MLB Rumors: Could Red Sox steal Cody Bellinger from Yankees at trade deadline?
For weeks now, the New York Yankees have been the most obvious and widely discussed fit for Chicago Cubs outfielder Cody Bellinger. But as the Yankees plans for the deadline have seemingly started to change with the possibility of the club selling as the sit in the cellar of the AL East, you have to wonder how realistic making an expensive play (Bellinger has a $12 million salary for 2023 and a mutual option for the same price plus bonuses in 2024) for Bellinger is for New York.
To make matters worse for the Yankees, though, what if one of the franchise's bitter rivals swooped in and landed Bellinger at the deadline?
Anthony Franco of MLB Trade Rumors broke down the possible landing spots for Bellinger, who he called the "top rental hitter" at this year's deadline, and one of the second tier of his list of suitors was the Yankees most infmaous foe, the Boston Red Sox. Here's what Franco had to say.
Center field looked like a problem for Boston not too long ago. Adam Duvall has struggled since returning from a fractured wrist. Enrique Hernández is not having a good season. The Sox have gotten their awaited Jarren Duran breakout, though. The 26-year-old former top prospect is hitting a career-best .313/.364/.508 over 269 trips to the plate. He's not a good defensive center fielder, but with Alex Verdugo and Masataka Yoshida locked into the corner outfield, there's nowhere else for Duran to play. Adding another lefty-hitting outfielder to the mix is probably too much of a luxury buy for a club that could use pitching and middle infield help.
With that dash of cold water at the end that Bellinger is probably a luxury, it's also worth noting that Chaim Bloom's trade deadline MO to this point has not been to spend big on a piece like Bellinger. Furthermore, the Yankees were the in the top tier of suitors for the Cubs outfielder.
So it's unlikely that the Red Sox would ultimately steal Bellinger from the rival Yankees. While that may be true, that doesn't mean he ends up in New York either based on the way things are trending in pinstripes right now coming off of being swept by the Angels.
MLB Rumors: Odds of Shohei Ohtani trade, latest decision update
You can't have a discussion about the 2023 MLB Trade Deadline without bringing up Shohei Ohtani. With expectations around baseball outside of Angels owner Arte Moreno that the two-way MVP is going to depart in free agency this season, the buzz has been that it would help the Angels long term to trade him. But the big question has been if they will actually do that.
We got something of an update on that from from an insider on Thursday morning.
Jon Morosi of MLB Network reported on Thursday that the Angels are not in a rush to make a decision about an Ohtani trade. Instead, they will see how the next two weeks out and, if the club is going to move forward with the blockbuster of all blockbusters, then it would likely happen around 24-48 hours before the Aug. 1 deadline.
Meanwhile, Bookies.com oddsmaker Adam Thompson made lines for Shohei Ohtani's next team and, according to his numbers, that 24-48 hours before the trade deadline is likely to see the superstar move teams as the Angels have just the sixth-best odds to be the team he plays for after the trade deadline.
Not shockingly, the Los Angeles Dodgers are installed as the favorites, but the Yankees, Rays, Rangers and Mariners all also have better odds than the Halos to be the team Ohtani plays for after the Aug. 1 deadline.
Ultimately, what the Angels do over the next few weeks on the field will determine the fate of Ohtani as teams continue to call. Though Mike Trout being on the IL won't help matters, the fact that the Halos are coming off of a sweep of the Yankees has to be a postitive sign for anyone hoping that the Japanese phenom remains in LA… just not with that other team.
MLB Rumors: Braves trade deadline plans changing rapidly
It's always fascinating how the needs for contenders at the MLB Trade Deadline can turn on a dime, and such is the case for the Atlanta Braves.
The team with the best record in baseball has come out of the All-Star break stumbling a bit, losing their last four games to make them a measly 1-4 since the trip to Seattle for the break. Injuries have been a story for the club all year, but the Braves have managed to weather most of them.
Starting pitching has been most notable in that regard with Max Fried and Kyle Wright missing the vasty majority of the year to this point. The former is set to make a third rehab start and could return as soon as next week. Wright, on the other hand, is coming along slower as Mark Bowman of MLB.com noted that it could be after late-August before the 20-game winner from last season returns to the bigs.
And that's where the trade deadline plans start to shift.
With the way the Braves have been able to make their short-handed rotation work, the returns of Fried and Wright coming after the break were huge target points. Now, with Wright's return not coming until September — which, it should be noted, is only estimated at this point — and Bryce Elder coming off of back-to-back disastrous starts, the need to fortify the rotation with another starting pitcher in a trade could be heightened greatly.
It's going to be a tough task for Alex Anthopoulos to maneuver at the deadline as the Braves still need bullpen help too, especially with A.J. Minter and Nick Anderson recently joining Jesse Chavez and Dylan Lee on the IL. With limited trade assets, being able to acquire a mid-rotation starter and a valuable reliever could be difficult.
For the Braves to reach their World Series goals, though, it might also be necessary to figure out how to manage that and add both of those pieces at the trade deadline.
