MLB Rumors: Cardinals Jordan Walker warning, Jackson Holliday trade nonsense, Jazz Chisholm changeup

T-minus 19 days until the MLB trade deadline, which transpires on the final day of July. It's the craziest time of year for baseball fans. We can expect blockbusters and head-scratchers aplenty in the days and weeks to come. While every contender looks to strengthen its hand before the playoffs, those teams in a less envious position are angling to sell and reset.

The latest episode of The Baseball Insiders, featuring FanSided's MLB insider Robert Murray and Adam Weinrib, featured no shortage of piping-hot MLB rumors to satiate your pre-deadline appetite.

MLB Rumors: Jazz Chisholm viewed as OF and 2B in trade talks

The Miami Marlins are widely expected to deal talented outfielder Jazz Chisholm Jr. prior to the July 30 cutoff. After last season's improbable postseason appearance, Miami has fallen apart at the seams. Chisholm is a former All-Star with considerable room for growth, but Miami needs to reset the deck and recoup some prospect depth. Chisholm is the Marlins' top trade asset.

A few suitors are obvious. The Philadelphia Phillies need a centerfielder with a bat. Boom, easy. The Seattle Mariners are another contender lacking in the outfield department, while the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox could both use a slugging speed demon with Chisholm's upside.

According to Robert Murray, however, there's a chance teams searching for infield depth poke around the Chisholm sweepstakes, too. He has played mostly centerfield over the last couple years in Miami, but Chisholm came up as a second baseman and could offer intriguing positional flexibility to a team in need.

"Maybe teams could end up viewing Jazz Chisholm as a second baseman in addition to an outfielder. Obviously he's played 88 games as a centerfielder this season, he's been very good there, it's been a nice season so far. But, he's also had plenty of experience in the infield at second base. Versatility is a huge calling card for him... I wonder if teams could view him as that."

Chisholm is slashing .256/.325/.414 with 11 home runs, 41 RBI, and 18 stolen bases on the season. He would add power and speed to any lineup. The Yankees could plant Chisholm in the outfield, for example, but there's also a need at second with Gleyber Torres struggling. Perhaps that is how Chisholm slots into a hypothetical New York juggernaut.

Also mentioned as a potential landing spot: the Pittsburgh Pirates, who need offense.

MLB Rumors: No, the O's and Pirates aren't swapping their top prospects

There has been some scuttlebutt recently about the Baltimore Orioles and Pittsburgh Pirates discussing a trade centered on top prospects Jackson Holliday and Jared Jones. According to Dejan Kovacevic of DK Pittsburgh Sports, Baltimore and Pittsburgh broached the subject at some atemporal point in 2024. Eventually, it was Pirates GM Ben Cherington who backed off.

On the surface, that's a big yikes for Baltimore fans. Holliday has been the top prospect in baseball since his arrival as the No. 1 overall pick in 2022, but he struggled out of the gate this season and was demoted to Triple-A Norfolk as a result. He's 20 years old — give the kid a bit of time — but the O's are looking to contend right now. Jones is two years older than Holliday and he's contributing at a high level in the MLB.

There is some scant, trace signs of logic there if the O's are truly desperate. But, it sure is hard to believe. Robert Murray tends to agree. In fact, he's straight-up calling B.S. on the whole concept.

"The Pirates rumors the last few days have been pretty crazy... And, to really just put the kabosh on this one, a Jackson Holliday-Jared Jones trade was never on the table. That was total fiction. That did not happen — would not happen — so we can put that rumor to bed."

Pittsburgh is in the market for hitting and the Orioles are in the market for pitching. Just expect both front offices to take separate routes to addressing those needs. The idea of swapping top-ranked prospects in tantalizing from a fan perspective — a delightful exercise in hypotheticals — but clearly this was never actually a possibility, nor will it become a possibility in the near (or distant) future.

MLB Rumors: Cardinals not expected to trade Jordan Walker despite struggles

The St. Louis Cardinals began the season on disaster watch, with fans sharpening their pitchforks and preparing to campaign for the exodus of John Mozeliak in the front office and Oli Marmol on the bench. Flash forward to July, as St. Louis is within five games of first-place Milwaukee and firmly in the National League Wild Card race.

Not only are the Cardinals not expected to sell at the trade deadline; St. Louis could be among the most aggressive buyers. Robert Murray expects the Cardinals to target several upgrades, but he also cautions against involving St. Louis' top prospects in your trade machine concoctions.

"[St. Louis] will probably end up looking for a No. 5 starter, or just a starting pitcher in general. Bullpen help is something that I think would make a lot of sense for them. Also, adding another right-handed bat. A right-handed rental bat. All three are in play. I would not — and this part right here is just my own speculation — I would not expect them to be in a hurry to move some of their pitching prospects... they should be in the business of stockpiling young pitchers."

He also harbors similar feelings about Jordan Walker, who is struggling in Triple-A. The 22-year-old, a 2020 first-round pick, would prove quite valuable trade negotiations, but Murray believes such a trade would prove "catastrophic" for St. Louis in the long term. There's a difference between buying and mortgaging the future. The Cards need to toe that line carefully in the weeks to come.

Walker is due to regain form eventually, and he is still the Cardinals' most exciting offensive prospect. With Paul Goldschmidt and other key vets reaching the tail-end of their St. Louis careers, the Cardinals need to remain invested in the future, even as the potential to contend this season exerts influence over the front office.

For more news and rumors, check out Robert Murray's work on The Baseball Insiders podcast, and join the discord to get the inside scoop as we near the July 30 MLB trade deadline. Hit the ‘Join’ button below the YouTube video