MLB trade rumors: Latest news, buzz as deadline approaches
Major League Baseball is nearing the trade deadline. Teams have until Monday to either acquire players to boost their rosters for the stretch run or trade away veterans in preparation for the future.
Plenty of big names are expected to be involved in trades, and the transactions have started to come through. The Cubs dangled their young prospects as bait to acquire flamethrowing pitcher Aroldis Chapman from the Yankees, who could keep selling as they fall behind in the AL East race.
Some of the more recognizable names rumored to be on the trade block include Andrew Miller, Carlos Beltran, Jay Bruce and Jonathan Lucroy.
Follow this page to remain up-to-date on the latest rumors from around the league.
Friday (all times Eastern)
5:30 p.m.
• The Jays, Dodgers and Astros are showing interest in A’s lefthander Rich Hill. Those teams are negotiating two-tiered trade structures where they would send Oakland a major prospect if Hill makes 10 starts for them. Hill is currently battling a serious blister issue. (Peter Gammons, ESPN)
• The Rangers are seriously interested in Phillies righthander Vince Velasquez, but a deal is unlikely. (Ken Rosenthal, Fox Sports)
• The Angels have drawn a lot of interest in righthander Cam Bedrosian, but view him as a future closer. (Gammons)
4 p.m.
• The Indians, Giants and Nationals are looking at Pirates closer Mark Melancon. The Pirates are looking for an MLB-level reliever and prospects in return. (Ken Rosenthal, Fox Sports)
• The Braves discussed Jonathan Lucroy with the Brewers, but nothing materialized to date. (Rosenthal)
• There are multiple teams waiting to hear back on their Lucroy offers. (Buster Olney, ESPN)
• The Mets have shown interest in Reds outfielder Jay Bruce. (Olney)
• The Mariners have inquired about Reds shortstop Zack Cozart in addition to Jay Bruce. (Jayson Stark, ESPN)
• The Braves have been close to dealing reliever Jim Johnson “for days” and are getting closer to dealing him. (Chris Cotillo, SB Nation)
• The Yankees would not deal Andrew Miller for Nationals prospect Lucas Giolito straight up. (Jon Heyman, Today’s Knuckleball)
• It is now looking doubtful that the Rays move Chris Archer. Other possible trade candidates include Matt Moore, Jake Odorizzi and Drew Smyly. (Joel Sherman, New York Post)
• The White Sox are listening to offers for Chris Sale but the price tag may be too high for any deal to be made. (Joel Sherman, New York Post)
2 p.m.
• The Nationals would be willing to complete a one-for-one trade of pitcher Lucas Giolito for Andrew Miller. (Jon Morosi, Fox Sports)
• Mariners general manager Jerry Dipoto said pitcher Taijuan Walker will not be traded. “We’re not currently discussing Taijuan (Walker) with anybody. He’ll stay right where he is.” (Ken Rosenthal, Fox Sports)
• The Mets could also be interested in Pirates reliever Mark Melancon. (Chris Cotillo, SB Nation)
• The Mets and Cardinals are still focused on acquiring bullpen help. (Chris Cotillo, SB Nation)
• The Brewers are evaluating all their offers for catcher Jonathan Lucroy after asking all interested teams to submit their offers yesterday. The Mets were among the several teams to make an offer. (Ken Rosenthal, Fox Sports)
• Lucroy could block a trade to the Indians, Nationals, Mariners, Tigers, Angels, Twins, Athletics and Padres. (Jerry Crasnick, ESPN)
• The Blue Jays are evaluating their options for acquiring a starting pitcher and have looked at Jeremy Hellickson, Rich Hill and all the Rays’ pitchers. Toronto has also been looking at relievers. (Chris Cotillo, SB Nation)
• Twins pitcher Brandon Kintzler has attracted trade interest from teams interested in relievers. (Jerry Crasnick, ESPN)
• The White Sox would ask the Rangers for Joey Gallo and Nomar Mazara in exchange for Chris Sale if the two teams were to put together a deal. The Rangers have been the team most aggressively pursuing Sale. (Bob Nightengale, USA Today)
• The Rangers, Orioles, Nationals and Marlins all sent scouts to observe Sale’s last start. (Jayson Stark, ESPN)
• The Mets and Pirates have discussed bringing Jon Niese back to New York, though the Mets aren’t actively searching for a starting pitcher. (Chris Cotillo, SB Nation)
Noon
• The Nationals are in talks with the Pirates about acquiring reliever Mark Melancon and with the Royals about Wade Davis. (Ken Rosenthal, Fox Sports)
• Multiple teams are inquiring about Melancon. (Ken Rosenthal, Fox Sports)
11:00 a.m.
• The complete Padres-Marlins deal sends Andrew Cashner, Colin Rea and Tayron Guerrero to Miami in exchange for Jarred Cosart, Carter Capps, Josh Naylor and Luis Castillo. (Ken Rosenthal, Fox Sports)
• Two MLB executives think Phillies pitcher Jeremy Hellickson would be a good fit for the Giants. (Jerry Crasnick, ESPN)
• The Giants are no longer trying to trade for Rays utility man Steve Pearce after acquiring Eduardo Nuñez, but the Indians and other teams are still asking about Pearce. (Jerry Crasnick, ESPN)
• The Mets are also interested in Pearce, but the asking price for him might be too high. (Jerry Crasnick, ESPN)
• Pearce and Matt Moore are the players most likely to be traded out of Tampa Bay. (Jeff Passan, Yahoo! Sports)
• The Orioles have inquired with the Rays about using Erasmo Ramirez as a starter. (Jerry Crasnick, ESPN)
• The Mariners are considered likely to trade Wade Miley, but will likely retain Taijuan Walker and James Paxton. (Jon Heyman, FanRag)
• Edwin Jackson is considered an under-the-radar trade candidate. (Jon Morosi, Fox Sports)
• The Indians could pursue a deal for Yankees pitcher Andrew Miller or Brewers catcher Jonathan Lucroy. (Buster Olney, ESPN)
• The Tigers are no longer pursing Lucroy. (Jayson Stark, ESPN)
• The Nationals, Cardinals, Indians, Rangers and Giants are all in on Miller. (Jon Heyman, FanRag)
8 a.m.
• The Padres have agreed to trade pitchers Andrew Cashner and Colin Rea to the Marlins. (Barry Jackson, Miami Herald)
• The Marlins are sending first baseman prospect Josh Naylor to San Diego in return for Cashner and Rea. (Ken Rosenthal, Fox Sports)
• The Cashner deal will likely have a ripple effect that will trigger additional imminent trades. (Jon Morosi, Fox Sports)
• Team executives are skeptical that the White Sox trade pitcher Chris Sale, but one general manager said on Thursday that he now thinks a trade is possible because Chicago has started responding to teams inquiring about Sale, though they remain unsure they will get their desired return. (Ken Rosenthal, Fox Sports)
• The Giants acquired Twins infielder Eduardo Nuñez in exchange for lefthander Adalberto Mejia. (Team announcement)
• The Padres have received interest on centerfielder Jon Jay, who will be on the DL with a broken right forearm until early- to mid-August. (Ken Rosenthal, Fox Sports)
• Mariners pitcher Taijuan Walker has drawn strong interest from teams, and will be scouted on Friday at Wrigley field. (Bob Nightengale, USA Today)
• The Rockies have discussed trading pitcher Boone Logan to the Blue Jays. (Jon Morosi, Fox Sports)
Thursday
6 p.m.
• The Mets and Brewers have “re-engaged” discussions about catcher Jonathan Lucroy. (Ken Rosenthal, Fox Sports)
• The Yankees have called the White Sox about Chris Sale. The Rangers are the speculative favorite should he get dealt. (Jon Heyman, Today’s Knuckleball)
3 p.m.
• Daniel Hudson may soon be on the move with the Mariners, Indians and Nationals as potential suitors. (Chris Cotillo, SB Nation)
• The Mets are not one of the teams that are in the running for Hudson. (Joel Sherman, New York Post)
• A deal for Hudson is not expected today. (Bob Nightengale, USA Today)
• The Astros are out of the Jonathan Lucroy sweepstakes. (Jerry Crasnick ESPN)
1 p.m.
• The Tigers are continuing to evaluate pitching upgrades, despite downplaying the need to replace injured players Jordan Zimmermann, J.D. Martinez and Daniel Norris with a major trade. They have looked at the Phillies’ trade candidates, but could be limited by their budget. (Jon Morosi, Fox Sports)
• The rumors that Eric Hosmer and the Royals are nearing a contract extension are not true. (Jeffrey Flanagan, MLB.com)
• Brewers catcher Jonathan Lucroy is not in the lineup for Milwaukee’s game against the Diamondbacks. (Jerry Crasnick, ESPN)
• Teams have stayed interested in trading for Athletics pitcher Rich Hill despite his ongoing recovery from a bad blister on his left hand. (Justin Klugh, MLB Daily Dish)
• There has been no indication that Dee Gordon, who returns from his suspension today, is being shopped for trades. (Jon Morosi, Fox Sports)
• Multiple teams have inquired about Rockies lefthander Boone Logan. (Jon Morosi, Fox Sports)
10 a.m.
• The Royals have talked to teams about taking Ian Kennedy's salary in an attempt to land Wade Davis, but that may not be enough for the Dodgers. Joel Sherman of the New York Post recalls that the Dodgers attempted to package Aroldis Chapman and Kenley Jansen in a trade. (Jeff Passan, Yahoo Sports)
• The Marlins are aggressively pursuing pitching but they may not have the prospects to be able to land a top-tier starter. (Bob Nightengale, USA Today)
• Peter Bourjos will likely be added to the disabled list with a shoulder injury so the Phillies may be inclined to trade anyone but Jeremy Hellickson. (Jayson Stark, ESPN)
9 a.m.
• The Nationals have inquired about Blue Jays slugger Jose Bautista. A deal for Bautista seems unlikely to go through, but indicates the Nationals are interested in acquiring a hitter. (Barry Svrluga, The Washington Post)
• The Nationals have also scouted the White Sox bullpen in search of a late-inning reliever. (Bob Nightengale, USA Today)
• The talks of a trade for Brewers catcher Jonathan Lucroy are intensifying, and a deal is expected to be done before the trade deadline. (Jerry Crasnick, ESPN)
• The Indians have had ongoing discussions with the Brewers on acquiring Lucroy and reliever Will Smith. (Jerry Crasnick, ESPN)
• The Tigers have also inquired about Lucroy. (Ken Rosenthal, Fox Sports)
• The Cubs have discussed trading for Athletics outfielder Josh Reddick. (Jon Morosi, MLB.com)
• The Indians, Dodgers and Giants are all looking for outfielders. (Jon Morosi, MLB.com)
• The Dodgers are interested in Royals closer Wade Davis. (Jon Heyman, FanRag)
