We're now less than 48 hours away from the MLB trade deadline, and rumors are coming in rapidly. Sure, we've seen some intriguing players like Josh Naylor, Ryan McMahon and Seranthony Dominguez get traded over the past four or five days, but nothing major has happened yet. Sellers are holding firm on high asking prices leading up to the deadline, hoping a desperate buyer will bite, and buyers have been unwilling to do so.
Ultimately, all it takes is one deal for the dam to break. If one high-end reliever gets traded, chances are, several others will follow. If a star hitter like Eugenio Suarez gets traded, other position players should follow. It's a matter of who will blink first.
We don't know when the deals will start to take place, but with the deadline less than two days away, the market is going to get going soon. To get an idea of what teams are looking to do, ESPN's Jeff Passan and Buster Olney put together a notebook including the latest intel they've heard. Here's what you need to know from what they reported.
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Robert Suarez is latest high-end reliever to join trade market
The reliever market is robust, but after Emmanuel Clase was effectively taken off the trade block by being placed on non-disciplinary paid leave as part of MLB's sports-betting investigation, there weren't many high-end relievers available. With that in mind, the San Diego Padres have reportedly placed Robert Suarez on the block.
"There are second- and third-tier relievers, sure, but there isn't enough elite supply for the demand that exists. Which is why San Diego is dangling Robert Suarez, San Francisco is fielding calls on its back-end guys, and even the A's could conceivably get an offer they can't refuse for Mason Miller."
Suarez, MLB's save leader with 30 (in 34 tries), was an All-Star for a second straight season and has established himself as one of MLB's best closers in the game. It might seem weird that the Padres, a team currently in sole possession of the third Wild Card spot in the National League, are willing to trade a star reliever, but there are a couple of factors at play here.
First and foremost, Suarez has an opt-out after this season, which he will almost certainly exercise, allowing him to hit free agency. The cash-strapped Padres won't want to lose him for nothing in the offseason. Second, even without Suarez, with guys like Jason Adam, Adrian Morejon and Jeremiah Estrada in the mix, San Diego's bullpen is among the best in the game. If they can trade him for players who might come with more team control and/or help the team at an area of need, why not pursue it?
Chances are, Suarez, much like Dylan Cease, won't get traded, barring a return that's too good to pass on. Still, the fact that he's available to begin with could change the bullpen market.
Sky-high prices for dream additions have Cubs in tough spot
Even with their back-to-back losses against the Milwaukee Brewers, the Chicago Cubs have the third-best record in the National League, and are 2.0 games back of first place in the NL Central. They're as good as any team in the sport, but with that being said, they have clear holes, particularly in their rotation.
Justin Steele is out for the year, and as solid as guys like Matthew Boyd, Colin Rea and Cade Horton have been, those aren't pitchers Chicago would want starting Game 1 or 2 in a postseason series. With that in mind, they're eyeing a frontline starter to pair with Shota Imanaga at the top of the rotation. While there are options out there, getting the ideal frontline starter will be easier said than done for Jed Hoyer and Co.
"The Cubs would love to add a front-line starting pitcher, someone who could effectively replace Justin Steele in their rotation. But maybe more than any team, they could be hamstrung by how thin the market is unless they value the cost of acquiring Joe Ryan or Cease or if they work something out for Merrill Kelly."
The Cubs essentially have three options here when it comes to adding a frontline starter. They can either overpay by a significant amount to get a controllable ace like Joe Ryan, overpay a bit less for one of the best rentals - Merrill Kelly or Dylan Cease, or they can take a shot on a guy like Shane Bieber, who is coming back from Tommy John Surgery.
The dream scenario would be to trade for a controllable arm like Ryan, but how feasible is that, really? Getting one of the best rentals would work too, but the Cubs would then risk trading a ton for two months of a player who can walk for nothing in the offseason, which wouldn't be great if they don't win it all. Trading less for Bieber, who has ace upside, sounds good, but it's a major risk coming off over a year on the sidelines. It'll be interesting to see what Hoyer decides to do. Regardless, adding a high-end starter is a must.
Mets appear to be as aggressive as any team on the market
Many of the trade deadline rumors that have circulated make it seem as if the New York Mets are shying away from big-game hunting and are looking to make marginal upgrades at best. Well, the rumors from Passan and Olney would suggest otherwise, as they believe New York has been one of, if not the most aggressive, team on the market.
"The New York Mets' effort to get better. The Arizona Diamondbacks are the epicenter of the teams looking to part with players, but between now and the deadline, the Mets might be the most aggressive club adding players, looking for a starter who could pitch Game 1, 2 or 3 of a postseason series. Relief pitching and an outfielder -- perhaps Cedric Mullins of the Baltimore Orioles -- are also among their needs."
So far, the Mets have already added Gregory Soto, giving their bullpen the second left-handed option it desperately needed. Now, the Mets are reportedly looking to add a high-end starter, more bullpen help and an outfielder. Quite the checklist.
The Mets' interest in adding a high-end starter is interesting. They have Kodai Senga, Sean Manaea and David Peterson who they should be comfortable giving playoff starts to, but Clay Holmes has already set a new career-high in innings and has struggled to give much length lately. Frankie Montas has not pitched well enough to be relied upon in a starting role in October. Adding a playoff caliber starter like Dylan Cease or Merrill Kelly would go a long way.
Regarding bullpen help, the Mets could use a late-game arm to set up for Edwin Diaz. Adding one with an additional year of club control would be ideal, as Diaz can opt out of his contract at the end of the year. Acquiring a guy like David Bednar or Jhoan Duran, to name a couple of options, would give New York an elite setup man for this season, and a potential closer for 2026.
As for the outfielder, the Mets have been connected as much as any team to Luis Robert Jr., and it isn't hard to see why. Jeff McNeil has done an admirable job playing center field at the big league level for the first time this season, but he isn't a guy the Mets will or should trust defensively, particularly in big ballparks. Tyrone Taylor is a gifted defender, but hasn't hit enough. Jose Siri is an elite defender with speed and power, much like a lower-scale version of Robert, but he's been sidelined with injury for most of the season and has no clear timetable for a return.
Robert might not hit enough to be worth his $20 million club option for next season, but he's an elite defender, has blazing speed, and, as we saw in 2023, has superstar upside. With a change of scenery, he might unlock the potential he displayed. It'll be interesting to see if the Mets take a chance on the high-risk high-reward player in Robert, swing for the fences with a guy like Steven Kwan, settle for an underwhelming rental like Cedric Mullins or just stand pat. Based on their rumored aggressiveness, though, the latter doesn't feel like the likely outcome.