Dallas Morning News.

3:30pm: The Rangers announced a series of roster moves today. Third baseman Josh Jung, infielder/outfielder Michael Helman and righty Cole Winn have all been recalled from Triple-A Round Rock. In corresponding moves, they have optioned infielder Justin Foscue and outfielder Alejandro Osuna to Round Rock and placed right-hander Chris Martin on the 15-day injured list due to a left calf strain.

Martin was removed from last night’s game after a visit from the training staff. After the game, the club announced to reporters that it was due to a calf strain. It is apparently severe enough that he’ll sit out at least the next few weeks. It’s the second IL stint of the year for Martin. He also missed a couple of weeks in late May and early June due to right shoulder fatigue. He’s still been effective when on the mound, with a 2.36 earned run average, 25.7% strikeout rate and 4.3% walk rate.

The Rangers will now be without one of their better relievers for a while, a tough blow at a tough time. The club is one of many bubble teams who are sort of near contention but also not firmly in buyer mode ahead of next week’s deadline. The Rangers are 3.5 games back of a playoff spot, with four other American League teams behind them by two games or fewer. For many of these clubs, the next few weeks could determine whether the club buys or sells or to what degree. As the club tries to win these key games in the next week-plus, they will have to do so without Martin.

The recall of Jung is also notable. When healthy, he’s been the club’s regular third baseman for a few years now. However, he fell into a bad funk this year and was sent down to the minors for a reset. He had a .277/.321/.440 slash line and 113 wRC+ through the end of May. But then in June and early July, he slashed .158/.208/.221 for a wRC+ of 19.

He hasn’t exactly been brought back to life on his optional assignment. He has a .205/.225/.410 batting line and 47 wRC+ in eight Triple-A games, though he did hit homers in two of his past three games.

His recall might have more to do with other developments, as the Rangers recently put Jake Burger on the IL. With Joc Pederson also on the IL, they’ve been light in the first base/designated hitter area. Rowdy Tellez was recently added to the roster but backup catcher Kyle Higashioka has been DHing a lot. If Jung retakes the third base job, Josh Smith could be freed up to play some first base or serve as the DH. Jung is in the lineup at third tonight with Smith at first. The Rangers are facing a lefty starter, so Tellez is on the bench with Cody Freeman in the DH spot.

What’s also notable for Jung is that he has been recalled fairly quickly. He came into this year with his service clock at two years and 27 days. A lengthy optional assignment of more than a month could have prevented him from getting to the three-year line in 2025, which would have pushed his free agency by a year. However, he’s been recalled within three weeks of his optioning. He could still be optioned again later in the year if he doesn’t get back on track but he still has a path to get to the three-year service mark.

Photo courtesy of Lon Horwedel, Imagn Images

Poll: Will David Robertson Be Enough For The Phillies’ Bullpen?

By | at

The Phillies agreed to a one-year deal with veteran closer David Robertson yesterday and will pay him the prorated portion of a one-year, $16MM contract to step into their bullpen down the stretch. Clubs around the game balked at the 40-year-old’s asking price in free agency over the offseason, but with the trade deadline looming, teams began to circle back as they now viewed Robertson as a way to upgrade their roster without surrendering prospect capital.

It’s not hard to see why the Phillies would find Robertson attractive. Philadelphia’s bullpen was a major strength last year but they entered 2025 with a significantly weaker group after both Jeff Hoffman and Carlos Estevez departed for the AL via free agency. Offseason addition Jordan Romano has an ugly 6.88 ERA across 39 appearances in a Phillies uniform after being added to serve as the club’s closer. Jose Alvarado’s excellent start to the 2025 season was shut down abruptly when he tested positive for PEDs. That resulted in an 80-game suspension and also leaves him ineligible for the postseason, meaning the Phils would have had to rely on Matt Strahm and Orion Kerkering as their back-end tandem in the playoffs this year. Both are impressive relievers in the midst of solid seasons, but neither profiles as a true shutdown closer.

Robertson can offer that sort of pedigree. A veteran of 16 MLB seasons who first got his start back in 2008 as a member of the Yankees, Robertson has collected 177 saves in his career with a 2.91 ERA and 2.94 FIP. His work in his late thirties was somehow even more impressive, as he posted a 2.82 ERA with 40 saves, a 3.24 FIP and a 31.1% strikeout rate across his age-37, -38, and -39 campaigns in the last three years. Last season’s campaign with the Rangers saw him look as sturdy as ever; he struck out 33.4% of his opponents while pitching to a 3.00 ERA and 2.65 FIP in a setup role for closer Kirby Yates. Those are the numbers of a star reliever, the sort of player who can anchor a pitching staff in the postseason, and exactly the sort of player the Phillies need right now.

With that being said, the addition is not one that comes without risk. No pitcher on the wrong side of his 40th birthday is a slam-dunk to repeat his prior performance, and while Robertson could still be an excellent late-inning reliever even if he took a step back this year, it’s worth wondering how much he’ll be able to offer. Perhaps taking the first half off will allow Robertson to pitch like a younger man down the stretch and into the postseason, but there’s plenty of examples of pitchers who have struggled following an extended layoff.

That’s even more true when it comes to generally healthy players who miss Spring Training and don’t get a proper ramp-up for contractual reasons. Likely future Hall of Famer Craig Kimbrel had one of the worst seasons of his career as a member of the Cubs back in 2019 when he waited until after the draft in June to sign so he wouldn’t be attached to draft pick compensation. Just this year, stalwart veteran Kyle Gibson surrendered 23 runs in four starts for the Orioles after signing during the season and requiring an accelerated ramp-up process. Perhaps some of those woes can be avoided by giving Robertson plenty of time to prepare in the minor leagues, but any time he spends ramping up is time the big league club will have to spend without a much-needed closing option.

Between a potentially lengthy ramp-up and the uncertainty surrounding any midseason signing, should the Phillies continue to be aggressive about adding to their bullpen over the coming days? They waited long enough to sign Robertson that he surely won’t be in Philadelphia ahead of the July 31 trade deadline, so any acquisition they make will have to happen before they have full information on Robertson’s readiness to face big league pitching. The price of late-inning relief pitching figures to be exorbitant this summer with so few true sellers, and a recent injury to Alec Bohm in conjunction with the struggles faced by Max Kepler and Johan Rojas this year leave the Phillies in need of another bat this summer as well.

Any resources dedicated to adding additional relief help would limit the resources available to add another bat at third base or in the outfield, so it’s fair to wonder if president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski would be best served hoping Robertson can lock down the ninth and focusing on the offense. On the other hand, a number of key players (Ranger Suarez, Kyle Schwarber, J.T. Realmuto) are all ticketed for free agency after the 2025 season. This year could be Philadelphia’s best shot at winning a World Series with this core of players, and hinging those aspirations on a question mark in the ninth inning could be hard to stomach for fans.

How do MLBTR readers think Philadelphia should approach the deadline with Robertson now in the fold? Should they consider the bullpen more or less settled and prioritize adding offense, or is Robertson too much of a risk to count on? Have your say in the poll below:

Trade Rumors Front Office Subscriber Chat Transcript

By | at

Steve Adams

  • Good afternoon! Sorry to not get the queue up for advance questions a bit sooner. I'll get going at 3pm, but feel free to ask a question ahead of time if you prefer.
  • Greetings! Let's get underway

Dodger Fan 1750

  • Do you see a big trade splash happening soon with the Dodgers? Do you think Mason or Clause is possible for CP? If not pitching, what other trade do you see happening?

Steve Adams

  • Everything deadline-wise, for every team, has to happen "soon" -- we're ten days out!But yeah, I think the Dodgers are going to add a reliever of note. I don't think Miller moves. Clase, I can see, but I wouldn't get my hopes up. If the Dodgers come away with Bednar or Helsley, that's still a notable upgrade. And I think both guys end up changing hands.

Coach

  • Sandy Leon called up to ATL. Smoke = trade fire?

Steve Adams

  • Leon just kind of reinforces the idea that Ozuna's not going to play a ton. His promotion in and of itself isn't a meaningful development so much as just one more piece of evidence to support what already felt inevitable: Ozuna will be traded.

Crusty Old Os Fan

  • If a player has an option, and exercises it, is his current team allowed to submit a QO in order to recoup a draft pick?

Steve Adams

  • I assume this is supposed to say "opt-out" and not "option"? Yes, a team can make a qualifying offer to a player if he triggers an opt-out in his contract and becomes a free agent
  • Well -- as long as he hasn't received a QO in the past and spent the entire season on that club's major league roster/injured list.

Unqualified Reds Armchair GM

  • Reds started Marte in right field yesterday. He seemed to handle it fine. Do they go bring back Eugenio to man 3b?

Unlock Subscriber-Exclusive Articles Like This One With a Trade Rumors Front Office Subscription

BENEFITS
  • Access weekly subscriber-only articles by Tim Dierkes, Steve Adams, and Anthony Franco.
  • Join exclusive weekly live chats with Anthony.
  • Remove ads and support our writers.
  • Access GM-caliber tools like our MLB Contract Tracker

Mariners Select Brandyn Garcia

By | at

The Mariners announced that they have selected the contract of left-hander Brandyn Garcia. Right-hander Juan Burgos has been optioned to Triple-A Tacoma as the corresponding active roster move. The 40-man roster had a vacancy but is now full.

Garcia, now 25, was an 11th-round pick of the M’s in the 2023 draft. The M’s tried stretching him out last year, with good results. He tossed 116 innings with a 2.25 earned run average, 27% strikeout rate, 9.5% walk rate and 53.4% ground ball rate.

Despite those solid numbers, the M’s decided to have him work as a reliever this year. There have been some concerns about his control and he mostly only throws two pitches, a sinker and a slider, so evaluators have suggested he would be a reliever in the long run.

The numbers are good again this year. He has thrown 33 1/3 innings between Double-A and Triple-A with a combined 3.51 ERA. His 11.4% walk rate is high but he has punched out 28.2% of batters faced and gotten opponents to pound 55.4% of batted balls into the ground. Last month, FanGraphs ranked him the #15 prospect in the system. Baseball America currently has him in the #19 slot.

Seattle has had Gabe Speier as the only lefty in the bullpen for much of the year. Jhonathan Díaz and Tayler Saucedo each got brief stints, pitching less than five innings each. Garcia will provide the club with a second lefty arm for now. Perhaps the M’s will make some bullpen additions ahead of the trade deadline. Since this is Garcia’s first big league call, he has a full slate of options and can be easily sent back to Tacoma if he gets squeezed out by Seattle’s deadline activity.

Photo courtesy of Mark J. Rebilas, Imagn Images

MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

hide arrows scroll to top