Fantasy baseball stashes: Players who could see their value increase at the MLB Trade Deadline

NBC Sports

5 days ago

The MLB Trade Deadline is Thursday at 6 pm Eastern time. We've already seen a few trades over the weekend, and rumors are now beginning to swirl with more ferocity. However, while everybody is focusing on the big-name players who could change teams, like Eugenio Suarez or Joe Ryan, there's value in focusing on the 'little guy.'
In this article, I'm going to discuss some hitters and pitchers I think will gain value after the trade deadline because they'll find themselves in more useful roles. That means we won't be discussing those big-name players who will change teams, players who may just 'get hot,' or players who could start but not provide fantasy football. We'll just be focusing on the ones who could be on the verge of providing you real fantasy value after the trade deadline due to a new opportunity.
If you also just want to know some of the names of the players who might be moved and open up spots for their previous team, I wrote an article last week discussing the starting pitcher landscape at the trade deadline.
Fantasy Baseball Hitters to Target before the MLB Trade Deadline
Josh Bell - 1B, Washington Nationals
Last week, I recorded a video on Josh Bell's decision to move to a more line-drive swing at the end of May. That decision has led to a .284/.361/.469 slash line in 46 games since making the shift. Yes, that has come with just even home runs and 24 RBI, but the numbers and approach will still work in deeper formats since Bell is striking out just 12% of the time and making a lot of contact. Bell is a free agent at the end of the season, so the Nationals would like to move him at the deadline, and if he winds up with regular at-bats for a team like Boston or the New York Mets, he could provide some solid value.
Coby Mayo - 1B/3B, Baltimore Orioles
Ryan O'Hearn is almost certainly out the door in Baltimore since he's a free agent at the end of the season. That will open up first base and DH reps in Baltimore, and you'd have to think they want to get Mayo some full-time reps, especially after watching Kyle Stowers put together an All-Star season in Miami after the Orioles didn't give him consistent reps and then traded him away. Mayo is only 23 years old and has been producing of late in a limited sample size. Now could be the time for him to flourish, or Baltimore could choose to give those reps to top prospect Samuel Basallo - C/1B, Baltimore. Or, let's be honest, they could just bring Ryan Mountcastle off the IL and let him play regularly for the remainder of the season to see if he has a place on this team in 2026. Of course, if the Orioles also trade Ramon Urias, then Mayo has yet another path to full-time at-bats.
Adrian Del Castillo - C/DH, Arizona Diamondbacks
This one already came into focus on Thursday when the Diamondbacks traded Josh Naylor to the Mariners. Pavin Smith will likely be the regular first baseman for the Diamondbacks when he returns from the IL, and that means Del Castillo should be the DH the rest of the way. He hit .313/.368/.525 in 25 MLB games last year with four home runs and 19 RBI. Yes, there were some strikeout issues, but we love that offensive profile for a catcher and, for fantasy, we love catchers who don't catch.
Jordan Lawlar - INF, Arizona Diamondbacks
The Diamondbacks are also likely to move on from Eugenio Suarez, which could mean a starting third base job for Lawlar. The 22-year-old is battling a hamstring strain, but the team had indicated that he would be back in late July, so he could presumably take over for Suarez in August. Lawlar is hitting .319/.410/.583 at Triple-A with 10 home runs and 18 steals in 53 games. He has little left to prove there.
Heriberto Hernandez - OF, Miami Marlins
Hernandez is playing part-time for the Marlins now, but there are rumors that Jesus Sanchez could be traded at the deadline, which would free up more right field at-bats for Hernandez. The 25-year-old has defied expectations and hit .323/.377/.531 in 106 MLB plate appearances with five home runs and 17 RBI. He had a 35% strikeout rate in the minors, so this doesn't feel like it will keep up, but he also has a 91 mph average exit velocity in the big leagues and a 13.2% barrel rate, so maybe he can make enough impactful contact to help in deeper formats.
Luke Keaschall - INF, Minnesota Twins
We know that the Twins are interested in dealing their pending free agents like Willi Castro and Harrison Bader. If Castro were to be traded, that could open up 2B reps for Keaschall, who is in Triple-A recovering from a fractured forearm. Keaschall is not a great defender, so that might impact his overall playing time, but he hit .368/.538/.526 in his seven games before getting hurt and hit .303/.420/.483 with 15 home runs and 23 steals across 102 games at High-A and Double-A last year, so there is some upside in his bat. I still think people may overpay for his seven-game sample size, and I'd rather add him in deeper formats only.
Christian Moore - 2B, Los Angeles Angels
We've already seen Moore up with the Angels, but he's currently on the IL with a sprained thumb. He has begun swinging a bat, so he's nearing a return, and it's likely that the Angels will trade Yoan Moncada away at the deadline. That will allow them to shift Luis Rengifo over to third base and give Moore every day reps at second base for the remainder of the season. Moore has plenty of swing-and-miss in his approach, but his raw tools are loud.
Spencer Jones - OF, New York Yankees
Speaking of loud raw tools, there is no prospect with more helium right now than Jones, who has hit .400/.457/.950 in 19 games at Triple-A with 13 home runs and six steals. There is not much negative you can say about that line; however, there are still real concerns with Jones' approach. Even in this torrid 19-game stretch, Jones has a 17.4% swinging strike rate and a 66.8% contact rate. He's just swinging nearly 53% of the time, so even though he swings at misses, he gets so many cracks at it that he eventually clobbers a baseball. That approach may work at Triple-A, but players with contact rates under 70% in the minors often struggle a lot against big league pitching. Rece Hinds, for example, has a 68.6% contact rate and 17.2% SwStr% at Triple-A this season. Those are almost identical contact metrics to Jones. The Yankees prospect obviously has more potential and is a good defender in the outfield as well, but his contact profile has some glaring red flags that might get exposed at the big league level in New York or if they move him at the deadline.
Owen Caissie - OF, Chicago Cubs
Caissie is another top prospect who could be traded at the deadline and land in a starting spot. The 22-year-old is hitting .278/.377/.563 with 20 home runs and three steals at Triple-A Iowa this year. He has a 29.3% strikeout rate, which is a bit of a concern, but a more palatable 12.3% swinging strike rate and 72.5% contact rate. He has some swing-and-miss in his game, but he's also taking too many called strikes that get him into bad counts. If he were to be traded into full-time at-bats, his batting average would likely settle around .230-.240, at least for this season, but the power could be immediately impactful.
Dylan Beavers - OF, Baltimore Orioles
Beavers is yet another prospect who could see full-time reps after the trade deadline if the Orioles move on from one or both of Cedric Mullins and Ramon Laureano. The 23-year-old is hitting .284/.448/.567 in July with five home runs, 12 RBI, three steals, and a 13/18 K/BB ratio. He has 21 steals on the season to go along with a .303 average and .912 OPS while playing solid defense in the outfield. He would be an under-the-radar waiver add.
Ryan Ward - OF, Los Angeles Dodgers
One final outfielder to mention is Ryan Ward, who has been unreal for the Dodgers in Triple-A this season, slashing .311/.393/.607 with 28 home runs and 12 steals in 97 games. Now, Ward is a 27-year-old, so he is not a young prospect, but he has yet to make his MLB debut and has taken a big step forward this year thanks to lowering his groundball rate and looking to get to his pull-side more. The Dodgers are looking for bullpen help anywhere they can find it, and Ward could be an intriguing piece for them to send to a team like the Pirates, or the Guardians, or the Royals.
C.J. Kayfus - 1B/OF, Cleveland Guardians
The Guardians are not guaranteed to be sellers at the deadline, but it feels like they could at least move on from Carlos Santana, who is a free agent at the end of this season. That would open up at-bats for Kayfus, who has also been taking reps in right field as well while playing at Triple-A. The 2023 third-round pick is hitting .285/.367/.537 with 13 home runs and two steals at Triple-A Columbus this season. His 13% swinging strike rate is a bit elevated for a player without elite power, so it's unclear what kind of impact he will have immediately after being called up, but he profiles as the type of hitter who could be a solid deep-league corner infielder for now.
Cam Devaney - SS, Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pirates seem likely to trade Isiah Kiner-Falefa, which is likely why they acquired Devaney from the Royals earlier this month to begin with. Across 77 Triple-A games in both the Pirates and Royals' organizations, Devaney is slashing .271/.371/.535 with 18 home runs and three steals. He had a 48% hard-hit rate with Kansas City but, like many of the prospects we've covered on this list, has some contact issues, with just a 68.6% contact rate overall at Triple-A this season. That will limit him to deeper formats, even if he lands in an everyday role.
Fantasy Baseball Pitchers to Target before the MLB Trade Deadline
Nestor Cortes - SP, Milwaukee Brewers
Cortes is coming off the IL this week after pitching to a 1.29 ERA in three rehab starts at Triple-A. We know that Cortes is a useful starter when he's healthy, and he seems destined to be in the rotation either for the Brewers or another team if Milwaukee decides to move him because of all their starting pitcher depth. He may be more of a 15-team league option, and a streamer in 12-team leagues, but given how many pitchers are banged up right now, I'm OK taking my shot on a guy like Cortes.
Kyle Bradish - SP, Baltimore Orioles
Have you forgotten about Kyle Bradish? The 28-year-old is making his second rehab start with Triple-A Norfolk on Tuesday and might be another three weeks from being ready to rejoin the rotation in Baltimore. With Zach Eflin, Tomoyuki Sugano, and Charlie Morton all potentially being traded, there will be plenty of spots for Bradish when he does return. Chayce McDermott figures to get the first opportunity, but he has not been good in Triple-A this season, so it's hard to get too excited by him or Cade Povich or anybody else that Baltimore may put in the rotation.
Jack Perkins, SP, Athletics
The Athletics could trade any of, or all of, Luis Severino, JP Sears, and Jeffrey Springs, which would open up a few rotation spots. One of the more likely candidates to take that spot is Perkins, who has pitched to a 2.55 ERA in 17.2 innings out of the bullpen for the Athletics since being promoted. He was also having a good season in the Triple-A rotation, with a 2.86 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, and 38.4% strikeout rate in 44 innings. He's an intriguing arm to be stashing in fantasy leagues, as is his teammate, JT Ginn, who appears to already be in the rotation and could stay there. Ginn doesn't have the strikeout upside that Perkins does, but he has revamped his pitch mix to create better command and induce more weak contact. He looked good against the Astros on Sunday and should be an option in deeper formats.
Bubba Chandler - SP, Pittsburgh Pirates
It has to be now, right? The Pirates are likely to trade away Mitch Keller or Andrew Heaney and open up yet another roster spot that should have gone to Chandler months ago. Now they don't need to worry about him losing his rookie eligibility. He has long since earned a shot.
Since his promotion to Triple-A last August, Chandler has now logged 122 innings at Triple-A (2.80 ERA) without an MLB promotion. That's pretty unusual - in terms of a lot of innings at that stop - for a top prospect.
Cade Cavalli - SP, Washington Nationals
The Nationals could move on from MacKenzie Gore at the deadline, but it's far more likely they simply trade Michael Soroka and call it a day as far as the rotation goes. That would open up one spot, and while Cavalli is not a lock for it, he's certainly the most intriguing option. The former top prospect is working his way back from Tommy John surgery, and his Triple-A results have been inconsistent, but he has flashed that same upside we saw before the injury, so it would be nice to see what he looks like against MLB arms.
Chase Silseth - SP, Los Angeles Angels
The Angels may finally trade Tyler Anderson, even though they should have last season, and that could open up a rotation spot for Silseth or Caden Dana. Dana is the more intriguing option, but he is working his way back from injury, so it might be Silseth who gets the first crack. He has a 4.30 ERA, 1.50 WHIP, and 23% strikeout rate at Triple-A this season, so he's not lighting the world on fire, but we've seen him produce some solid stretches in the big leagues before, so maybe he can put together a solid month over the summer.
Lucas Erceg - RP, Kansas City Royals
The Royals are not sellers, per se, but they may see an option to land some talent by trading away Carlos Estevez at the deadline. Estevez has a $13 million team option for next season, and that's a bit pricey for a team like the Royals to pay, especially after extending Seth Lugo. The Royals could take advantage of a hot relief pitcher market and deal Estevez and slide Erceg right into the closer's role. We've seen him do it before, so we could add him with confidence.
Dennis Santana - RP, Pittsburgh Pirates
It seems like a lock that David Bednar will be traded at the deadline, which would open up the closer's role in Pittsburgh. Dennis Santana would be the logical choice to fill the role and was good there earlier in the season; however, Santana is also a pending free agent and could be traded away as well. If he is, it would seem that, based on recent usage patterns, Isaac Mattson could get a chance to secure some saves as the Pirates' primary closer.
Phil Maton - RP, St. Louis Cardinals
It also seems like the chances of Ryan Helsley being traded away increase with each passing day. That would mean that Phil Maton would likely slide into the closer's role in St. Louis. Oli Marmol has not been the type to play matchups in the ninth inning, so there's a chance Maton gets the opportunity to be the full-time closer on a team that will still be average after the deadline.
Dylan Lee - RP, Atlanta Braves
Another closer likely to be dealt is Raisel Iglesias, now that he has pitched much better over the last six weeks. If he does get traded, the Braves could move to a committee at the end of games, but Lee has been their best high-leverage reliever and would get his shot at save chances over the final two months.
Jason Adam - RP, San Diego Padres
It seems like a long shot that Robert Suarez gets traded, but his name has come up in rumors because he will be a free agent at the end of the season, and the Padres have a deep bullpen where they can deal from a strength to address a weakness. If Suarez is dealt, it would be Adam or Jeremiah Estrada who would step into the closer's role. Both of them have been tremendous this season, but Adam has pitched in the second-highest-leverage innings, behind Suarez, so he seems likely to get the first shot at the gig.