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Early Potential MLB Buyers and Sellers ↔️⏰
We take an early look at potential buyers and sellers two months ahead of the trade deadline.
Ryan Finkelstein & Elijah Evans
May 29, 2025
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Potential Buyers and Sellers
While it may seem a bit early to be talking about the trade deadline as the calendar has not flipped to June, on the latest mailbag episode of the Just Baseball Show our audience posed the question of “Who would be buyers, and who would be sellers at the deadline?
This question becomes easier to answer the closer we are to the deadline, so now it is a very open-ended thought exercise to figure out who could be on the move.
It is easy to see who the early standout teams are trending towards being buyers at the deadline, whereas identifying the teams who can sell is a bit more difficult.
Great closers with only one year of control are typically always going to move, but the St. Louis Cardinals may be in the hunt by the deadline.
It is fair to call Cardinals’ closer Ryan Helsley on the block at this year’s deadline, but at this stage we can’t really categorize the Cardinals as for sure sellers.
As we get into this way-too-early preview of the trade deadline, we found the best way to organize things is identify teams who will be looking to buy, and players who could be on the move.
Who’s Looking to Buy?
Big market teams are always in the market to buy talent, especially if they are in the thick of playoff race. Looking around the league, the clearest-cut teams who are buying reside in the big cities, with the Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Yankees and New York Mets all looking the part of a buyer thus far.
The Boston Red Sox were buyers in the offseason, but certainly need to do a bit more winning over the next two months to prove they are ready to buy again at the deadline.
Meanwhile the Phillies are right back at the top of the NL East, where they will likely be looking to make some additions so they can win a battle with the Mets, or even the still-looming Atlanta Braves.
The Chicago Cubs made a big swing for Kyle Tucker in the offseason, and are only guaranteed to have him for one season, so they have all the incentive to try to win now.
Finally, the Detroit Tigers are the hottest team in baseball, with a roster that could still use a few additions to put them over the top in a wide-open American League.
Other teams that were mentioned as potential buyers on the show were the Kansas City Royals and the Seattle Mariners, but there are plenty of others like the Houston Astros or the Texas Rangers that are only a good month or two away from being in the conversation.
Which Players Are Going to Be On the Trade Block?
When trying to evaluate who will be on the trade block, there are a couple of key things to keep in mind, especially this early in the game. Rentals are always on the table, even if a team is in the Wild Card hunt.
Selling teams aren’t always clear at this point, but we can identify teams that would have a lot to put on the table if they took that position. The Tampa Bay Rays stand out, with a bevy of pitching, and some bats who are starting to get expensive that could easily be put on the block.
Other savvy small market teams like the Milwaukee Brewers and Cleveland Guardians may also take the position of seller if it is not clear that they have what it takes to go the distance in the race.
The Baltimore Orioles have gotten off to a dreadful start, and may be forced to take the position of aggressive seller to try to reposition their roster towards a quick turnaround in 2026.
Meanwhile the typical rebuilding teams like the Marlins, Nationals, White Sox, and Rockies should be listening on everyone, even if they don’t have a lot to sell. Here are some pieces that could be on the block at the deadline.
Hitters on the Block
CF Cedric Mullins, Baltimore Orioles
1B/DH Ryan O’Hearn, Baltimore Orioles
OF Luis Robert Jr., Chicago White Sox
1B/DH Rhys Hoskins, Milwaukee Brewers
OF Taylor Ward, Los Angeles Angels
SS Bo Bichette, Toronto Blue Jays
1B Nate Lowe, Washington Nationals
1B Yandy Diaz, Tampa Bay Rays
2B Brandon Lowe, Tampa Bay Rays
3B: Nolan Arenado, St. Louis Cardinals
Starting Pitchers on the Block
RHP Sandy Alcantara, Miami Marlins
RHP Brandon Woodruff, Milwaukee Brewers
RHP Freddy Peralta, Milwaukee Brewers
LHP Jose Quintana, Milwaukee Brewers
LHP Framber Valdez, Houston Astros
RHP Bryan Abreu, Houston Astros
RHP Tyler Mahle, Texas Rangers
RHP Chris Bassitt, Toronto Blue Jays
RHP Kevin Gausman, Toronto Blue Jays
Top Relievers Who Could Be on the Move
RHP Ryan Helsley, St. Louis Cardinals
RHP Pete Fairbanks, Tampa Bay Rays
RHP Bryan Abreu, Houston Astros
RHP Kyle Finnegan, Washington Nationals
RHP Emmanuel Clase, Cleveland Guardians
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Which player does NOT have at least 3.0 fWAR right now? *As of 5/29
A) Bobby Witt Jr.
B) Cal Raleigh
C) Shohei Ohtani
D) Pete Crow-Armstrong
Top Player Stories
With the second month of the season nearly over, we are officially a third of the way through the six-month marathon that is the 2025 MLB season.
Sample sizes are growing as players are starting to establish the type of performers that they look to be for the remainder of the campaign. Some players have bounced back from injury (like Robbie Ray), or a down-year (Bo Bichette) to remind us how good they can be.
Others still haven’t even been invited to the party, as David Robertson continues to remain on the free agent market.
Finally, you have rookie catcher Drake Baldwin, who is forcing the Atlantra Braves to find ways to keep him in the lineup because the production has been so good.
Top Team Stories
Looking around the league, we have some teams who are really surging right now like the Minnesota Twins, who have really turned their season around.
The Baltimore Orioles on the other hand can’t seem to find their footing and are looking more and more the part of a seller. What could a Orioles sell-off look like?
Meanwhile the Dodgers are not off the start we have come to expect from them, but they are trying to spark things now with an influx of young talent on the roster with growing roles for rookies Hyeseong Kim and Dalton Rushing.
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Trivia Answer: A) Bobby Witt Jr.
Despite being second in odds to win AL MVP and one of the best players in baseball, Witt has 2.8 fWAR this season while the others listed in addition to Aaron Judge are the only four to surpass the 3.0 fWAR mark so far.
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