Multiple Teams Showing Interest In DJ LeMahieu
It’s been just two days since the Yankees officially released veteran infielder DJ LeMahieu, but that hasn’t stopped him from attempting to get back onto the field. Jon Morosi of MLB Network reported earlier today that LeMahieu was looking to sign with a team to finish out the 2025 season, and has subsequently reported that multiple teams are showing interest in the veteran’s services. There’s no indication that a deal is close at this time and it’s unclear whether that interest is in adding LeMahieu on a big league deal or a minor league pact, but Morosi adds that LeMahieu being available before trade season picks up in earnest could work in his favor as he searches for a new club.
Just one day shy of his 37th birthday, LeMahieu’s numbers have been passable if unexciting this year. He slashed .266/.338/.336 (94 wRC+) with underlying metrics to match in 142 plate appearances across 45 games for the Yankees this year prior to his DFA while playing second base exclusively. His Fielding Run Value of 0 and Outs Above Average of -1 this season suggest his defense at the keystone is just a tick below average at this point in his career, though that’s a far cry from the Gold Glove caliber defense he was capable of in his younger days. Still, the combination of slightly below average offense and defense should be enough to make him an attractive candidate for a part-time or bench role with a team in need of help on the infield.
LeMahieu would be more attractive as a role player for a contending club if he was capable of providing substantial versatility, but there are questions about his ability to handle third base at this point in his career. As Bryan Hoch of MLB.com noted following the Yankees’ decision to part ways with the veteran, LeMahieu expressed during this past offseason concerns about his ability to handle the physical demands of third base and expressed a preference for remaining on the right side of the infield in 2025. Morosi suggested that LeMahieu would be best suited to play for a team that would be able to work him in at some combination of second base, first base, and DH, which could indicate that concerns about his ability to play the hot corner remain.
Given LeMahieu’s significant injury struggles in recent years, it would be understandable if he wasn’t a realistic third option at third at this point. On the other hand, manager Aaron Boone told reporters (including Hoch) that LeMahieu had expressed a willingness to resume workouts at third base if the Yankees requested he return to the position. If LeMahieu can prove himself capable of handling third base, that would surely help his market. Teams like Cubs and Reds have players entrenched at second base currently but wide open playing time available at the hot corner. LeMahieu would surely be of interest to those clubs if he could handle occasional time at third base, but would not make nearly as much sense if he’s limited to the right side of the infield.
Even if LeMahieu remains unable to handle the hot corner, there should still be several teams that would benefit from his services. The Royals are currently relying on Nick Loftin at the keystone on a semi-regular basis, while Luis Rengifo might benefit from someone to help him shoulder the load at second for the Angels after a tough first half that’s left him as one of the least effective qualified hitters in baseball this year. The Astros, Giants, and A’s are among a handful of other clubs who have struggled to get production at second base this year, but each has recently installed new options at the position who could be preferable to LeMahieu: Houston has promoted top prospect Brice Matthews, while both West Sacramento’s temporary ball club has just welcomed Zack Gelof back from the injured list while San Francisco did the same with Casey Schmitt.
Submit Your Questions For This Week’s Episode Of The MLBTR Podcast
On the MLB Trade Rumors podcast, we regularly answer questions from our readers and listeners. With the next episode set for Wednesday, we’re looking for MLBTR’s audience to submit their questions and we’ll pick a few to answer.
The 2025 season is chugging along, and the trade deadline is just over three weeks away. If you have a question about the campaign, a look ahead to the deadline or anything else baseball-related, we’d love to hear from you! You can email your questions to mlbtrpod@gmail.com.
Also, if you want to hear your voice on the podcast, send us your question in audio form and we might play it. iPhone users can find instructions on how to do so here.
In the meantime, don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
Trade Deadline Outlook: Chicago White Sox
The White Sox are next up in MLBTR's new Trade Deadline Outlook series. After losing a modern-day record 121 games last year, the Sox are on pace to lose "only" 108 this year. The Pale Hose remain firmly in the "clear seller" group as one of six teams with less than a 1% shot at reaching the playoffs.
White Sox executive vice president/general manager Chris Getz took over after the 2023 trade deadline, so this is only his second time being in the top chair for the event. Last summer, Getz packaged several of his top assets together in Erick Fedde, Michael Kopech, and Tommy Pham, netting Miguel Vargas as the headliner. That trade looked rough out of the gate, as Vargas was one of the game's worst players after joining the White Sox. The 25-year-old somewhat redeemed himself with a hot May this year.
Getz held out until the offseason to move lefty Garrett Crochet, drawing better reviews for that deal. While the four-player return on that trade looks promising, it may still be painful to see Crochet locked up through 2031 and vying for the AL Cy Young award. That deal will take years to truly evaluate, but as we look ahead to July, the question for the White Sox is whether they have anything valuable left to trade.
Record: 28-56 (0.0% playoff probability)
Sell Mode
Impending Free Agents: Aaron Civale, Martin Perez, Adrian Houser, Tyler Alexander, Michael A. Taylor, Austin Slater
Civale was picked up from the Brewers in a one-for-one swap on June 13th for Andrew Vaughn. Perhaps it was a bit of a monkey's paw situation for the 30-year-old Civale, who requested a trade from the contending Brewers upon being moved to the bullpen, only to land in the rotation of the rebuilding White Sox.
Civale was hoping to maintain his earning power as a starting pitcher, though it's unclear he's helped his case in a small three-start sample with Chicago. On the season, he's got a well-deserved 4.74 ERA in eight starts, having missed over a month with a hamstring strain. He's been unable to miss bats this year and his homer-prone tendencies have continued.
The White Sox had nothing to lose by acquiring Civale, in that they were highly likely to non-tender Vaughn after the season. But as an $8MM back of the rotation guy, Civale won't be making playoff starts in October and won't bring more than a low-level prospect. Potential suitors may want some help with his salary.
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Submit Your Questions For This Week’s Episode Of The MLBTR Podcast
On the MLB Trade Rumors podcast, we regularly answer questions from our readers and listeners. With the next episode set for Wednesday, we’re looking for MLBTR’s audience to submit their questions and we’ll pick a few to answer.
The 2025 season is chugging along, and the trade deadline is just over four weeks away. If you have a question about the campaign, a look ahead to the deadline or anything else baseball-related, we’d love to hear from you! You can email your questions to mlbtrpod@gmail.com.
Also, if you want to hear your voice on the podcast, send us your question in audio form and we might play it. iPhone users can find instructions on how to do so here.
In the meantime, don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
Submit Your Questions For This Week’s Episode Of The MLBTR Podcast
On the MLB Trade Rumors podcast, we regularly answer questions from our readers and listeners. With the next episode set for Wednesday, we’re looking for MLBTR’s audience to submit their questions and we’ll pick a few to answer.
The 2025 season is chugging along. If you have a question about the campaign, a look ahead to the deadline or anything else baseball-related, we’d love to hear from you! You can email your questions to mlbtrpod@gmail.com.
Also, if you want to hear your voice on the podcast, send us your question in audio form and we might play it. iPhone users can find instructions on how to do so here.
In the meantime, don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
Fantasy Baseball: Targeted Streaming for RHPs
Hello, friends.
Last week, we dove into one of my favorite areas to leverage in fantasy, the always titillating team splits. I'll hold for applause.
And, we're back! Splits might not be anything fancy, but they remain one of the surest bets to guide your decision-making in which pitchers to start, whether in year-long or daily fantasy. Year after year, it's proven that just because a team has a good offense overall, it doesn't guarantee they have equal success against both hands of pitchers. And in those gaps, streaming magic awaits.
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Submit Your Questions For This Week’s Episode Of The MLBTR Podcast
On the MLB Trade Rumors podcast, we regularly answer questions from our readers and listeners. With the next episode set for Wednesday, we’re looking for MLBTR’s audience to submit their questions and we’ll pick a few to answer.
The 2025 season is chugging along. If you have a question about the campaign, a look ahead to the deadline or anything else baseball-related, we’d love to hear from you! You can email your questions to mlbtrpod@gmail.com.
Also, if you want to hear your voice on the podcast, send us your question in audio form and we might play it. iPhone users can find instructions on how to do so here.
In the meantime, don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
Submit Your Questions For This Week’s Episode Of The MLBTR Podcast
On the MLB Trade Rumors podcast, we regularly answer questions from our readers and listeners. With the next episode set for Wednesday, we’re looking for MLBTR’s audience to submit their questions and we’ll pick a few to answer.
The 2025 season is chugging along. If you have a question about the campaign, a look ahead to the deadline or anything else baseball-related, we’d love to hear from you! You can email your questions to mlbtrpod@gmail.com.
Also, if you want to hear your voice on the podcast, send us your question in audio form and we might play it. iPhone users can find instructions on how to do so here.
In the meantime, don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
Fantasy Baseball: New Stars?
Hello, friends.
I come to you deep from within the family bunker, relishing these last few hours before summer "vacation" activities get fully rolling in the morning. For new (or not yet) parents, let this serve as a PSA: summer vacation is a lie. In particular, during June, because everyone just lo-ooves to pack everything in right away. It's a hellscape; please take heed when scheduling.
Anywell, baseball. We're now at the third pole, and there's no time like the present to make definitive and grandiose statements about fantasy players. With that in mind, let's take two of the players mentioned frequently in my chats this season (11 am CT on Thursdays) and put our foot down. No more hemming, and certainly no more hawing. We're calling the fight.
These two guys got the goods, dude.
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Daniel Bard Drawing Interest Following Recent Showcase
Veteran right-hander Daniel Bard recently threw in front of scouts for around ten teams, reports Rob Bradford of WEEI. He’s drawing interest from a variety of clubs, including some West Division contenders in each league.
Bard, who’ll turn 40 next month, missed the 2024 season after undergoing a pair of surgeries: one to repair the meniscus in his left knee and a second, more serious procedure to repair the flexor tendon in his right elbow. He told Bradford back in January that he was hoping to begin throwing off a mound in late February with an eye toward signing in late April. It seems that timetable wound up being a bit optimistic, but Bard’s recent showcase and interest from contending clubs seems to signify that he’s back to full strength.
As recently as 2022, Bard was one of the sport’s top relievers. He enjoyed a brilliant comeback effort with the Rockies that season and entered the trade deadline as one of the most widely anticipated trade candidates the market had to offer. The Rockies, ever marching to the beat of their own drum, felt differently and signed a then-37-year-old Bard to a two-year extension worth $19MM.
Bard dominated down the stretch for the Rox post-extension, finishing out the year with 34 saves (on a 68-win team), a 1.79 ERA and a 28.2% strikeout rate. He struggled in 2023, logging just 49 1/3 innings with a diminished 4.56 ERA, a 20.3% strikeout rate and a jarring 21.1% walk rate. His fastball, which averaged 97.9 mph in 2022, sat at 94.4 mph in 2023. Last year’s injury-lost season officially closed the book on that two-year, $19MM contract.
A comeback at age 40 might be something of a long shot, but that was also true when Bard returned from a six-year absence at age 35 in 2020. When the right-hander has been healthy, he’s generally been effective. In four seasons since returning to the majors, he’s pitched to a 3.83 ERA with a 25.1% strikeout rate and 13.5% walk rate (3.58 ERA, 26.9 K% and 10.8 BB% if we exclude that 2023 season when he did not seem to be pitching at full strength).
At this point of the MLB season, there aren’t many trade opportunities available to contending clubs looking to strengthen their roster — nor are there many free agent possibilities of note. Bard joins fellow elder statesman David Robertson — who’s about two and a half months older — as an exception to that line of thinking. Given that he’s looking to reestablish himself after a lost 2024 season while Robertson is seeking a notable salary on the heels of a terrific 2024 campaign, Bard stands as the clearly more affordable option of the two.
Whether Bard ultimately signs a minor league contract or a big league deal with a low base salary, two things will likely be true: the contract will be laden with incentives that boost his earning potential if he remains healthy, and he’ll likely need a tune-up in the minors before jumping directly into a major league bullpen. It’s hard to imagine him being a real option before mid-to-late June, but that still makes him a more immediate option than the majority of the arms who’ll change hands on the summer trade market.