To Be Traded or Not To Be Traded- That is the Question
By Greg Evans
If you are a baseball fan, the trade deadline each year is a big deal. Some years provide more fireworks than others. The Dodgers made a splash by bringing on Tarik Skubal for three prospects- pitchers River Ryan and Brady Smith, and outfielder Zyhir Hope. Many fans were upset by this, arguing that not all teams could compete with the Dodgers, which is nonsense. I’m not happy that the Dodgers went out on a limb and added to their already inflated payroll, but the risk is on them. I would have much rather had the Yankees pick him up, but they weren’t willing to unload the prospects requested by the Tigers.
Why people are so bothered by this trade isn’t clear, but maybe they are having flashbacks to Steinbrenner’s spending on high-quality players leading to the Yankees dynasty of the 1990s and 2000s. I was all for it. Still am. Nobody is complaining about the Yankees right now. They have over $133,000,000 of salary per year on the injured list. That is equivalent to 165 Cam Schlittlers.
The Yankees picked up infielder Luis Garcia Jr. from the Nationals for his .283 hitting, for four pitchers, Jake Bird, Yovanny Cruz, Jack Cebert, and Ben Grable. Despite being 2nd in the AL, the Yankees hitting has been spotty, and restless fans have been screaming for management to beef up the batting average. Where Garcia will play on the field is still in question, and many wonder if Chisholm, or even Mcmahon may be on the chopping block? Garcia Jr. played first base and DH this year, and the Yankees have solid first base and DH positions filled with Ben Rice and Paul Goldschmidt. The lack of hitting at the catcher position has been troublesome, and many wondered if they would wheel and deal to land Cincinnati catcher Tyler Stephenson. The Yanks also traded Camilo Doval to the Pittsburgh Pirates for prospects, catcher Omar Alfonzo, and outfielder Luis Cruz.
The Pirates also picked up outfielder Johnathan Rodriguez from the Orioles for a handful of cash considerations. The Pirates also acquired pitcher Ron Marinaccio from the Padres for international bonus pool money. Pirates get infielder Jacob Gonzalez and pitcher Brandon Eisert from the White Sox for pitcher Jaden Woods and a 2026 Competitive Balance-A Round Pick.
Catcher Bo Naylor and pitcher Codi Heuer of the Guardians were sent to Milwaukee for outfielder Blake Perkins and pitcher Craig Yoho.
The Seattle Mariners traded a struggling Luis Castillo to the White Sox for reliever Seranthoy Dominguez, outfielder Nolan Jones, and catching prospect Boston Smith.
The Mets traded a struggling Freddy Peralta to Tampa Bay in exchange for three prospects: pitcher Gary Gill Hill, outfielder Aidan Smith, and infielder Emilien Pitre.
The White Sox picked up pitcher Huascar Brazoban from the Mets for pitchers Zach Franklin and Gabe Davis.
Minnesota picked up pitcher Dean Kremer from the Orioles for minor league outfielder Jhomnardo Reyes and reliever A.J. Minter from the Mets for minor league infield prospects Bruin Agbayani and Billy Amick. Twins also get pitcher Tommy Nance and international bonus pool money from the Blue Jays for catcher Ryan Sprock.
The Orioles picked up catcher Jake Rogers and sent pitcher Zane Barnhart to Detroit.
San Francisco trades pitcher Tyler Mahle to the Braves for pitcher Anthony Molina.
Kansas City trades outfielder Lane Thomas and pitcher Bailey Falther to Atlanta for pitchers Lucas Braun and Carter Holton. Royals also pick up pitcher Nate Pearson from the Astros for pitcher Max Martin.
Texas acquired catcher Logan O’Hoppe and pitcher Chase Silseth from the Angels for infielder Angel Arredondo.
The Cubs landed pitcher Kevin Gausman from the Blue Jays for outfielder Brett Bateman and infielder Ty Southisene.
Red Sox picked up infielder Curtis Mead from the Nationals for pitcher Connelly Early. Red Sox also get outfielder Jahmai Jones from the Tigers for a player to be named at a later date.
Phillies secured outfielder Kameron Misner from the Royals, who get cash considerations.
Brewers picked up pitchers Lance McCullers Jr., Colton Gordon, and cash from the Astros for outfielder Jadyn Fielder.
Cubs land pitcher Aaron Civale from the Athletics for pitcher Aiden Moffett
Dodgers pick up pitcher Seth Halvorsen from the Rockies for outfielder Landyn Vidourek and pitcher Nick Frasso.
With all the salary money being thrown around, is there going to be a salary cap coming into play? Is there then going to be a strike because greed has ruined anything that is/was good and wholesome in the world? Will the MLB 2027 season get canceled because the boatloads of money at play are stained in blood? There are so many questions. People whine and complain that the bigger markets have more money, and therefore, they are more competitive. But the New York Mets have shown everyone that that is not the case. They have the highest payroll in baseball and are one of the worst teams.
After this trade deadline, who is favored to win the World Series, the entire reason why these trades are taking place, at least in the eyes of the fans? The Dodgers are the favorites. The Yankees are next. Followed in third place by the Brewers. If the Red Sox get some more hitting, will they enter the conversation? Last night, they hit four home runs in their sweep against the Dodgers. I found this troubling. If the Dodgers are getting swept by the third-place in the AL East, 2nd in the AL Wild Card race, Red Sox, what is to become of the Yankees? As a Yankees fan, I don’t want to see the Red Sox beef up their hitting. Last night’s game gave me anxiety. The White Sox looked pretty good against the Yankees; not great, but pretty good. Good enough to make me feel uncomfortable.
It is still early in the morning. Remember last year, Mason Miller was traded to the Padres from Sacramento? There are rumors that the star closer is being sought by interested clubs, including the Yankees. People had wondered in 2025 if the Athletics were insane. People now wonder if Detroit is a looney tune. But Skubal wanted to go to the West Coast. That was no secret. The reality is that the Yankees, the Rays, and the Brewers had no real chance to land Skubal.
For the Yankees or anyone else to land Miller, according to the Padres president of baseball operations, A.J. Preller, they’d more or less have to shell out a billion-dollar type package rivaling that of the mediocre outfielder from the Mets, Juan Soto, who, in reality, is worth, at most, $720,000. And even that is a stretch.
It is barely dawn. Time to wait and see what happens as the day unfolds.
It just hit the wire that the Phillies will acquire three-time batting champ Luis Arraez from the San Francisco Giants. This will be his fifth team in five years, which makes us wonder if he is hard to get along with and annoying to manage. If that is the case. And its jusy speculation, then thankfully he didn’t come to the Yankees.
Blue Jays acquire Jose Soriano from the Angels for three prospects that include top shortstop Arjun Nimmala. Soriano increased his value after a great start to the 2026 season.
The Mariners acquire outfielder Taylor Ward in a deal with the Orioles that will send reliever Alex Hoppe and two prospects, Harrison Kreiling and Brock Moore to Baltimore.
The Angels trade outfielder Jo Adell to the Guardians for catching prospect Jacob Cozart. As the smoke starts to clear, Brent Suter was also sent to the Atlanta Braves in the Angels’ roster shakeup for Nacho Alvarez Jr.
Red Sox acquire Adley Rutschman from the Orioles. It’s not publicly known what the Orioles get in return.
The Blue Jays are acquiring infielder Josh Smith from the Rangers in exchange for reliever Adam Macko.
On the wire, the Yankees are trading left-handed pitching prospect Henry Lalane and infielder Kaeden Kent to the San Francisco Giants in exchange for outfielder Heliot Ramos. Ramos is a .264 batting average and could be a nice addition to the club.
Hopefully all the future strike talk is just talk and the situation can be dealt with professionally, all greed aside. (I literally laughed out loud at that one. Like Dickens laughing at his typewriter).
Cover photo credit: MLB Network
Body photo credit: NBC