2025 Trade Deadline Fantasy Movers: AL Edition

Link to NL Edition

Jeff will handle the NL and I’ll be running the AL. We’ll be analyzing the big moves throughout the Trade Deadline period and updating these posts through August 1st (the day after the deadline in case we Thursday brings a ton of action we need some time to sort out!) the weekend.

Updates:

• 7/26: Josh Naylor, Ryan McMahon
• 7/28: Chris Paddack, Danny Jansen
• 7/29: Seranthony Domínguez
• 7/30: Jhoan Duran fallout, Mick Abel
• 7/31 AM: Eugenio Suárez, Ramón Urías, Shane Bieber, lots of RPs
• 7/31 PM: Mason Miller, JP Sears, Brock Stewart, Ramón Laureano, Ryan O’Hearn
• 8/1: Jesús Sánchez, Carlos Correa, Zack Littell, David Bednar, Camilo Doval, Adrian Houser, Charlie Morton, Twins fallout: Taj Bradley–James Outman–Alan Roden, José Caballero, Dustin May, Orioles fallout, Miguel Andujar, Jake Bird

I’ll have my annual Trade Deadline Show with Nick Pollack starting at 3PM CT! My write-ups on today’s trades and their potential fantasy fallout will be sparse until tonight/tomorrow AM. With so many moving pieces, I just don’t want to get caught doing some through write up on some potential winners/losers from a trade only for another trade to completely upend that commentary. (7/31)

I’m updating throughout the day on Friday and into the weekend as things shake out. Please feel free to ask about specific players in the comments. I’m putting together a Winners/Losers kind of board but that won’t be out until the weekend because I want at least one slate of lineups to see how some things shake out. (8/1)

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American League

Angels

Traded for Andrew Chafin (LHP) and Luis Garcia (RHP) from the Nats.

I wonder if this is a one foot in, one foot out situation where they backfilled the bullpen so they can trade Kenley and still be on the fringes of contention. They are only 4 games back in the wildcard as their high-powered offense — I’m not joking, they’re 4th in HRs — has given them juice. (7/31)

Traded for Oswald Peraza (INF) from the Yankees. 

The 25-year-old utility infielder brings some depth to the Angels. The one-time top prospect has struggled massively this year, posting a 26 wRC+ in 170 PA. He’ll be on their bench and likely bounce around the diamond giving everyone a day off. (8/1)

Astros

Traded Twine Palmer (RHP) to Orioles for Ramón Urías (INF). 

Twine Palmer is an amazing name! I’m watching Twin Peaks for the first time, so my brain dropped the “e” and saw Twin Palmer  😂

Urías jumps right into the 3B spot (until they get Correa later today 😎) with Isaac Paredes out for a substantial period of time. In fact, literally as I write this there is an update on MLB Central that Paredes is out for 6-7 mos. with the torn hamstring! This ends being a bat-for-glove trade as Urías brings an 89 wRC+, compared to Paredes’ 133, but Urías is a former Gold Glove winner who can play all over the infield and morph into a super-utility guy if they do in fact get someone like Correa to replace Paredes’ bat. (7/31)

Traded Ryan Gusto (RHP), Chase Jaworsky (INF), and Esmil Valencia (OF) to the Marlins for Jesús Sánchez (OF). 

I love this move for Houston as a long-time fan of Sánchez. He is a strong-side platoon outfielder who made the most of being in Miami, posting a career .812 OPS at LoanDepot Park (jeezus, that name suuucks, lol). I was shocked to learn that Miami’s home park is pretty solid for lefties, posting a 103 Park Factor the last 3 seasons which is tied for 3rd-best with Baltimore, Cincinnati, and Philadelphia, trailing only Colorado (112) and Boston (108). Houston’s park is tied with a cluster at 101, though it does hold a 9-point edge in HR factor over Miami. That’s not enough to move the needle and expect some sort of surge from Sánchez, but I am eager to see him in the midst of a playoff race. Miami was playing much better of late as an offensive unit, but this is still an undisputed lineup upgrade for him. I’d be looking to pickup Sánchez where available (I imagine he’s not universally rostered in 10s and 12s) in shallower mixed leagues and I think he has real impact potential in AL-Only leagues.

Losing Gusto does cut into their pitching depth a bit as he’d been a solid swingman for them this year. Three Duds account for 20 of his 47 ER this year meaning he’s been mostly good across his 24 outings, including four starts with at least a 60 Game Score (anything 60 and above on Game Score is an unquestionably strong start). George Costanza Jason Alexander is currently penciled into the 5th role right now, though Spencer Arrighetti is on rehab right now. (8/1)

Traded cold hard cash to the Twins for Carlos Correa (*3B*)!

Obviously, Correa is still just a SS for our purposes in fantasy, but he’s agreed to play 3B and will add that eligibility in a couple weeks. The Correa reunion is a fun one. It was part of a maaaassive sell-off in Minnesota and comes at a perfect time for Houston as they were looking for impact bats, but short of prospect capital to trade for top end bats. With Sánchez and Correa, they had an amazing day deepening their lineup, especially with Jeremy Pena slated to return today, too. Correa’s only been a league average-ish bat this year (97 wRC+), but if he can stay healthy I wouldn’t be surprised to see him more in the 115-120 wRC+ range the rest of the way. Non-prospect Matt Mikulski (26 y/o in A+) was also sent to Minnesota. (8/1)

Athletics

Traded Mason Miller (RHP) and JP Sears (LHP) to Padres for Leo DeVries (SS) and a prospect package.

This is obviously a massive deal, but it doesn’t really create any actionable fallout for the A’s. They’ll almost assuredly split their remaining SVs which won’t be plentiful and Sears himself was barely streamable so a replacement isn’t going to be all that appealing. (7/31)

I will say that if San Diego can somehow help Sears with his homers, there is some upside. I liked him as a prospect, but his career 1.6 HR9 and 1.9 mark this year make him a remarkably scary stream in even the best of situations. (8/1)

Traded Miguel Andujar (4C) to Reds for Kenya Huggins (RHP). 

Andujar appeared in all four corners for the Athletics this year (1B/3B/LF/RF), spending the bulk of his time at 3B and LF, posting a solid .298/.329/.436 line and 107 wRC+. His playing time evaporates with this move, though, as he’ll likely be limited to some starts versus lefties unless injury opens a spot somehow. He can safely be cut anywhere he was being rostered. (8/1)

Blue Jays

Traded Juaron Watts-Brown (RHP) to Orioles for Seranthony Dominguez (RHP). 

Dominguez was traded in the middle of a doubleheader between the Jays and Os which is just amazing. I already love when a guy traded within a series, but in the middle of a DH is next level! Dominguez adds depth to the pen, strengthening the bridge to Jeff Hoffman. Dominguez has been able work around a 14% BB so far this year (3.09 ERA/1.28 WHIP) as he’s difficult to square up (6.6 H/9) and has cut his home run rate drastically from 1.6 the last two seasons to just 0.8 this year. There’s no fantasy relevance here unless something happens to Hoffman. (7/29)

Traded Khal Stephen (RHP) to Guardians for Shane Bieber (RHP).

Huge name but it’s hard to say how impactful he will be this year. He’s returning from TJ and currently 4 starts into his rehab — he’s looked fantastic, but it’s been at RK/A+/AA and is all of 12 IP so far — so they are probably hoping he can give them some innings for final 5-6 weeks of the season and into October, but he’s a maaaaassive wildcard. He’s already been getting stashed in some formats and this trade will only add to the interest.

Stephen ranked 17th in our Jays list back in April. The 2024 2nd rounder has enjoyed a strong pro debut, primarily at A/A+ and he had just made his AA debut prior to the trade. He would almost assuredly move up in a re-rank after his 23% K-BB in 92 IP and landed 5th on MLB.com’s updated list prior to the trade. (7/31)

Small moves with little fantasy impact right now:

• Out: Will Wagner and Alan Roden
• In: Louie Varland (an arm I still like!), Ty France (veteran bench bat), and Brandon Valenzuela (MiLB catching depth)

Guardians

Traded Shane Bieber (RHP) to Jays; Paul Sewald (RHP) to Tigers.

As with some of the other sellers, I’ll take a closer look later so I’m not writing a bunch of stuff that immediately gets washed out by another trade or two. (7/31)

Circling back on this August 1st, there really isn’t anything else to add. They didn’t make any other moves and these two aren’t super relevant. Bieber hasn’t debuted yet this year and Sewald was nowhere near their closer’s role with Clase and Cade Smith. (8/1)

Mariners

Traded Brandyn Garcia (LHP) and Ashton Izzi (RHP) to Diamondbacks for Josh Naylor (1B).

Naylor’s arrival is bad news for Luke Raley, who’d been manning 1B primarily after Rowdy Tellez was DFA’d. Raley is still competent vR (.767 OPS), but Naylor is a clear upgrade at .884 OPS plus a far more playable .665 mark vL whereas Raley was below .250 vL. (7/26)

Traded Tyler Locklear (1B), Juan Burgos (RHP), and Hunter Cranton (RHP) to Diamondbacks for the Eugenio Suárez (3B) reunion!

It’s kind of interesting how so many of the Suárez suitors would’ve resulted in a reunion (DET, CIN were thought to be in the mix as well) and his most recent former team became the winner, going back to the well for another D’Backs deals. Suárez had a great year (132 wRC+, 31 HRs) and a solid year (105, 22) in his two Seattle seasons prior to his trade out to Arizona. He returns for a pennant race and will bat somewhere in the 4-6 range, like he did with the D’Backs. The park is worse, but he’s used to it so use his recent Seattle as a guideline for production the rest of the way: .230 AVG w/bombs, but maybe better R/RBI as this is one of the better Mariners lineups in recent years. Ben Williamson and his 76 wRC+ will head to the bench. (7/31)

Orioles

Traded away Andrew Kittredge (RHP) to the Cubs, Seranthony Dominguez (RHP) to the Blue Jays, and Gregory Soto (LHP) to the Mets. 

Kittredge was a popular closer spec after Bautista’s injury and Soto/Seranthony trades, but now he’s gone, too! Like the offense, I’ll wait to comment deeply on the pen until today’s dust settles. It looks like Corbin Martin could be the guy as he got a SV earlier this week, but he’s also 29 years old so he could be gone later, too. Yennier Cano and Keegan Akin are also worth keeping an eye, either as potential trade candidates or to garner some SVs down the stretch (though Wins could be sparse w/the skeleton crew pitching). (7/31)

Traded away Ramón Urías (INF) to Astros.

Jordan Westburg will take over 3B full-time with Urias’s departure, but I’m going to save commenting too deeply on Baltimore until tonight/tomorrow as I expect more moves from them. At the very least, O’Hearn’s gottaaaaa be dealt, right? (7/31)

Traded Cedric Mullins (OF) to the Mets. 

Traded Ramon Laureano (OF) and Ryan O’Hearn (1B/COF) to SDP for a pile of prospects. 

The early birds got the jump on Dylan Carlson last week, but he’ll surge in popularity this week with a legitimate shot at a full-time role again. It could be Coby Mayo time, too, but Ryan Mountcastle is on rehab and will be back soon. But Alex Jackson is currently slotted in at DH so Mountcastle’s return doesn’t cut off Mayo. (8/1)

Traded Charlie Morton (RHP) to the Tigers for Micah Ashman (LHP). 

One of the locks of the day was Morton getting dealt as there was just no way the selling O’s were going to keep the 41-year-old veteran. After a dreadful start to the season (8.35 ERA thru mid-May), he’s rounded back into a cromulent 5th starter-type with a 3.79 ERA/1.39 WHIP/15% K-BB in his last 64.7 IP, notching 7 wins in the process. Ashman is a tall (6’7) lefty reliever in the mid-minors. (8/1)

Rangers

Traded Mitch Bratt, Kohl Drake and David Hagaman to the D’Backs for Merrill Kelly 켈리 (RHP). 

The Rangers and their old men! They didn’t do a ton at the deadline and even waited deep into deadline day before pulling off their big move here. The 36-year-old righty is having a fantastic season (3.22 ERA/1.06 WHIP/16% K-BB) but now gives them four arms aged 36 and older atop their rotation. If they can stay healthy, it’s a great rotation… if. Kelly will be a massive add in AL-Only leagues. (8/1)

Rays

Traded Danny Jansen (C) to Brewers for Jadher Areinamo (INF). 

I’ll sit tight on writing anything here until we see if the Nick Fortes rumors go through. (7/29)

The Rays did in fact acquire Fortes shortly after this deal creating a pretty clear bat-for-glove swap. The two have near-equal WAR totals on the year (NF: 0.8 | DJ: 0.7), but Fortes gets the bulk of his value from his defense while Jansen’s 98 wRC+ holds a 23-point edge over Fortes. Given that Fortes is driven by his glove, the fantasy value is very low. Jansen’s PT takes a severe hit backing up William Contreras, but he can still be a deep league C2 if you’re just chasing power. (7/30)

Traded Zack Littell (RHP) to Reds in a 3-way traded that included the Dodgers and netted the Rays Brian Van Belle (RHP) from Reds and Hunter Feduccia (C) from Dodgers. It’s purely NL, but worth noting that Adam Serwinowski went from the Reds to the Dodgers in this deal as well. 

Traded Curtis Mead, Duncan Davitt, and Ben Peoples to the White Sox for Adrian Houser (RHP). 

I included these two deals together because Houser directly replaces Littell. In fact, despite Houser’s impressive 2.10 ERA, the two just aren’t that different from a skills standpoint and it’s actually Houser’s SIERA that is a bit worse. As their 5th starter, Tampa Bay doesn’t need Houser to stay as hot as he’s been this year and as long as he’s in the range of his 4.52 SIERA, that’ll be just fine for them. His start-to-start Win probability does rise here, but it’s worth noting that he was pitching so well that he won 3 of his last 4 with the White Sox.

Van Belle is the kind of Triple-A arm the Rays will get random spurts of usefulness from, especially if they can find a way to turn his 12-13% SwStr into more Ks. He’s a soft-tossing control artist, but there’s some real talent here so I’ll be keeping an eye on him to see if they are able to develop him at all. Meanwhile, Feduccia strengthens their catching depth at Triple-A. (8/1)

Traded José Caballero (UT) to the Yankees for Everson Pereira (OF) and a player to be named later.

Pereira hit a few Top 100 lists a few years back but he’s fully in the post-hype prospect zone despite being just 24 years old. He’s like so many power-speed outfielders who can flash super appealing fantasy skills, but often lack the consistency to be everyday big leaguers. The simple fact is that if you’re striking out 29-32% of the time throughout your minor league ascent, there’s very little chance of big league success, especially if you aren’t countering that swing-and-miss with top of the scale power. If something clicks and he’s striking out 25-27% of the time, I can get involved, but until then it’s a pass. (8/1)

Red Sox

Traded Blaze Jordan (CIF) to Cardinals for Steven Matz (LHP).

Matz is a swingman arm. Solid trade, but fantasy irrelevant unless he starts consistently. (7/31)

Traded James Tibbs (OF) and Zach Ehrhard (OF) for Dustin May (RHP). 

It’s a big name, but little impact. May just simply hasn’t been able to miss enough bats to sustain MLB success. There’s always been a disconnect between the pure nastiness of his stuff, highlighted by GIFs of his wicked 100 mph sinkers, but outside of a 53-inning sample spread over two seasons, he’s failed to eclipse a 9% SwStr. Maybe the Red Sox have some ideas about how to tap into his talent better, but until I see it, I’m not jumping in. I realize some will go for him on pure spec because of the name value and I’m willing to lose out if he does somehow pop off. (8/1)

Royals

Traded Felix Fermin (C) to Padres for Ryan Bergert (RHP) and Stephen Kolek (RHP).

Great sell here by KC! Fermin is a 30-year-old catcher who is best in a 50-50 split or just as a flat-out backup. (7/31)

Kolek is probably the bigger name for most as he made some noise early on by opening his season his 14 scoreless IP including a shutout in Coors. He has a 5.10 ERA in 65 innings since then and will likely be in a swingman role for the Royals. Bergert, meanwhile, has some real upside. The 25-year-old righty has a sparkling 2.78 ERA in 35.7 IP but his 11% K-BB and 4.64 SIERA are skeptical on him being that good as a .217 BABIP is carrying the load. He did rank 3rd on San Diego’s list coming into the season with Eric saying he’s a changeup away from a 50 FV grade. He’s still looking for that changeup, throwing his just 7% of the time this year, but the fastball and slider give him a workable foundation. As I mentioned briefly yesterday, I really like this move for KC. (8/1)

Traded Evan Sisk (LHP) and Callan Moss (1B) for Bailey Falter (LHP).

The Royals are firmly in the mix, sitting just 3.5 games back with Cleveland and Texas ahead of them. Falter joins Bergert and Kolek to deepen the pitching along with Michael Lorenzen nearing a rehab and Cole Ragans possibly available later this month. Falter has mixed two parts smoke and one part mirror to deliver a 3.73 ERA/1.18 WHIP despite an impossibly low 15% K rate in 113.3 IP. His 7% K-BB is 2nd-worst among qualified starters, ahead of only Mitchell Parker (6%). Barring an unexpected skills improvement, he will go where the BABIP goes… it’s currently at a career-best .236, well below his .280 career mark. Be careful streaming him. (8/1)

Tigers

Traded Enrique Jimenez (C/1B) to Twins for Chris Paddack (RHP) and Randy Dobnak (LHP).

Paddack is a depth swingman for the Tigers. If Troy Melton can stick in the rotation with the 4 locks (Skubal, Flaherty, Mize, Olson nevermind… Olson to the IL means Paddack is likely going right into the rotation) then Paddack will be asked to deliver key middle innings out of the pen. I’ll leave what I wrote earlier about Paddack going to the pen as I still dream of this happening for Paddack, but it’s unlikely the plan here for Detroit: I wonder if the Tigers are thinking that moving him to the pen where he can shave down his arsenal and maybe pick up a tick or two of velo could be the key to unlocking more swing-and-miss. They desperately need that in the bullpen right now. At the very least, Paddack is a competent 6th starter as Melton tries to establish himself and Sawyer Gipson-Long works back from a neck injury.

Dobnak is minor league pitching depth. He can pitch MLB innings on a spot start basis down the stretch as opposed to having to turn to an untested prospect in the midst of a playoff race. This isn’t a flashy move and I definitely hope it’s not all the Tigers intend to do, but it’s a solid depth move. Jimenez is a solid piece out of the Tigers system, but they’ve built such a deep reserve both overall and at catcher that even if he pans out, their near- and long-term organizational future at catcher is quite bright. (7/28)

Traded prospects for Rafael Montero (RHP) from the Braves & Paul Sewald (RHP) from the Guardians.

I won’t go too heavy on these as they aren’t super fantasy relevant in terms of either being major SV candidates. But this Tigers fan loves these move because both guys can miss bats!! As such, Hinch might see fit to give them leveraged opportunities that might even include SV opps. I still think Vest is the guy, but no one is ever an unquestioned A-guy in a Hinch pen with the Tigers so if you’re desperate for SVs, I can see speculating on one of these two. Sewald is my favorite of the two for SVs (once he’s back from the IL, of course) as Montero’s been battling his control quite a bit the last two years (13% BB). Former top prospect Matt Manning was designated for assignment to make room for Sewald (8/1 update: he was traded to Philly for 18 y/o OF Josueth Quinonez). He’s been having a disastrous season in Triple-A (6.04 ERA/1.62 WHIP in 51 IP). (7/31)

Traded Josh Randall (RHP) and R.J. Sales (RHP) to the Nationals for Kyle Finnegan (RHP). 

Finnegan was the last piece of the rebuilt Tigers bullpen, giving Hinch another option for SVs. Vest should remain the A-guy, but the Circle of Trust has expanded. I wish Finny had more swing-and-miss in his game as that’s what the Tigers desperately need, but at least Sewald and Montero both bring that to the table. Finnegan does throw mid-to-upper 90s and had a capable 11% SwStr coming into this year before dropping to 9% this year, netting a 20% K — both of which are career-lows. My Paddack-to-RP scenario required some wishcasting that was immediately blown up when we got news of the Olson injury, but I don’t think it’s farfetched for the Tigers to have a plan on how to get more out of Finnegan than the 11% K-BB we’ve seen this year. Moving away from fantasy for a moment, as a Tigers fan I love how they handled the Deadline. (8/1)

Twins

Traded Chris Paddack (RHP) and Randy Dobnak (LHP) to the Tigers for Enrique Jimenez (C/1B).

Paddack’s departure will just be filled in by Bailey Ober when he returns this week, but that still leaves a spot open with Lopez and Festa still on the IL. Jimenez checked in at #28 on the Tigers preseason list back on March 11th, but he’s almost assuredly moved up after more good work at the Complex league. The 19-year old switch-hitter has a 119 wRC+ in 192 PA after posting a 110 there in 183 PA last year. In some recently updated Tigers lists at other outlets, he ranked in the Top 15 of an amazing Tigers system so this is a solid return for the Twins though it will obviously take a long time to pay off. (7/30)

Traded Jhoan Duran (RHP) to the Phillies for Mick Abel (SP) and prospect Eduardo Tait (C). 

And now that 5th starter role is filled, at least temporarily! Ober got pushed back this week so he’s not back yet, but still expected to return this week as far as I know. He’ll join Zebby, Ryan, and SWR with Abel likely slotting into that free spot now. We’ll have to see how tight Minnesota wants to be with his innings. He’s at 99 on the year between AAA/MLB and he’s posted 109, 113, and 108 the last three years so it wouldn’t be outrageous to see 130-135 IP. Minnesota’s never been shy about limited the guys who run out of gas before the 5th and I could definitely see more 3-4 IP outings by design.

Abel’s isn’t a 3rd time through problem, it starts with the 2nd time when his OPS jumps 93 points to .864 and holds (.867 3rd time, .946 4th time — though just 8 PA). Tait was ranked 5th in the Philly system list back in January and the 18-year-old has held his own after 75 more games (28 last yr) at A-ball before a recent promotion to High-A where he’s only played 7 games but does have multiple hits in 3 of his last 4. This is a nice return for the Twins as it should be when trading such an electric reliever with team control beyond this year.

Crazy how quickly two of the best-but-most-blocked relievers in the game are now in closer’s roles with Griffin Jax joining division mate Cade Smith as the man. I’m sure Rocco Baldelli will still deploy Jax in non-save situations that he deems more important than holding for the 9th as we see with so many ace relievers these days, but he is now a real Saves option and will be heavily targeted in leagues where he is still available. (7/30)

The Twins when I said Jax was going to become a new closer:

Oh boy, where do I start?

Let’s do it like this.

OUT: Griffin Jax (RHP), Carlos Correa (SS), Harrison Bader (OF), Willi Castro (UT), Ty France (1B), Brock Stewart (RHP), Louie Varland (RHP), Danny Coulombe (LHP)

IN: Taj Bradley (RHP), Alan Roden (OF), James Outman (OF), and prospects

Now that is a selloff!

Bradley remains a very talented arm and it will be interesting to see what the Twins do with him. He doesn’t have classic 3rd time through issues as it’s actually his first time through that hurts him most (.799 OPS) and then he settles in with a .585 and .671 the second and third times through. Maybe an opener could help in the short-term, so that he starts his outing facing a softer part of the lineup and goes from there. Yes, this is my thinly-veiled attempt to once again recreate 2018 Ryan Yarbrough (16-6 record, primarily as a follower). I can see stashing in a deep league to see if there’s any change of scenery boost as he was excellent in 4 of his L6, the problem is that the other 2 saw him allow 9 ER in 7 IP. (8/1)

Outman could be a big playing time winner here. Coooould. He has to figure out his contact issues, though. Some might remember him fondly for his 23 HR/16 SB rookie season in 2023, but he’s seen his K% skyrocket to 37% in 200 PA since then, leading to a 49 wRC+. He’s not just going to stop striking out all of a sudden, but if we can get a 28-31% mark (which still stinksss), he can deliver some fantasy value as a power-speed bat. If you just need HR/SB, I can see it in a deeper league, but if your AVG is susceptible to losing a few points then Outman’s not worth because he’d almost certainly counter any gains in those categories by stinging your AVG. (8/1)

I like Roden much more than Outman from a hitting standpoint, but I’m not sure if he’s going to Twins or Triple-A. He’s a lefty bat on a team loaded with ’em, but I wonder if he’s a better fit for LF than DaShawn Keirsey Jr. who has a -11 wRC+ in 81 PA. If Roden does join the big league club, I like him for 15s at least and maaaybe 12s, but he will likely be a strong side platoon at best. He could be the AVG counterweight to Outman, so maybe rostering both in an AL Only league could make some sense if they’re both playing daily vR. (8/1)

White Sox

Traded Adrian Houser to the Rays for Curtis Mead (4C), Duncan Davitt, and Ben Peoples.

OK, the avoided the full tumbleweed by getting Mead+ for Houser at the last minute but Luis Robert and Aaron Civale are still there. I had really psyched myself into a Robert Rebirth on a new team, but I guess they are committed to picking up the $20 million dollar team option and run it back in 2026.

Mead reminds me of the Miguel Vargas pickup last year – a post-hype prospect who can hit a bit. I can see Mead being similar to Vargas: a league average-type bat and not nearly enough MLB sample to write off their upside while you try to hide their glove. By that same token, Vargas’s presence undercuts Mead’s ability to crack the lineup. As do Colson Montgomery and Lenyn Sosa. It was a good sell on Houser after the Andrew Vaughn situation as his emergence in Milwaukee was clouding the fact that Houser was awesome with Chicago and netted a solid return.

I really wish I knew what was being offered for Robert just to see where they might value him. I can still see the upside clearly because like I mentioned, I was giddy for the idea of him reemerging in San Diego or Houston or literally anywhere else. Maybe the winter will bring the Robert trade. Or maybe they continue to build this thing out, he gets healthy and is actually a centerpiece on their next good team. I heard they kept Tauchman around as a team leader for the young team which I can totally respect. Outside him, Robert, and Benintendi, everyone else in the starting lineup is 25 and younger as it should be for a team like this. They’re getting some incremental results, too, finishing 13th in July wOBA. So despite my tongue in cheek tumbleweed, I think they did fine at the deadline. (8/1)

Yankees

Traded Griffin Herring (LHP) and Josh Grosz (RHP) for Ryan McMahon (3B).

The lineup upgrade alone should negate any major damage moving out of Colorado, especially because Yankee Stadium is also 11 points clear of Coors Field in HR Park Factor for lefties at 129. He could lose some starts vL (.599 OPS), though Oswald Peraza can’t get anythingggg going at the dish this year (24 wRC+). (7/26)

Traded Rafael Flores (C/1B), Edgleen Perez (C), and Brian Sanchez (OF) to the Pirates for David Bednar (RHP). 

Yankees-Pirates, name a more iconic duo! Cashman loves trading with the Pirates across multiple regimes. Bednar had a brutal start to the season that we had to pretend was the end of his career because it was the first three outings of the year as opposed to three in the middle of June. In fairness, he was also coming off the brutal 2024. At any rate, he’s bounced all the way back so this one stings for fantasy folks because it takes an A-closer off the board. He’ll get occasional SVs but that job is Devin’s. (8/1)

Traded prospects to SFG and COL for Camilo Doval (RHP) and Jake Bird (RHP). 

More depth for the Yankees and another good closer off the board with Doval vacating SF’s role. Randy Rodriguez will be the targeted guy, but Ryan Walker makes sense if you’re shopping the bargain bin. He had a solid July: 2.65 ERA/1.08 WHIP/21% K-BB in 11 appearances. He had the job earlier in the year and they could just keep Rodriguez in the stopper’s role. This could all be moot if either guy saves two games on the weekend and looks like the obvious guy so we’ll see how things look on Sunday. (8/1)

Traded Everson Pereira (OF) and a player to be named later to the Rays for José Caballero (UT)

This isn’t necessarily a death knell for Caballero’s value and his league-leading 34 SB total. He wasn’t a full-timer in Tampa Bay since the start of June anyway and he was still piling up bags. He had 19 SBs in 154 PA through May, starting most of the 47 games he played. He has 15 SBs in 121 PA since then as more of a short-side platoon player. He’s played every position except C and 1B this year so he can dot around the field with a plus glove and give virtually anyone a day off. (8/1)