Buy or Sell Latest MLB Rumors on Yankees, Blake Snell, Garrett Crochet and More
Zachary D. RymerJuly 29, 2024Buy or Sell Latest MLB Rumors on Yankees, Blake Snell, Garrett Crochet and More0 of 8
Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images
In these final hours before MLB’s trade deadline comes and goes at 6 p.m. ET on Tuesday, rumors are everywhere and they have a lot to say about everything and everyone.
But what to make of all of it?
Let’s attempt to answer this question by playing “Buy or Sell?” with some of the more notable rumors that popped up over the weekend. Big-time teams? They’re covered. Big-name players? Yup, they’re covered as well.
To be clear, this game is not meant to weigh whether what’s being reported is credible. The idea is to buy or sell what the whispers imply about future outcomes. If the suggested outcome is believable, it’s a buy. If not, it’s a sell.
Will Yandy DÃaz Become an Astro, a Mariner or a Pirate?1 of 8
Yandy DÃaz Douglas P. DeFelice/Getty Images
Let’s begin with Yandy DÃaz, who probably isn’t going to be a Tampa Bay Ray for much longer.
The Rays indeed aren’t making it easy to keep up with all the trades they’re making. Tuesday’s deadline is still a day away, yet they’ve already dealt Randy Arozarena, Zach Eflin, Jason Adam and Isaac Paredes just in the last couple of days.
To this extent, whether DÃaz will be traded isn’t in much doubt. The Rays seem motivated to retool, and dealing a 32-year-old All-Star who only has one more guaranteed year on his contract is a logical next step.
As for where the reigning AL batting champion could go, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com listed three possibilities on Friday:
Mark Feinsand @FeinsandThe Rays are expected to listen on Yandy Diaz. Per sources, the Astros, Mariners and Pirates are potential landing spots.
All three clubs rank in the bottom half of MLB in WAR from first base, with the Astros notably occupying the spot at the very bottom of the list. That could make them the most desperate team in the DÃaz hunt unless Seattle really doesn’t want to chance it with Tyler Locklear after their last first baseman named Tyler didn’t work out.
Whatever the case, the Astros and Mariners may have a leg up on the Pirates, as Jim Bowden of The Athletic reported on Sunday that the two clubs are “involved in trade talks” with the Rays. If another team is going to crash the party, it had better hurry.
Verdict: Buy
Will the Yankees Beat Everyone to Tanner Scott?2 of 8
Tanner ScottMegan Briggs/Getty Images
As for the teams in the American League East who aren’t giving up on 2024, it sounds like the New York Yankees are the team to beat for the best reliever on the market.
According to Jon Heyman of the New York Post, the Yankees want to “enhance their bullpen in a big way” and are “prominently involved” with Miami Marlins closer Tanner Scott.
Like with DÃaz, there isn’t much doubt as to the 30-year-old Scott’s likelihood of being on the move. The Marlins began selling off pieces in May, and the lefty’s upcoming free agency has always made him an obvious candidate to be shipped out at some point.
Where the Yankees are concerned, the downside is that they’re not alone in the chase for Scott. Heyman reports that five other contenders are also interested in the All-Star: the rival Baltimore Orioles as well as the Mariners, Philadelphia Phillies, Los Angeles Dodgers and Arizona Diamondbacks.
What could help the Yankees’ cause, though, is that they and the Marlins are already familiar with what they have to offer each other. It was only on Saturday that the two clubs hooked up on a trade centered on Jazz Chisholm Jr.
The Yankees otherwise have more incentive to be all-in on 2024 than any other team. The last thing this team wants is to run its World Series drought to 15 years, much less with Juan Soto poised to test the open market this winter.
Verdict: Buy
The Rockies Aren’t Budging on Ryan McMahon?3 of 8
Ryan McMahonJason Mowry/Getty Images
Sticking with the Yankees, not all of their targets are as attainable as Scott.
This is per recent reports from Jorge Castillo of ESPN and Bob Nightengale of USA Today, which share a common theme: the Yankees want Ryan McMahon, but the Colorado Rockies are disinclined to listen.
“The Yankees would love to get their hands on McMahon and play him at third base. He’s an All-Star and is having a monster season,” Nightengale reported on Sunday. “But sorry, the Rockies love him, he’s under contract for three more years, and they’re not even listening to offers for him.”
It’s not hard to imagine the 29-year-old McMahon on the Yankees. They previously scored big on a gamble that DJ LeMahieu could be a star away from Coors Field, and their need at the hot corner is pressing indeed. The position has produced only 0.2 WAR.
The Rockies, meanwhile, should trade McMahon. His value is peaking, but the team remains in a deep rut at 31 games under .500. And the farm system? It’s a middling one, and thus in need of a prospect haul like the one McMahon could command.
Then again, the Rockies not doing a trade they should do would be extremely on-brand.
Think Trevor Story and Jon Gray in 2021 and Germán Márquez and Daniel Bard more recently. The Rockies do this with guys they like, and, to be fair, they do have legitimate reasons to like McMahon.
Verdict: Buy
Will It Be a Quiet Deadline for the A’s?4 of 8
Brent RookerEakin Howard/Getty Images
The Oakland Athletics are 20 games under .500 and FanGraphs puts their chances of making the playoffs at 0.0 percent. On paper, such things make them an obvious seller.
But maybe not so fast, as Heyman reported on Saturday that the A’s don’t want to move either of their two best hitters, Brent Rooker and JJ Bleday:
Jon Heyman @JonHeymanA’s are telling teams they are reluctant to trade Brent Rooker (.948 OPS) or JJ Bleday (30 doubles). With progress being made and 103.7-mph closer Mason Miller on the shelf, it doesn’t look like a huge sale for them
Similar reports have come from ESPN’s Jeff Passan and Nightengale, who further notes that trade interest in All-Star closer Mason Miller evaporated as soon as he fractured his left pinky on Thursday.
That makes sense, and there’s a faint whiff of believability concerning Oakland’s reluctance to move Rooker or Bleday. The A’s are 14-7 in July and generally more watchable than the club that lost 112 games in 2023. So, why not keep two talented hitters who have a combined seven years of club control after 2024?
However, whether the 29-year-old Rooker or the 26-year-old Bleday is a proper building block is a fair question. And it’s not like the A’s have much of a financial incentive to field competitive teams in the immediate future. Las Vegas awaits in 2028, but the A’s will first play the 2025-27 seasons in a stadium that only seats about 14,000 people.
When you consider that the A’s only have MLB’s No. 12 farm system, playing the long game makes more sense than leaning into thin hopes of near-term success. The guess here is their reluctance with Rooker and Bleday is a negotiating tactic.
Verdict: Sell
Will It Be a Quiet Deadline for the White Sox, Too?5 of 8
Garrett CrochetSam Hodde/Getty Images
Speaking of last-place teams that look like obvious sellers, the Chicago White Sox have a king’s ransom’s worth of trade chips to cash in…but will they?
“The White Sox are more likely to move Erick Fedde and Michael Kopech than they are Luis Robert Jr. or Garrett Crochet unless something significantly changes between now and Tuesday,” Bowden wrote on Sunday.
This, too, could be a negotiating tactic. In a market that is otherwise thin on stars, both Robert and Crochet could hypothetically fetch a haul.
Realistically, however, Robert’s value is nowhere near what it was last summer. Whereas he was then in the middle of an All-Star campaign that saw him produce 38 home runs and 5.0 WAR, this year has seen the 26-year-old have more trouble with the injury bug while sustaining a 135-point drop in his OPS.
Now, Crochet is in the middle of an All-Star campaign, but it’s also the 25-year-old’s first as a starting pitcher, and his workload has skyrocketed accordingly. He’s already 41.1 innings north of his career total coming into this year, hence the recent tightening of his leash.
And then there’s what Heyman reported on Thursday:
Jon Heyman @JonHeymanGarrett Crochet plan with White Sox is to pitch normal workload as starter until end of regular season. If traded would need extension to pitch in October. He won’t move to bullpen and will not take any break. Views starter routine as best for health.
An empty threat? Probably. But it’s not exactly helpful to the White Sox’s leverage, which was already compromised by the lefty’s very public workload limits.
So, maybe there’s something to a Wednesday report from Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic that claimed the industry expectation is for the White Sox to wait until winter to move Crochet.
Verdict: Buy
Is Tarik Skubal a Future Oriole?6 of 8
Tarik SkubalBrandon Sloter/Image Of Sport/Getty Images
Elsewhere in the American League Central, Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press reported on Sunday that the Detroit Tigers are “listening to everything” regarding their trade chips.
That implies they aren’t merely willing to move Jack Flaherty, but perhaps Tarik Skubal as well. And if they do, is it Baltimore Orioles or bust for the ace lefty?
They have talked to the Tigers about Skubal, according to Nightengale, and Heyman wrote on Saturday that the door remains open even after Baltimore’s acquisitions of Eflin and Seranthony DomÃnguez:
Jon Heyman @JonHeymanAggressive Orioles are still pursuing pitching after acquiring Zach Eflin and Seranthony Dominguez Friday. Tarik Skubal doesn’t seem likely at all to be moved, but if Tigers even consider it, the prospect-rich O’s are sure to be involved.
This is nothing if not a proverbial match made in heaven. As he’s a true No. 1 starter with two additional years of arbitration eligibility after 2024, the Tigers are within their rights to demand a huge haul for Skubal. And the Orioles, well, they have a top-five farm system.
Yet to hear it from Nightengale, the Tigers have “never had any intention of trading” the 27-year-old southpaw. And nor should they, really, and not just because he’s likely to win the AL Cy Young Award for 2024.
The Tigers have a chance to finish this season near or even over .500, and it’s thanks to a core of young players that only stands to get better as more graduates arrive from their top-10 system. Accordingly, the chances of them contending while Skubal is still around are too good to pass up.
Verdict: Sell
Will the Tigers Get Their Desired Asking Price on Jack Flaherty?7 of 8
Jack FlahertyJason Miller/Getty Images
Regarding Flaherty’s availability, suffice it to say he’s much less likely to stay in Detroit than Skubal.
The 28-year-old righty is only on a one-year contract, but his value has been successfully rebuilt after a couple of tough years in a row. He’s made 18 starts and has a 2.95 ERA with seven times as many strikeouts as walks.
Per Nightengale, however, the Tigers are reminding teams that “they need to offer a better deal because they plan to offer Flaherty a qualifying offer after the season.”
For context, the Tigers are a revenue-sharing recipient and Flaherty is likely to sign a deal worth north of $50 million this winter. If he does, that would entitle them to a 2025 draft pick sandwiched between the first round and Competitive Balance Round A. Such a pick could potentially yield high-end talent, which sets a high bar for Flaherty’s value here and now.
It’s good for the Tigers that Flaherty’s market is strong.
Andy Martino of SNY reported Saturday that five contenders—including four first-place teams, plus the Yankees—are “believed” to be in on Flaherty. It’s possible the New York Mets will also get involved after Kodai Senga’s possibly season-ending calf injury.
And if it’s true that Crochet and Skubal are unlikely to go anywhere, Flaherty may well be the best pitcher on the trade market. If so, the Tigers should be able to get what they want.
Verdict: Buy
Will the Giants Trade Blake Snell?8 of 8
Blake SnellBrian Rothmuller/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Then again, what if the actual best pitcher on the trade market is a two-time Cy Young Award winner who happens to be red-hot right now?
Blake Snell, in other words. As Heyman reported on Sunday, the Yankees are but one of six teams interested in the lefty:
Jon Heyman @JonHeymanNews: Yankees are among 6 teams to check in on Blake Snell. While Giants listen, Snell turned in uber dominant performance Saturday (15 K), SF starters are killing it now and they’re just 4 1/2 out of WC. Other complications: NYY in top tax bracket and BS $30M 2025 player option
The interest in Snell, 31, is ramping up just as he’s doing the same thing in his own right. He spent the first three months of the season either injured or pitching poorly but has since allowed only two runs over 24 innings across his last four starts.
There are nonetheless two key questions here:
Will the Giants sell?Is Snell even moveable?According to Nightengale, rival executives believe the answer to the first question is yes. The Giants are merely treading water in the NL wild-card race, with FanGraphs putting their playoff chances at just 20.5 percent.
Snell’s contract, however, is a doozy. His $32 million salary is a lot to absorb, and his future involves him either accepting a $30 million player option for 2025 or declining it and reentering the open market. Despite his hot hand, both outcomes are reasonably in play.
Either way, it’s hard to imagine the Giants getting ample talent back in a Snell trade. And if that does prove to be the case, they might as well keep him and see if they can go on a run in August and September.
Verdict: Sell
