The stove is warming up... very slowly. But it's warming up nonetheless, and as we tick toward 24 hours remaining until the MLB trade deadline, it seems like the deals might fly after all.
Pitchers — both starters and relievers — appear to be the story of this deadline, as playoff hopefuls look to reinforce their rotations and bullpens and selling teams hope to recoup some promising prospects.
Dylan Cease to Astros "will probably happen" according to MLB insider
According to Jim Bowden, Houston is the most likely landing spot for Padres starter Dylan Cease as we enter the final day before the deadline. It's a logical move — the Astros need starting pitching help as their roster continues to be wrecked with injuries, and the Padres could surely use a prospect or two in their infamously shallow farm system.
Cease isn't the frontline starter he was a few years ago, and his 4.79 ERA isn't pretty, but he's at least a good enough arm to help Houston the rest of the season and into the playoffs. Plus, the Astros are accustomed to adding struggling arms and turning around their seasons; just last year, they added Yusei Kikuchi at the deadline when he had a 4.75 ERA with the Blue Jays and immediately became one of the best pitchers in the Astros rotation. If they can do the same with Cease, then get their star bats back, watch out. This team will never die.
Steven Kwan and Shane Bieber might be done in Cleveland
The Cleveland Guardians can't find their footing this season. Whenever it seems like they're about to get hot, they fall back down to Earth. Currently sitting at 53-54, they're not clearly in "buy" or "sell" territory. But Mark Feindand of MLB.com reports that the Guards are "trying to move" both left fielder Steven Kwan and starter Shane Bieber. So, sell it is, then!
I don't understand this decision at all. If Cleveland doesn't think it has the horses to make a run at the last AL Wild Card spot, that's fine — some trades that look toward the future would make sense.
But why Kwan? And why Bieber? Both are franchise success stories and both would be silly to trade, especially right now.
The former is a franchise success story. Kwan was picked in the fifth round of the 2018 MLB Draft and made his way through the farm system before breaking into the bigs in 2022 and immediately becoming a star. He has two All-Star appearances and three Gold Gloves in four seasons. He's posted 16.0 WAR at 27 years old and he has two years of club control left after this season. If Cleveland thinks it can compete any time in the next three years... it wouldn't trade Kwan.
Bieber, meanwhile, was also drafted and developed by the team, and has gone 62-32 over his career, which is currently on hold as he recovers from Tommy John surgery. So, his value is probably as low as it will be in his entire career.
Guardians fans are not happy about either of these potential moves, and they shouldn't be.
Cubs seem hesitant to pay up for Joe Ryan, Dylan Cease
We all know the Cubs are looking for a starting pitcher in the next day or so. But Buster Olney of ESPN reports that they, among other teams, may be hesitant to fork over what teams like the Padres and Twins are asking for their hurlers:
There are a number of contenders looking for a frontline starting pitcher -- Mets, Cubs, Red Sox, etc. -- but the cost on two of the most prominent starters, the Twins' Joe Ryan and the Padres' Dylan Cease, remain extremely high in the minds of some evaluators.
Neither of these guys are guaranteed to head to Chicago by tomorrow. In fact, I'd be a little surprised if either are dealt to the Windy City. With Cease likely headed to Houston and Ryan still with two years of club control left (meaning the Twins probably aren't in any rush to deal him) the Cubs will need to look elsewhere to fill out their rotation.
There are plenty of starters out there — perhaps none as impactful as Ryan, but plenty that wouldn't require such an immense package, either.