MLB Rumors: Don't count out Brewers, White Sox trade fallout, Pirates letdown

Trades have been running rampant across MLB and we're not even 24 hours away from the trade deadline. Expectations initially were that this would be a quieter deadline than most, but so far, it has been anything but.

As if the Randy Arozarena and Isaac Paredes deals weren't shocking enough, a three-team trade went down on Monday, with the Cardinals acquiring Erick Fedde and the Dodgers adding Tommy Edman as the headliners.

With a lot more moves to come, FanSided's Robert Murray and Adam Weinrib combed through all of the latest rumors on the latest episode of the Baseball Insiders podcast.

For more news and rumors, check out MLB Insider Robert Murray’s work onThe Baseball Insiders podcast, and join the discord to get the inside scoop as we near the July 30 MLB trade deadline

MLB Rumors: Pirates fans could be headed towards a disappointing deadline

The Pittsburgh Pirates enter Monday's action with a 53-52 record. They are just 2.0 games back of the third Wild Card spot, making them an interesting case with the deadline right around the corner. Do they buy and try to make the postseason or sell once again and let down the entire city of Pittsburgh?

Well, the Pirates answered that somewhat on Monday by making a trade with the Boston Red Sox. They addressed their offense, which was a must, but they acquired Nick Yorke, a player who has yet to make his MLB debut. Yorke could be an impactful player down the line and is close to being MLB-ready, but this isn't the kind of swap you see from teams trying to win now.

As for moves the Pirates can make before the deadline or wanted to make, Murray goes in depth as to why their deadline feels like a bit of a letdown now.

"Everything I've heard about the Pirates is that they remain on the lookout for a bat. Outfield is the option I've heard the most with them. I know they had some level of interest in Jesse Winker and Tommy Pham but obviously both have gone," Murray said.

The Pirates wanted players like Jesse Winker and Tommy Pham who were both traded to the Mets and Cardinals respectively in recent days. Pittsburgh being unwilling to meet relatively soft asking prices for players like Winker and Pham is awfully disappointing for a team in dire need of some offensive help, particularly in the outfield.

"I know Taylor Ward is an option they do like, but nothing, to my knowledge, is close. I think at the end they will get a bat, and their offense really calls for it because it's been pretty underwhelming this year. Remain patient in Pittsburgh," Murray continued.

Remain patient in Pittsburgh? Oh boy. The Pirates have not made the postseason in 2015. They finally have a pitching staff capable of getting them there, and the Pirates are getting outbid for Jesse Winker and Tommy Pham. Hopefully, Murray is right in suggesting that at least one bat is coming, because Pirates fans deserve that. It has to be more than just Nick Yorke.

MLB Rumors: Three-team trade fallout

As if things couldn't get any crazier, a massive three-team deal took place early Monday afternoon involving the St. Louis Cardinals, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Chicago White Sox. The Cardinals got Erick Fedde and Tommy Pham, the Dodgers got Michael Kopech and Tommy Edman, while the White Sox got Miguel Vargas and a pair of prospects.

This deal has a lot of moving parts, and was broken down by Murray who went through the fallout for all three teams.

"The haul is kind of surprising to some people. Miguel Vargas is a good piece, but I know there are some folks who expected more in return especially considering the lack of a starting pitching market," Murray said.

The bottom line here is that the White Sox did not get enough. Murray noted that they wanted to include Pham in an Erick Fedde deal (for whatever reason) and the best piece they got is Miguel Vargas, an intriguing talent who has not found a role in either of the last three seasons with the Dodgers. With how expensive pitching is, particularly starting pitching, it was fair to assume that the White Sox would've gotten a lot more.

"For the Cardinals, this was a coup. Getting Fedde in that rotation was really good. It was a strong move by them. They didn't give up too much. Tommy Pham is another addition in that outfield, and I would expect this to be a precursor to a Dylan Carlson trade. Nothing is close to my knowledge, but the Cardinals have had discussions with other teams about Dylan Carlson," Murray continued.

As Murray notes, this was an unbelievable deal for the Cardinals. They needed another starting pitcher, and Erick Fedde is having a tremendous year and happens to have another year of club control. Getting Tommy Pham in the deal as an option to hit against left-handed pitching only improves the return. Losing Tommy Edman stinks, but trading him for both of those players is a move they should make ten times out of ten.

As for Dylan Carlson, it's pretty clear that acquiring Pham means his tenure in St. Louis has come to an end. Where he ends up remains to be seen.

"This was a good trade by the Dodgers. Edman was a player that they've long-coveted. There are some concerns about how he's looked coming off the injury, but they value the player immensely. They really like him. Getting Kopech was a really good move."

Miguel Vargas did not have a future with the Dodgers, so they let him go in this deal while his value was still clearly high in the eyes of one team at the very least. They also didn't have to trade any of their elite prospects yet they landed both Edman and Kopech. How well both of these players perform this season is a question they're going to have to answer, but they didn't give much of note up and got strong value back.

Overall, from Murray's perspective, the Cardinals and Dodgers did very well here while the White Sox should've gotten more. The White Sox made the right move to trade these players when they did, but clearly combining them in the same deal impacted their return, because it wasn't nearly enough in what's being dubbed a seller's market, for three impactful players, two of which had more than this year under club control.

MLB Rumors: Don't count out Brewers

The Milwaukee Brewers weren't expected by many to compete this season after trading Corbin Burnes, losing Craig Counsell, and being without Brandon Woodruff for the season, but they enter Monday's action with a 60-45 record, holding a 6.0-game lead in the NL Central.

They're about to get Devin Williams back in what's been one of the best bullpens in the league, and have the deadline to address their major need, which is their starting rotation. As of this writing, the Brewers rank dead last with just 497.1 innings pitched from their starting pitchers. If they want to make a deep run in October, that's going to have to change. Fortunately, Murray linked them to one of the best options on the market, Jack Flaherty.

"I think a team like Milwaukee could make some sense here," Murray said.

It isn't too often that you see a smaller market team like the Brewers in the mix for a rental of Jack Flaherty's caliber, and there's a good chance they don't get him, but the fact that Murray believes that the Brewers could make sense here suggests that the chances of Flaherty coming to Milwaukee aren't zero.

Flaherty is easily the best rental starting pitcher available right now. He has posted a 2.95 ERA in 18 starts and 106.2 innings of work, striking out 133 batters compared to just 19 walks issued.

The Brewers know him well from his days in the NL Central, have a clear rotation need, and have more than enough prospect capital to get a deal done. The only question is will they be willing to outbid the field for a rental? We know they're willing to pay up for a pitcher with control as they did for Aaron Civale, but Flaherty is certainly going to be in Milwaukee for only a couple of months before departing for a huge free agency deal. There's a lot of risk by making a deal like this, but there could be a lot of reward as well.