MLB trade deadline rankings: Refreshed list of top 30 most impactful players who could move by July 31
Eugenio Suárez, Mitch Keller, Emmanuel Clase and Dylan Cease are among the biggest names who could get traded
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12 min read
Major League Baseball's trade deadline, set for July 31, is now less than a week away. That means deals are starting to be made -- the Mariners added Josh Naylor on Thursday night, while the Yankees grabbed Ryan McMahon on Friday -- and that this is the opportune time to refresh our trade candidate rankings. (Our last update was nearly a month ago, on June 30.)
Below, you'll find our assessment of 30 notable players who could be on the move in the days to come. Do note that a player's inclusion here isn't a suggestion that they will be dealt; additionally, there were more intriguing candidates than spots.
Got it? Good. Let's get down to business.
1. 3B Eugenio Suárez, Diamondbacks
Suárez, an impending free agent, appears to be the best position player available on the market. He's close to cinching his second career 40-homer season, which speaks to both his power and his extreme lift-and-pull tendencies. Suárez isn't a great third-base defender, but whatever team adds him will be happy to tolerate his glove.
2. RHP Mitch Keller, Pirates
Keller offers a combination of track record and upside. He's been a durable, mid-rotation starter for years, but it's reasonable to look at his six-pitch arsenal and wonder if there's even more chicken left on the bone -- keep in mind that it took Seth Lugo well into his 30s before he figured out the right way to leverage his own deep mix. As a bonus, Keller is under contract for another three years at bargain prices. The Pirates, who have pitching depth and offensive needs, seem to be in a good spot here.
3. RHP Merrill Kelly, Diamondbacks
Kelly's game doesn't feature much chrome, but he's been a reliably above-average starter since returning from overseas ahead of the 2019 season. Credit his success to his command over an arsenal led by his changeup and three fastball variants. Assuming he's traded, he should slot in nicely as some team's Game 2 or 3 starter in October.
4. RHP Edward Cabrera, Marlins
Cabrera has always had immense arm talent, and he's making the most of it this season. He's walking a career-best 3.1 batters per nine innings, while he closes in on his first 100-inning season. (He came an out short back in 2023.) Cabrera is under team control through the 2028 season, making him more than a rental. A club who believes this to be his new normal could pony up for a long-term rotation boost.
5. RHP Seth Lugo, Royals
If the Royals elect to sell, it only makes sense to entertain moving Lugo ahead of his player option call this winter. He's a difficult pitcher to assess because of his advanced age (he'll turn 36 after the season) and how his game is largely uncaptured by advanced metrics: he doesn't limit contact in a measurable way, nor does he generate a lot of swing-and-miss; heck, his walk rate is even the highest it's been in years. Lugo has found a way to be effective all the same, and surely some team will wager on that continuing through the remainder of the season.
6. RHP Dylan Cease, Padres
Cease's walk year has not gone according to plan, leaving him with a 4.59 ERA through his first 21 starts. His inclusion on the rumor mill would appear to be contingent on the Padres needing to clear money to take money. Maybe that's an incorrect assumption. Here's another potential one: he should pitch better heading forward based on how most of his underlying markers are similar to last season.
7. 1B/OF Ryan O'Hearn, Orioles
O'Hearn, a major developmental win for the Orioles, has improved his stock from Quad-A slugger to platoon ace. He's sliced into his strikeout rate in recent years, all the while continuing to provide power and patience. Some oversight is required here, since he's faced nearly 90% righties during his O's tenure, but his bat is worth the effort (plus he's a more capable first baseman than he receives credit for being).
8. OF Cedric Mullins, Orioles
How you feel about Mullins boils down to, by and large, how you grade his defense. Some public-facing measures are, to be charitable, not fond of his glovework anymore. That's not a trivial consideration because Mullins' offensive output tends to fall around the league-average mark. Interestingly, he's become even more of a pull-and-lift hitter despite having notched just one 20-homer season to date. Mullins has also seen his strikeout rate escalate to a career-worst 25.1%, though he's still capable of connecting on more than 80% of his in-zone swings.
9. LHP MacKenzie Gore, Nationals
Whether or not the Nationals actually move Gore this deadline is to be seen -- presumably the answer will be "no." He's developed into an above-average starter with two additional years of team control remaining, giving him plenty of trade value. All it takes is one team to make the Nationals an offer that they find tough to turn down.
10. RHP Emmanuel Clase, Guardians
You can make the case that Clase should be off limits. The Guardians remain in the race and have one of the weakest remaining schedules in the majors. Plus, his services are controllable through the 2028 season. It never hurts to listen, though, especially when it comes to single-inning relievers.
11. OF Steven Kwan, Guardians
Kwan seldom hits the ball hard, but he atones for it by being a contact merchant who controls his lumber and the zone to great effect. He's also a skilled defender and baserunner, albeit one who has lost a step. Kwan is under team control through the 2027 season, so the Guardians don't have to rush to move him.
12. RHP Sandy Alcantara, Marlins
Alcantara was the most obvious trade candidate in the sport entering the spring -- to the extent that the Marlins' top baseball operations executive was asked about dealing him … in March. Alas, he's scuffled in his return from elbow surgery, resulting in a 6.66 ERA through his first 20 starts. Alcantara's main issues have been the reduced effectiveness of his four-seam fastball, and his inability to handle left-handed batters. A team believing he's fixable could view him as an attractive buy-low candidate.
13. RHP Zac Gallen, Diamondbacks
Timing is everything in comedy and baseball. Unfortunately, Gallen's platform year is doubling as the worst season of his big-league career. His strikeout and walk rates have both veered the wrong way, and opponents have scorched him all season, recording an exit velocity of 95 mph or higher on more than 47% of his batted balls. Gallen has about two months left to right his course, otherwise it's not clear that he would be a certain piece of an acquiring team's playoff rotation.
14. RHP Charlie Morton, Orioles
Morton looked to be on DFA watch earlier this season, when he was relegated to relief work in late April after surrendering 25 runs in his first 20 ⅔ innings. To his credit, he's salvaged his year, allowing 24 runs in 54 ⅓ innings since returning to the rotation in late May. How'd he do it? At least in part by upping his curveball usage at the cost of two fastball variants. Morton now seems like a legitimate playoff rotation candidate.
15. RHP Ryan Helsley, Cardinals
Helsley, an impending free agent, appeared to be a legitimate offseason trade candidate. He's since had a more uneven season than his 136 ERA+ indicates. He's surrendered as many home runs in 35 appearances as he did in his previous 98, and his strikeout, walk, and hard-hit rates have all slid in the wrong direction. Of course, all of that stuff may make more of a difference to his offseason market versus now.
16. RHP David Bednar, Pirates
It sure looked like the Pirates had missed their opportunity to trade Bednar for a good return when they demoted him to the minors back in April. Since returning to the majors a few weeks later, he's posted a 1.59 ERA and 39 more strikeouts than walks in 34 innings pitched. Bednar technically has another season of team control remaining, but the Pirates should thank their lucky stars for a second chance to make a move.
17. 3B Nolan Arenado, Cardinals
Arenado's trade candidacy is as tricky now as it was over the offseason. He's still a talented defender capable of putting a bat on the ball, but it's hard to look at how his slugging capacity has declined and envision him being more than a league-average bat again. Besides, he has several seasons remaining on his contract, as well as a no-trade clause, meaning the Cardinals will have to get creative to move him.
18. C Sean Murphy, Braves
It's to be seen how much the Braves sell. You don't have to think too hard about why shopping Murphy would make sense on paper. There aren't many capable catchers out there, and Atlanta is blessed to also employ Drake Baldwin. For as good as Murphy has been for most of his career, he's nearing his 31st birthday -- this, then, could be the most trade value he has at any point moving forward. That doesn't mean the Braves will move him -- they've shown in the past they're fine having an overqualified backup backstop -- but it merits contemplation all the same.
19. UTL Willi Castro, Twins
Castro, who has a 105 OPS+ since the start of the 2023 campaign, has received at least five starts this year at five different positions, including at shortstop and both corner-outfield spots. That makes him a fit for virtually any and every contender, whether they're seeking a new regular or the luxury of an overqualified super-utility type.
20. OF Adolis García, Rangers
García, a postseason hero in 2023, has been on the wrong side of a league-average OPS+ dating back to the start of last season. He remains capable of putting a charge into the ball, but the issue is that he has an overly aggressive approach that makes him wholly dependent on hitting for average and slugging to combat his strikeout and pop-up tendencies. Clearly he hasn't been up to that task lately, but a team who believes he can course correct -- or, conversely, one who simply values his 20-plus homers and good corner-outfield defense -- could pounce on him as an option for both this and next season.
21. DH Marcell Ozuna, Braves
Ozuna is the most obvious Braves trade candidate. He's an impending free agent with a bat-only profile who appears to be in decline as he enters his mid-30s. Bill James used to warn about hitters who stop swinging at this point in their careers -- the reason being that they're doing it because of their own limitations, not because they've learned the strike zone. Ozuna's swing rate has cratered, from 46.8% to 39.6%, and while his OPS is above the league-average mark, it's not by a wide margin. Maybe those data points prove more relevant this winter, but this is the type of player that teams have largely rolled their eyes at in recent years.
22. OF Ramón Laureano, Orioles
Laureano was easily overlooked when the Orioles inked him to a one-year pact with a club option. That looks like one of the savviest moves of the winter, as he's since posted a 140 OPS+ through his first 75 games. Laureano is pulling the ball in the air more frequently and expanding his zone less often. So far, so good for that combination.
23. OF Harrison Bader, Twins
Bader is having his most productive offensive season since 2021, due in large part to him having already homered 12 times in his first 90 games. There's a lot of swing-and-miss and chase to his profile, but teams will overlook that in order to land a Gold Glove-caliber center fielder who isn't a complete offensive liability.
24. LHP Steven Matz, Cardinals
Matz has transformed a negative, that being his failure to make the Cardinals' Opening Day rotation, into a positive by becoming a nifty utility pitcher. He's recorded at least four outs in 21 of his 29 appearances, and he's done so while generating a 3.29 ERA and a 5.11 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
25. RHP Phil Maton, Cardinals
Maton is in the midst of a career season if you judge him off ERA -- credit that in large part to him surrendering a single home run through his first 39 appearances. He remains a contact manager, one of the best in the majors, who spams the opposition with his curveball and cutter and benefits from a deceptively deep release point.
26. LHP Danny Coulombe, Twins
Coulombe, who would have been typecast as a pure LOOGY in a different and not-so-distant era, has held lefties and righties alike to sub-.500 OPS since the start of the 2024 season. He should thank the coaching staff for careful micromanagement (he's regularly used in situations that allow him to bail without recording even three outs), but that doesn't mean he's without his charms. Coulombe marries an extreme release point with an arsenal that's heavy on cut and sweep.
27. OF Luis Robert Jr., White Sox
A complete wild card. Robert was a budding star not long ago, one blessed with both power and speed yet cursed with steady injuries. His in-zone contact rate has slipped in recent years, causing his strikeout rate to tick up. That, plus his new tendency to get too far underneath the ball, has resulted in the worst showing of his career to date. Maybe there's a team out there who believes they can maximize Robert's dynamism in two months' time. If they're right, he could be a value addition.
28. OF Randal Grichuk, Diamondbacks
Grichuk, whose contract includes a mutual option for 2026, has settled in as one of the league's best short-side platoon players. His underlying data remains strong against lefties, even if his streak of consecutive .900-plus OPS seasons against them appears endangered. (He entered Friday with a .750 OPS.) With offense hard to come by, it only makes sense that a team identifies Grichuk as a nifty, if limited target.
29. OF Alex Call, Nationals
Call has proven to be a nice waiver claim by the Nationals. At this stage of the game, though, it would be prudent to ship him to a contender seeking a short-side platoon player who traffics mostly in singles and walks. That's partially because he's nearing his 31st birthday, and partially because they need to audition younger outfielders.
30. 3B Amed Rosario, Nationals
Rosario continues to be allergic to right-handed pitching, walks, and good defense, but he's more interesting than his nomadic career indicates. Indeed, improved bat speed has allowed him to hit the ball harder than usual this season. In turn, he's sporting a would-be career-high isolated slugging. A team seeking some help against left-handed pitching could do worse than giving him a spin.
