MLB Trade Rumors: Buzz on Yu Darvish and More Ahead of Deadline

Teams continued to make moves on Friday as the Tampa Bay Rays acquired right-handed reliever Steve Cishek from the Seattle Mariners for pitcher Erasmo Ramirez.

With the non-waiver trade deadline on Monday at 4 p.m. ET, expect a flurry of transactions to occur over the next few days.

Here's a look at some of the latest news to drop on the trade front:

Yu Darvish on the Move, But Where?

Per Gerry Fraley of Dallas Morning News, the Texas Rangers are intent on trading ace starting pitcher Yu Darvish before the deadline. At least three teams (the Milwaukee Brewers, the Chicago Cubs and the Los Angeles Dodgers) had scouts at Darvish's last game in which he gave up 10 earned runs in 3.2 innings to the Miami Marlins.

However, Fraley says that start, which was the worst of Darvish's MLB career, should have little bearing on his value.

Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports also confirmed that Darvish is on the trading block:

Despite Darvish's rough outing, he's still one of the best 10 starting pitchers in the game when he has everything going. He's made the American League All-Star team four times and led the league in strikeouts with 277 in 2013.

While this season has been a bit of a struggle, especially with the home run ball (Darvish has given up 20 dingers in 22 starts), he is still striking out more than one batter per inning.

Furthermore, Texas is a tough place for any pitcher, especially in the dog days of summer. Globe Life Park in Arlington is routinely near the top of the list for the most hitter-friendly ballparks in the league every season. That hasn't helped Darvish whatsoever.

It will be interesting to see if Darvish moves to a team with a more pitcher-friendly stadium, perhaps in the National League. If that's the case, don't be surprised to see Darvish dominate the last two months of the season.

Boston Red Sox Not Looking for Another Starter

Around noon ET on Friday, the Boston Red Sox scratched starting pitcher David Price from his turn on the mound against the Kansas City Royals and placed him on the 10-day disabled list:

Naturally, the question then became whether the Red Sox would actively look for a starter prior to the trade deadline. The answer seems to be "no," per Rosenthal and Mark Feinsand of MLB.com:

As long as the Red Sox think Price will return soon after his disabled list stint, then there is no reason for Boston to trade off assets for a starting pitcher. When he does come back, Boston will have one of the more formidable rotations in the game, headlined by Chris Sale.

With Eduardo Rodriguez and Drew Pomeranz pitching to sub-4.00 ERA this year, and with 2016 AL Cy Young winner Rick Porcello breaking out of his first-half slump with four straight quality starts, Boston's rotation will still be its biggest strength down the stretch.

Dan Straily Staying Put...For Now

The Miami Marlins starting pitcher went from being off the trading block to on the trading block to back off the trading block within a few days. That symbolizes the craziness of Major League Baseball in late July every year.

On Friday, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reported the latest Straily news:

Straily has pitched well since the beginning of the 2016 season. Per Baseball Reference, he is 21-14 with a 3.79 ERA. The 28-year-old right-hander would be a key asset to any team looking to fill a spot in its rotation.

With the Marlins 9.5 games back of the last National League wild-card spot and effectively playing out the string, it might make more sense for the Fish to trade some veterans in return for some top prospects.

That being said, the Marlins may see Straily as part of their future as well, especially considering that he will not be a free agent until 2021. Of course, we could also see rumors that Straily is back on the trading block soon, given how this story has played out.