2 The Bigs

By Sal Corso: July 23, 2024

Ahh, the Trade Deadline. Will your team buy or sell? The biggest prospect names get mentioned in rumors left and right, but rarely do the top names actually get dealt. This year may be different. Here are 3 BIG trades that we could see happening:

Yes, this is a monster haul for the White Sox, but Luis Robert is in club control through 2027. The Phillies are already the favorite to win the series, but this would separate them completely from the pack. Robert is a five-tool, MVP caliber player, who may not have even reached his prime. Just think about having to face Schwarber, Turner, Robert, Harper, Bohm in October. Scary. The Sox also get exactly what they need, depth. An elite pitching prospect, a multi-tooled future lead-off hitter (and 2TB favorite), and a high-floor power bat.

Tarik Skubal was a dream for the Orioles. Jackson Holliday or Samuel Basallo was the same for the Tigers. Both sides could not agree to pull off possibly the biggest deadline deal of the past several decades. Because of this, the Orioles settle for Flaherty. Who, at 28 years old, is having a career rejuvenation year (7-5, 3.13 ERA). Yes, Flaherty struggled in his few months in Baltimore last year, but he’s clearly a different pitcher. The other option is Kevin Gausman, but I don’t think they trade within division (Blue Jays). The haul sent to Detroit would be a huge hit for any teams’ farm system, except for Baltimore’s. The Tigers desperately need some young outfield talent in their system, and they get the job done with this deal (check out our Enrique Bradfield Profile HERE)

Yes, Yankees fans are mesmerized by Spencer Jones. I mean, who wouldn’t be when you have what looks to be a young-Judge-like body in your farm system. You know who Yankee fans like more? Juan Soto. If the #1 goal of this season is to win a world series, #1b would be to make sure Soto doesn’t walk in the off-season. If you sign Soto long term, you essentially have your outfield of the future (Soto, Dominguez, Judge). Yes, Jones can be transitioned to 1B, but let’s keep in mind he is currently hitting .236 with a 40% K-rate in Double-A. The upside is tremendous for Jones, but the Yankees secure the biggest hitting rental on the market, which they clearly need given this mid-season stretch as one of the worst teams in baseball. The Diamondbacks get a big bat for the system, and a quietly good LHP (which they desperately need).

Check out where we have each of these players ranked, including their 2TB Potential Scores on our Ranking Sheet!