Winter Meetings are just beginning, and the MLB trade market is taking shape. There's no shortage of notable names available, but it does seem like the true pie-in-the-sky options are now more or less pipe dreams.
Paul Skenes? Don’t even think about it. Tarik Skubal? Very unlikely. Corey Seager? Don’t get your hopes up. And for good reason: Great players demand great returns, and most front offices aren’t eager to shove all their chips into the middle of the table while absorbing massive risk. Still, every once in a while, someone gets reckless. Someone makes an offer you can't refuse.
What a Godfather trade really looks like
So what if these players weren’t untouchable? What if a contender went the extra mile to force a team into trading the star it never planned to move? We set out to answer that question in as realistic a fashion as possible. These are just the kind of overwhelming offers teams hate to entertain, but sometimes can’t afford to turn down.
Paul Skenes, RHP, Pirates to Dodgers
Look, I'm as annoyed by this as you are. But the fact remains that, while there's almost zero chance that the Pirates think about moving Skenes at any point in the foreseeable future, no team is better positioned to put together a competitive package for him than the Dodgers. That's what happens when you not only have the most limitless budget in the sport but also arguably its best player development machine.
Said machine has produced a ton of young, cost-controlled talent in recent years, both on the Major League roster and on the farm. Pages is a rock-solid bat and above-average defender in center field, a two-way starter under team control through 2030. Rushing struggled in his first taste of the Majors this year, but he was one of the top prospects in the sport for a reason and holds elite potential behind the plate for years to come. And then there's De Paula, a consensus top-25 prospect that the Dodgers might not even miss considering they have multiple other excellent young outfield prospects (notably Zyhir Hope) behind him.
That alone would provide a solid foundation for Pittsburgh's lineup moving forward. And we're far from done: Bringing Glasnow back to PNC Park would not only alleviate payroll floor concerns for Bob Nutting but would also help replace Skenes' production at the top of what would still be a formidable rotation. Sheehan, meanwhile, pitched to a 2.82 ERA in 12 starts in 2025 and held his own in the hothouse of a World Series.
Tarik Skubal, LHP, Detroit Tigers to Chicago Cubs
Skubal is a difficult case: He means so much to Detroit that Scott Harris has to hold out for a king's ransom, but the fact that he has just one year of control remaining means that many teams will likely be wary of that asking price. (This is why a deal before the trade deadline is so hard to imagine.)
But it is worth noting that the Cubs could at the very least make a run at the lefty. Shaw came on strong down the stretch, and would pair with top Tigers prospect Kevin McGonigle to form a tremendous left side of the infield for years to come. Assad isn't in Skubal's universe, but he's a perfectly fine fourth or fifth starter when healthy, and Wiggins' ceiling is sky-high after posting a 2.19 ERA across three different levels of the Minors in 2025.
He could well be another ace for the Tigers to build around, while Shaw and Caissie would pair with Riley Greene, McGonigle, Max Clark, Colt Keith, Kerry Carpenter and Parker Meadows to form a very solid offensive nucleus. Is it enough to convince Detroit to pull the trigger now rather than later? Probably not. But it's the sort of broad base of Majors or near-Majors talent it would likely take.
Adley Rutschman, C, Baltimore Orioles to San Francisco Giants
Signs point to the Orioles refusing to sell low on Rutschman, and it's hard to blame them: He's struggled through a couple of injury-plagued seasons that have dinged his value, and Samuel Basallo, while exciting, isn't nearly polished enough behind the plate to be an immediate replacement. That said, he's only got two years of team control left, and Baltimore still needs pitching from somewhere.
Roupp isn't an ace, but he's among the more underrated young starters around, the owner of a wicked curveball that provides him with an excellent foundation to build upon. Bailey isn't in Rutschman's class as a two-way player, but his elite defense makes him an easy everyday starter at catcher, while Eldridge could slot in and give this lineup a much-needed shot in the arm on day one. Among the realistic Rutschman suitors (catcher-needy teams like the Phillies, Red Sox, Padres and others) there simply aren't that many young arms on offer.
Byron Buxton, OF, Minnesota Twins to Cincinnati Reds
Buxton's commitment to the Twins is admirable, but the truth is that both sides would likely benefit from a divorce: While Minnesota isn't as far away from contention as you might think, it's probably not coming in the next couple of years thanks to the Pohlads' skinflint ownership, and Buxton's value will likely never be higher as he approaches his 32nd birthday.
The Reds could very much use both another top-of-the-order bat and an upgrade over TJ Friedl in center field, and they have the sort of pitching depth that could convince Minnesota to pull the trigger. Burns has the sort of electric right arm that would grab the Twins' attention, while Lewis is an exciting two-way player for the future and Neville would provide some much-needed outfield depth in Buxton's place. This would leave the Reds with plenty of starting pitching left (from Hunter Greene to Nick Lodolo to Andrew Abbott to Rhett Lowder) and a significantly improved lineup and set Minnesota up well moving forward.
Corey Seager, SS, Texas Rangers to New York Yankees
It feels like Texas' trade for Brandon Nimmo — a move that keeps the team competitive while shaving some money off of its 2026 payroll — makes a Seager deal less likely. But the Rangers desperately need a reset as this World Series core ages, and we know that the Yankees aren't on Seager's eight-team no-trade list. So let's dive in.
Texas will probably ask for Cam Schlittler here, and I was tempted to add him myself. In the end, though, his injury history and the amount of money he has remaining on his deal as he gets deeper and deeper into his 30s keeps his price from truly entering the stratosphere. As it is, Texas gets two near-term rotation additions in Warren and Lagrange to slot behind Jacob deGrom, Nathan Eovaldi and Jack Leiter; Warren was better as a rookie than his top-line numbers suggest and his real No. 3 potential, while Lagrange's ceiling is massive given his top-of-the-scale velocity and 6-foot-7 frame.
Plus, Volpe is a real addition here. Seriously, stop laughing: The cratering of his defense was likely a result of playing through a torn labrum, and if he gets back to being a great shortstop when healthy, he's at worst 2-3 WAR player and perfectly fine starter at the bottom of a lineup. You could do a lot worse, especially at his salary.
Ronald Acuña Jr., OF, Atlanta Braves to Milwaukee Brewers
OK, hear us out here. The PR hit from trading Acuña might just be a non-starter, but he's got just three years left on his deal and has played 120 or more games exactly once in the last six seasons. Atlanta certainly doesn't want to trade him, but could you make it worth their while given the transition period they find themselves in and the decline in his defense and durability of late?
Let's at least try. Frelick gives the Braves a ready-made replacement, nowhere near Acuña's level at the plate but a great defender in right who posted a 111 OPS+ for Milwaukee in 2025. Uribe slots in as an excellent setup man for a bullpen that needs all the help it can get, and Henderson is a top-100 pitching prospect who can help replenish Atlanta's depleted depth in that department. Already, we're filling needs with promising and cost-controlled pieces.
The real home run here, though, is Made. He's one of the most exciting prospects in the entire sport, capable of placing short, second or third while combining an elite plate approach with serious damage on contact. The ceiling is the roof here, and Made is the kind of talent that would catch any team's attention for just about any player.