At long last, might the trade market — one that seemed so promising at the start of the MLB offseason, only to produce very little of note through November and December — be starting to crank up a bit? First came reporting, confirmed by FanSided's Robert Murray, that the New York Yankees were in talks with the Miami Marlins about a potential deal for righty Edward Cabrera. And according to Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon of The Athletic, the market for Milwaukee Brewers righty Freddy Peralta is also picking up steam.
Rosenthal and Sammon cite the Mets, Yankees, Dodgers, Red Sox and Braves as the teams that have engaged Milwaukee, which is willing to listen on offers for a pitcher who's set to hit free agency next winter. But the Brewers are also trying to make it back to the NLCS and beyond this season, so the price is appropriately steep: at least a Major League-ready starting pitcher to replace Peralta in the rotation, and likely another piece or two to boot.
Who of these suitors is most able to entice Milwaukee into a deal? Let's break it down.
6. San Francisco Giants
Best trade piece: RHP Landen Roupp
While not specifically cited in The Athletic's most recent report, San Francisco has been connected to Peralta in the past. The Giants need at least one more reliable arm to slot behind Logan Webb and Robbie Ray, and Peralta would sure love to pitch in that ballpark.
To construct a trade, though, you're essentially relying on one of two young pitchers: Roupp, who was a pleasant surprise as a rookie in 2025, or lefty Carson Whisenhunt, the team's top pitching prospect who struggled in his first taste of the Majors last year. Roupp has a truly wicked curveball, but he'll seemingly top out at something like a No. 3 (or more likely a No. 4) in a contending rotation barring some major changes, while Whisenhunt's stock has been fading for a little while now.
5. Atlanta Braves
Best trade piece: RHP JR Ritchie (No. 1 prospect)
It's easy to understand why the Braves are sniffing around a Peralta trade; Spencer Strider, Spencer Schwellenbach, Chris Sale and Reynaldo Lopez is a group long on potential but also long on injury risk, and Atlanta could very much use another known quantity or two to toss atop its rotation. The problem, though, is that this has become a pretty shallow farm system in terms of near-Majors talent, and it's hard to imagine them winning a bidding war for a big-time player.
Ritchie is an awfully fun prospect who made it all the way to Triple-A last season, but pencilling him into the Opening Day rotation feels like a stretch. Maybe you can sell Milwaukee on Hurston Waldrep after his stellar MLB debut last season, but I'm skeptical, especially given the names still to come on this list. And even if you could, it's hard to think of who might serve as a secondary piece.
4. New York Yankees
Best trade piece: RHP Will Warren
In terms of pure upside, the Yankees' quartet of Minor League arms (Elmer Rodriguez, Carlos Lagrange, Ben Hess and Bryce Cunningham) are a bit more enticing, but none of them can be relied on for a team with World Series aspirations in 2026. Warren had some bumps in the road in his first full big-league season, but he also flashed mid-rotation potential and a couple of very good fastballs. He also comes with plenty of team control remaining that the Brewers would be interested in.
Unfortunately for New York, he probably doesn't move the needle quite enough. The Yankees could maybe make things interesting if they were willing to include someone like Jasson Dominguez or Spencer Jones, but Milwaukee already has plenty of young outfielders (so much so that they just sent Isaac Perkins to Kansas City last month) and the other promising bats in New York's system are more low-Minors upside types.
3. Los Angeles Dodgers
Best trade piece: RHP Emmet Sheehan
Sheehan impressed coming back from injury in 2025, posting a 2.82 ERA in the regular season and throwing meaningful innings in the postseason. He'd absolutely be a worthy rotation candidate for Milwaukee. But what really makes the Dodgers' case here is quantity, not quality.
L.A. has a bounty of riches that they can tempt the Brewers with if Sheehan doesn't really float their boat, from Justin Wrobleski to River Ryan to Gavin Stone to even someone like Jackson Ferris. And there's always a position player prospect like Dalton Rushing to sweeten the pot even further. Really, the only thing holding this back as a possibility is the seemingly low likelihood that a fellow NL contender would send its best pitcher to the team that just dogwalked it in the NLCS.
2. Boston Red Sox
Best trade piece: LHP Connelly Early (No. 4 prospect)
Early punctuated a promising MLB debut by holding his own in a do-or-die Wild Card game at Yankee Stadium in October, and sure looks MLB-ready ... you know, if it weren't for the fact that Boston's dance card was already pretty full in that department.
The Red Sox are long on options behind Garrett Crochet, Sonny Gray and Brayan Bello, from Tanner Houck to Kutter Crawford to Patrick Sandoval to Kyle Harrison to fellow left-handed prospect Payton Tolle. What this team needs is certainty, someone you know you can hand the ball to come playoff time. So why not deal from that considerable depth in exchange for a ceiling-raiser in Peralta, while giving Milwaukee quality cost-controlled pitching in return? This makes all the sense in the world, and only falls short of No. 1 because the strength of the team above them.
1. New York Mets
Best trade piece: RHP Jonah Tong (No. 4 prospect)
David Stearns seems to be willing to go big on a starting pitcher on a short-term basis, and while the free agent market might not shake out that way, a trade for Peralta sure would fit the bill. And New York is uniquely suited to make it work, starting with young pitchers like Tong and Brandon Sproat. (If you're wondering where Nolan McLean is, well, keep wondering, because the Mets aren't moving him.)
Plus, New York also has a surplus if infielders like Mark Vientos, Ronny Mauricio and Brett Baty that could catch Milwaukee's interest as well. Again, whether the Brewers will be willing to keep Peralta within the NL remains to be seen, but Stearns has the ammo if he so chooses.