MLB Prospects Who Could Be Traded Before the Deadline and Impact on Their Card Prices
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The MLB trade deadline is less than a week away. This season’s trade deadline has been called one of the biggest trade deadlines of the century by ESPN baseball insider Jeff Passan due mainly to the availability of game-changing talent like two-time Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal, along with other impactful players such as Rockies slugging catcher Hunter Goodman.
In this article, I wanted to focus on the other side of those trades, specifically some of the top prospects that could be moved, and how that would impact their hobby markets.
Theo Gillen OF, Tampa Bay Rays
A somewhat under-the-radar prospect when he was drafted due to injuries the year before he was drafted, Theo Gillen has rocketed up prospect rankings since making his professional debut. Taken 18th overall by the Rays in 2024, Gillen made his hobby debut in Bowman Draft 2024.
Gillen currently rates as the 8th and 9th overall prospect in baseball by MLB Pipeline and Baseball America, respectively. Players ranked that high generally don’t get traded; however, several factors have made a trade more likely, including a wide-open American League that the Rays are leading and a very deep Tampa Bay farm system that got an infusion of high-end talent in the most recent MLB draft
From a hobby standpoint, Gillen’s cards are currently selling well, with Bowman Chrome base autos selling for $125-130 and refractors selling for $200. Should he be traded to a team like Detroit or Washington, I would expect his market to remain steady.
Zyhir Hope OF, Los Angeles Dodgers
Zyhir Hope came to the Dodgers as the main piece sent back in the trade that sent Michael Buesch to the Cubs. While the Cubs obviously don’t have any complaints about the trade, the Dodgers seem to have found another high-end talent to add to their already top-rated farm system. Currently, Hope is ranked 25th and 55th in the top 100 prospects per MLB Pipeline and Baseball America.
Currently, Hope’s autos sell for a modest but reasonable amount, with raw base autos selling for $40-50 and refractors selling for $130-150 per Cardallader sales data. Unlike Gillen though, if Hope were to be traded, I would expect his market to take a dip as he would most likely be going from a premium franchise in the Dodgers to a lesser one.
Andrew Fischer 3B, Brewers
The Brewers and Rays have found themselves in similar situations, both having legitimate World Series aspirations with incredibly deep farm systems. That’s the main reason why Andrew Fischer, the Brewers' 2025 first-round pick, makes this list. He made his hobby debut earlier this year in Bowman 2026.
Fischer is a slugging corner infield type who has split his time between first and third base this season. While he ranks outside the top five in the Brewers system, he is still considered a top 100 prospect in the game based on many prospect ranking sites' evaluations, albeit near the bottom half of the list.
From a hobby perspective, Fischer's autos have sold extremely well, as he was regarded as one of the top Brewers chases in Bowman 2026. Per Cardladder sales data, Fischer's base autos have been selling for around $125-150, with lower-numbered cards going for much higher. While a trade-off, the Brewers might hurt his hobby value initially, I would expect his sales prices to rebound fairly quickly, as chances are he would have the opportunity to climb through another team’s farm system faster than he would in Milwaukee.
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