1 Move for Every MLB Team Before the 2023 Trade Deadline
There have already been several massive moves in advance of Major League Baseball's 2023 trade deadline (Tuesday at 6 p.m. ET), but we've barely scratched the surface of the madness still to come.
With just one day remaining until last call, we've put together one trade idea for each of the 30 franchises to consider.
One big note before we dive in: These are all mutually exclusive trade ideas. For example, Miami trading for Nationals third baseman Jeimer Candelario makes almost too much sense. But entirely independent from that possibility, so does Toronto trading for Candelario, or Washington dealing him to Milwaukee if that's where the best platter of prospects is offered up.
I'm not trying to spin some web of 30 trades that could all happen simultaneously. Rather, it's one potential deal that I like for each of the 30 teams.
Moreover, this is entirely speculation based on a combination of team needs and recent rumors. I don't have any #sources telling me the Tampa Bay Rays are deep in negotiations with the Chicago White Sox for Dylan Cease or anything like that. I'm just doing my best to read the tea leaves, obsessively check the latest from MLB Trade Rumors and play around with the trade simulator at Baseball Trade Values to try to find things that make sense for both parties.
Teams are broken up by division and listed alphabetically within each division.
American League East
1 of 6
Baltimore Orioles: 1B/3B Coby Mayo and LHP Cade Povich to Pittsburgh Pirates for RHP Mitch Keller
If the Orioles are going to trade some of their top-notch farm system, they are going to want multiple years of team control on an affordable pitcher who can help them right now. And Mitch Keller—making $2.4 million this year with two years of arbitration eligibility remaining—certainly fits the bill.
Keller has struggled a bit since the All-Star break, so maybe the O's could pry him away from Pittsburgh for less than full price. If they can pull it off...well, it'll still feel like a letdown after all those weeks of people saying they might get Shohei Ohtani, but it'd be a nice boost for an iffy rotation.
Boston Red Sox: OF Wilyer Abreu to Detroit Tigers for RHP Michael Lorenzen
With Trevor Story almost back, Boston just might have the best offense in baseball the rest of the way. But the starting pitching has been equal parts banged up and ineffective, in need of some sort of infusion.
They'll probably be on the hunt for more than just a two-month rental of an arm, but 2023 All-Star Michael Lorenzen would be a solid acquisition. His 3.58 ERA for the year would immediately make him one of Boston's best pitchers. And he shouldn't be too expensive.
New York Yankees: RHP Randy Vásquez and C Engelth Urena to Chicago Cubs for Cody Bellinger
Plain and simple, the Yankees need to add at least one bat, as they have averaged just 3.9 runs per game dating back to June 4. Yes, finally getting Aaron Judge back after a nearly two-month hiatus was huge, but they need more than that, considering Anthony Rizzo, Giancarlo Stanton and Josh Donaldson are each batting well below the Mendoza line over the past seven weeks.
While those former multiple-time All-Stars have struggled, Cody Bellinger has been hotter than the sun and could be the savior for this offense.
Randy Vásquez made three starts for the Yankees with a 1.17 ERA and could be one heck of a pitching prospect for the Cubs to add—if they're willing to trade Bellinger, which it doesn't sound like they are anymore. Just got to make them an offer they can't refuse, though.
Tampa Bay Rays: IF Junior Caminero to Chicago White Sox for RHP Dylan Cease and RHP Keynan Middleton
As if things weren't rough enough for the Rays pitching staff, Zach Eflin left Wednesday's start against Miami after four innings due to left knee discomfort. They were already going to be in the market to add at least one starting pitcher ahead of the trade deadline, but if that injury is even remotely serious, their desperation level cranks up a few more notches.
Our Joel Reuter recently rated Junior Caminero as the fourth-best prospect in all of baseball. MLB.com's prospect pipeline puts Caminero at No. 14. Either way, it's going to take a lot for them to give him up. But two-and-a-half years of Dylan Cease plus a rental of Keynan Middleton might be enough. Maybe Chicago needs to throw in one more piece to sweeten the deal.
Toronto Blue Jays: RHP Yosver Zulueta to Washington Nationals for 3B Jeimer Candelario
There has been a lot of speculation that Toronto wants to add a starting pitcher, but it really just needs one of Alek Manoah or Hyun-Jin Ryu to be a serviceable No. 5 starter the rest of the way.
Instead, the Blue Jays could use one more bat, as they haven't gotten a ton out of the DH spot this season.
This could be a landing spot for Cody Bellinger if the Cubs sell, or for Josh Bell if the Guardians pack it in. But let's go with a definite seller in the Washington Nationals. They're not going to fetch a ton for impending free agent Jeimer Candelario, but he is one of the best bats that is definitely available. He has exclusively played third base for the past three seasons, but he can play first to give Vladimir Guerrero Jr. the occasional night off from fielding.
American League Central
2 of 6
Chicago White Sox: Burn it all down
The White Sox already traded away Lucas Giolito—quite possibly the biggest name that will be moved this summer—as well as Reynaldo López in the same deal with the Angels. They also sent Lance Lynn and Joe Kelly to the Dodgers on Friday, plus Kendall Graveman to the Astros. That's two unrestricted free agents, two players with club/mutual options for 2024 and one guy signed through next season out the door.
But insert the Kylo Ren "More!" meme here, because this 41-63 dumpster fire still has three more unrestricted free agents (Yasmani Grandal, Keynan Middleton and Elvis Andrus), plus three players with club/mutual options for 2024 (Tim Anderson, Mike Clevinger and Liam Hendriks).
Maybe hang onto Hendriks, since he's currently on the IL and since his return from non-Hodgkin lymphoma was one of the best stories of the 2023 MLB season. But if they can turn any of those other players into prospects or young players with 4+ years of team control remaining, do it in a heartbreak.
Cleveland Guardians: LHP Joey Cantillo to St. Louis Cardinals for RHP Jack Flaherty
Cleveland already made one head-scratcher of a trade, sending Amed Rosario to the Dodgers in exchange for Noah Syndergaard and cash. They do need some experience in a starting rotation that presently consists of 28-year-old Aaron Civale and four rookies, but adding an injured guy with a 7.16 ERA is a bizarre way to try to get better.
Adding at least one more pitcher is probably the goal here—ideally one who isn't owed much for the rest of this season and one they can get without giving up one of their 10 best prospects. Jack Flaherty is only due about $2 million in prorated salary, and his 3.03 ERA in the month of July can be acquired for less than it's going to take to get a Marcus Stroman. One "could be ready for the majors by next season" pitching prospect might be enough.
Detroit Tigers: LHP Eduardo Rodriguez and RHP Michael Lorenzen to Tampa Bay Rays for IF Osleivis Basabe and LHP Ian Seymour
The dream would be to trade away Javier Báez before he inevitably opts in on his four-year, $98 million player option this offseason. But good luck getting someone to take on that albatross.
Instead, maybe they can package two of the better pitchers on this year's trade block for a legitimate prospect haul. Because goodness knows there are contenders out there right now who could use multiple starting pitchers.
Michael Lorenzen is an impending free agent, and Eduardo Rodriguez is almost certainly going to decline his three-year, $49 million player option, making him a de facto impending free agent. And Tampa Bay would surely love to slap a two-month band-aid on its hospital ward of starting pitching.
Kansas City Royals: C Salvador Perez to New York Yankees for RHP Matt Sauer and OF Elijah Dunham
Having already sent Aroldis Chapman to the Rangers, the Royals don't have much else to offer. But if they could convince Sal Perez to waive his full no-trade clause for the chance to actually finish a season with a winning record for the first time since 2015, the Yankees are very much in the market for a catcher.
Perez is owed $20 million next year and $22 million in 2025 with a $13.5 million club option for 2026. How much of that Kansas City is willing to eat will dictate how solid a package of prospects it is able to get in return.
Minnesota Twins: RHP Ronny Henriquez to New York Mets for OF Tommy Pham
What the Twins need is someone who can at least somewhat consistently get on base. Their pitching has been great, and they have the slugging prowess to rank among the MLB leaders in runs scored. But they don't, because they entered Friday with more than four times as many home runs with the bases empty (86) as they did with multiple runners on base (21).
Tommy Pham could be a big help there. And he wouldn't figure to cost much, considering he's an impending free agent on a Mets team that has already waved the white flag. Any viable pitching prospect should be enough to pique New York's interest.
American League West
3 of 6
Houston Astros: OF Ryan Clifford and LHP Colton Gordon to San Diego Padres for LHP Blake Snell
Most teams would love to add starting pitchers with multiple years of team control, but the Astros don't need that. A rental would be just fine for them, as all eight guys who have made multiple starts this season are under team control through at least 2025. They just need to overcome the fact that neither Lance McCullers Jr. nor Luis Garcia will pitch again this season.
This particular rental wouldn't be cheap, though, as the Padres will probably only embrace a selling mentality if they are blown away by an offer. Houston can probably get him without giving up its top prospect (OF Drew Gilbert), but it will need to give up two of its better minor leaguers.
Los Angeles Angels: IF Kyren Paris to Washington Nationals for 3B Jeimer Candelario
Fun fact: Heading into Sunday, my one move for the Angels was trading infield prospect Kyren Paris to the Rockies for C.J. Cron and Randal Grichuk. And what did they do? Traded two pitching prospects (Jake Madden and Mason Albright) to the Rockies for Cron and Grichuk.
Perfect trade. No notes.
But could they maybe add one more bat before last call?
They've gone all-in in trying to finally get Shohei Ohtani to the playoffs, and another rental hitter would be fantastic—particularly one who can play third base. Getting Jeimer Candelario would be quite the cherry on their trade deadline sundae.
Oakland A's: RHP Trevor May and RHP Paul Blackburn to Arizona Diamondbacks for LHP Nate Savino and RHP Landon Sims
Per Jason Mastrodonato of The Mercury News, Trevor May thought about retiring earlier this year when he took a leave of absence from the A's with "issues related to anxiety." At the time, he had a 12.00 ERA and was really struggling with the pitch clock. But he came back, and since May 27, he has a 2.55 ERA and has gone 9-for-9 in save opportunities, suddenly becoming one of the more intriguing relievers on this year's trade block.
Plenty of teams need help in their bullpen, but the Arizona Diamondbacks might take the cake with Andrew Chafin, Miguel Castro and Scott McGough all imploding over the past month or two. And if the A's package May with Paul Blackburn and his 2.5 remaining years of team control, they might be able to get two of Arizona's better long-term pitching prospects.
Seattle Mariners: SS Cole Young to Washington Nationals for OF Lane Thomas
Seattle might be the biggest unknown heading into the trade deadline. But the M's are close enough to a wild card spot to conservatively go for it, and wouldn't be able to unload much of anything aside from Teoscar Hernández if they did sell.
Like Minnesota, the Mariners need guys who can simply get on base—which Nationals outfielder Lane Thomas can certainly do. His .290 batting average would immediately become the best on Seattle's roster, and his 2.5 years of team control would make him worth giving up a top prospect to acquire. 2022 first-round pick Cole Young might be too steep a price, but it's a fair one.
Texas Rangers: Pop a cold one and enjoy watching the rest of the chaos
The deadline isn't even here yet, but already the Rangers have won it. They added Max Scherzer, Jordan Montgomery, Aroldis Chapman and Chris Stratton, giving an already elite offense the pitching support it needs to win the first World Series title in franchise history.
National League East
4 of 6
Atlanta Braves: SS Cal Conley to St. Louis Cardinals for RHP Jack Flaherty
With both Max Fried and Kyle Wright still working their way back from nearly three months on the IL at this point, Atlanta is surely one of many teams searching for a starting pitcher.
Given its cushion atop the NL standings, however, don't expect Atlanta to bend over backward to add an arm to the rotation, as the expectation still is that Fried and Wright will make it back before the end of the regular season.
If they have to give up one of their top five pitching prospects to swing a deal, the Braves might just rest on their laurels. But a two-month rental of Jack Flaherty shouldn't be too costly.
Miami Marlins: LHP Jake Eder to Washington Nationals for 3B Jeimer Candelario
Miami's third-base situation—primarily Jean Segura—has been dreadful. Per Baseball Reference, the Marlins have gotten a cumulative two home runs and a .618 OPS from the position this season.
Though in-season, intra-divisional trades are relatively rare, I can't imagine the Nationals would have an issue with helping out a perennial NL East basement dweller by trading them an impending free agent.
Jeimer Candelario has had an excellent bounce-back season with 16 home runs and an .823 OPS, and would be a massive addition to one of the worst slugging teams in the majors.
Jake Eder is arguably one of Miami's five best prospects. But aside from Max Meyer and 2023 first-round pick Noble Meyer, no one in this farm system is even remotely untouchable.
New York Mets: Flip RHP Carlos Carrasco and OF Tommy Pham for prospects
In trading away David Robertson and Max Scherzer, the Mets have officially waved the white flag on the current season.
The next step is getting rid of everyone else who won't be back in 2024, most notably Carlos Carrasco and Tommy Pham.
Carrasco has not pitched well this season, but he did go eight scoreless innings against Arizona earlier this month. And while Pham's year-to-date numbers are nothing special, he hit .317 with six home runs from June 4 through July 18. Surely they can get something for those veterans. Might even be able to package them in a deal with the Blue Jays or the Angels.
Philadelphia Phillies: RHP Griff McGarry to St. Louis Cardinals for OF Tyler O'Neill
With Bryce Harper faring well enough at first base for the Phillies to plan on slotting Kyle Schwarber at DH henceforth, they'll be looking to add an outfielder who isn't a colossal liability on defense.
Could this be where Tyler O'Neill finally gets dealt after more than a year of rampant trade speculations?
The two-time Gold Glove winner would certainly be a welcome upgrade in left field, and he has been hitting well since returning from more than two months on the IL. And with O'Neill also under team control for 2024, the Phillies could be willing to part with one of their top prospects for him. To that end, Griff McGarry has a 2.96 ERA in 11 Double-A starts this season and could contribute as early as 2024.
Washington Nationals: 3B Jeimer Candelario to the highest bidder
Aside from Jeimer Candelario, Washington's only impending free agents are Corey Dickerson and C.J. Edwards, neither of whom figure to drum up much interest on the trade block. There has been talk of Lane Thomas as a possible trade chip, but the Nationals should be focusing all of their efforts on getting the best possible return for Candelario.
The next-best third baseman on this year's trade block is probably...Kansas City's Matt Duffy? So if anyone other than Miami is looking to upgrade at the hot corner—maybe the Brewers and/or the Yankees—Washington could be a big winner from a bidding war.
National League Central
5 of 6
Chicago Cubs: RHP Caleb Kilian and C Pablo Aliendo to Seattle Mariners for OF Teoscar Hernández
Long presumed to be a seller, the Cubs have caught fire while the Brewers and Reds have mutually left the door ajar for hope in the Windy City.
If they are buying, they could certainly use some pitching—both of the starting and relief variety. But this might be the great landing spot for Seattle's Teoscar Hernández, if the Mariners are willing to part with their impending free agent.
If we were willing to believe there's a world in which the Cardinals would help out the Cubs, sure would be fun to find out what Chicago would give up for a package of Paul Goldschmidt and Jack Flaherty. Almost certainly not stud OF Pete Crow-Armstrong, but probably at least highly-touted pitching prospect Cade Horton.
Cincinnati Reds: 2B Jonathan India to Toronto Blue Jays for RHP Alek Manoah
Who's ready to gamble?
It has been a brutal year for Alek Manoah, who finished third in the 2022 AL Cy Young vote. And if the Blue Jays can land another starting pitcher in a different deal—or if they believe Hyun-Jin Ryu will be able to finish strong after his return from Tommy John surgery—they might be willing to part with Manoah in exchange for the 2021 NL Rookie of the Year who is under team control through 2026.
Because of their overwhelming infield depth/strength, the Reds would surely love to swap India for controllable starting pitching. Which Manoah is. But would he even provide an upgrade on this year's rotation? Or might a change of scenery spark a bounce-back in which he spearheads a Reds postseason run?
(With India landing on the IL Sunday night, though, perhaps this is no longer feasible.)
Milwaukee Brewers: IF Daniel Guilarte to New York Mets for OF Tommy Pham
The Brew Crew already got Carlos Santana from Pittsburgh to address their supermassive black hole at DH*, but with NL-worst team-wide marks in each of batting average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage, adding at least one more hitter sure would be swell.
Not a whole lot out there this year, though, so they should be pushing hard to get Jeimer Candelario from the Nats or Tommy Pham from the Mets. We'll go the latter route, though, since we've already mentioned Candelario a ton elsewhere and since the asking price won't be nearly as high for Pham. Maybe they can sell the Mets on light-hitting 19-year-old Daniel Guilarte becoming the next Jeff McNeil in a few years.
*Santana will probably play a lot of first base, but it would allow Milwaukee to move Owen Miller or (once healthy) Rowdy Tellez into the DH spot.
Pittsburgh Pirates: LHP Rich Hill to Los Angeles Dodgers for LHP Justin Wrobleski
Unless they're willing to move Mitch Keller or David Bednar, the Pirates aren't going to be adding any noteworthy prospects at this year's deadline. But they could at least save a couple million bucks and get a low-tier prospect by sending Rich Hill back to where he made almost all of his career postseason appearances.
The 43-year-old southpaw hasn't pitched particularly well, saddled with a 4.82 ERA. But, hey, at least he hasn't missed a start and has gone at least 3.2 innings in each of his 21 appearances. That level of durability would be a breath of fresh air in this year's Dodgers rotation, where no one has started more than 16 games to date.
St. Louis Cardinals: Stop trying to trade away guys signed through next season
There has been talk of trading away Tyler O'Neill since the 2022 deadline. Paul Goldschmidt rumors have been flying around for more than a month. More recently, there have been reports of the Dodgers and Cardinals discussing a possible Nolan Arenado trade.
But why?
The Cardinals are in a good spot to contend again in 2024 and should be solely focused on trading away their impending free agents* in exchange for prospects (preferably of the pitching variety) who might be able to help next season. They've already dealt Jordan Montgomery, Jordan Hicks and Chris Stratton, and Jack Flaherty shouldn't be far behind them.
*They should also feel free to shop Paul DeJong, whose $12.5 million club option for 2024 they most likely will not pick up.
National League West
6 of 6
Arizona Diamondbacks: SS Geraldo Perdomo, OF Wilderd Patiño and RHP Justin Martinez to Chicago White Sox for RHP Dylan Cease
I've avoided even mentioning the trade simulator at BaseballTradeValues.com thus far, because some of y'all really seem to hate it. But it's interesting to note that the simulator suggests a package of Geraldo Perdomo and Jake McCarthy would be about as fair of a swap as any team could possibly draw up for Chicago's Dylan Cease.
Arizona would arguably be giving up too much in that scenario, but they could be willing to trade Perdomo and more if it's to bring in a pitcher that talented and with that much team control remaining. (Cease is arbitration-eligible through 2025.)
They wouldn't give up Jordan Lawler or Druw Jones, but perhaps instead of McCarthy, the Diamondbacks send the White Sox a pair of good-not-elite prospects to balance the scales.
Colorado Rockies: Keep trading away the impending free agents
It had become clear in recent seasons that the Rockies don't fully understand the trade deadline, or how a team with no hope of reaching the postseason should treat the trade deadline. But it's pretty simple really: Try to extract any value you can from the guys who will otherwise be leaving for nothing this offseason.
But would you look at that, they've actually traded some of those guys away this year, shipping Randal Grichuk and C.J. Cron to the Angels Sunday night.
There's more where that came from, though, as OF Jurickson Profar, OF/DH Charlie Blackmon and LHP Brent Suter are all hitting free agency in two months.
Los Angeles Dodgers: RHP Landon Knack to St. Louis Cardinals for RHP Jack Flaherty
The Dodgers have already been extremely active, trading for Enrique Hernández, Amed Rosario, Lance Lynn and Joe Kelly. But with so many pitchers on the IL and rookies Michael Grove and Emmet Sheehan struggling mightily, they could still use another rental arm.
We assumed they would end up with either Lucas Giolito or Marcus Stroman, but the former has already been traded and the latter might be off the trade block as the Cubs cling to slim postseason dreams. St. Louis' Jack Flaherty is still available, though.
The Cardinals would love to get a borderline MLB-ready pitching prospect in exchange for Flaherty, and 2020 second-round draft pick Landon Knack fits the bill.
San Diego Padres: Package LHP Blake Snell and LHP Josh Hader for one of the greatest rental returns in trade deadline history
If you're going to sell, at least do it well.
We've already seen the Angels give up their best prospect (C Edgar Quero) and one of their other 10 best prospects (LHP Ky Bush) for two-month rentals of Lucas Giolito and Reynaldo López.
So if the Padres offered up a Blake Snell and Josh Hader package, they could probably fetch a king's ransom, right? Considering Snell is arguably better than Giolito and Hader is one of the best relievers in recent history?
Got to find a team that needs both a starter and a reliever, but that shouldn't be difficult. Baltimore, Houston, Atlanta, Cincinnati, the Cubs and the Dodgers would all answer that phone call. (Though, San Diego wouldn't dream of putting Los Angeles in a better position to win a World Series.) Furthermore, Baltimore and Cincinnati each have great farm systems.
San Francisco Giants: OF Jairo Pomares and RHP Landen Roupp to Chicago White Sox for SS Tim Anderson
Since losing Thairo Estrada to the IL in early July, San Francisco's middle-infield situation has gotten some kind of hideous, with Brandon Crawford, Brett Wisely, Casey Schmitt and David Villar batting a combined .120-ish over the past four weeks. So even with Estrada working his way back and even with highly-touted 21-year-old Marco Luciano recently getting the call to the bigs, the Giants could very much use a shortstop.
Tim Anderson hasn't had a good full season, but he did have seven multi-hit performances within his first 11 games after the All-Star Break and might be able to provide a big boost.
Chicago isn't going to just give away a shortstop for whom it has a $14 million club option for next season, but it also isn't going to expect the moon for Anderson. Neither Jairo Pomares nor Landen Roupp are top prospects, but they have long-term potential.
