Ideal Landing Spots for MLB's Top 9 Trade Targets

Is it absurdly early in the 2023 MLB season to be putting together potential trade packages for the August 1 deadline?

Of course it is.

Did you click anyway, because trade proposals are fun no matter the time of year?

Of course you did.

Like every summer, big names are going to be on the move in a few months.

This year's crop of blockbuster swaps may include Shohei Ohtani, Bryan Reynolds, Gleyber Torres and more.

And though we'll need the next 100-plus days' worth of games to get a clearer sense of who this year's buyers and sellers will be, we were able to combine early educated guesses/postseason odds with team needs to figure out the ideal landing spots for the top players on the trade block.

Players are presented in alphabetical order. Statistics current through start of play Wednesday.

The Player: Aroldis Chapman had a disappointing, injury-riddled/tattoo-infected 2022 campaign. It was his fourth consecutive season with a FIP higher than the year before. And at 35 years old, there simply wasn't much of an offseason market for what used to be one of the best closers in baseball. Kansas City scooped the lefty up on the cheap, hoping to turn him into a trade asset if he had a bounce-back year. And so far, so good, as Chapman has an early stat line of 5.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 9 K.

The Contract Situation: Chapman is on a one-year, $3.75 million deal with the Kansas City Royals. He will be a free agent this offseason.

The Landing Spot: Houston Astros. Not a single left-handed reliever took the mound for the Astros during the 2022 postseason, so it might not bother them that there's not a healthy southpaw reliever on this year's roster, either. There's also a good chance they would have no interest in bringing in Chapman, given what he had to say about Jose Altuve after the 2019 ALCS. But if they can get past that, it's a logical landing spot for a good left-handed reliever. Reunions with either the Cubs or Yankees could also make sense.

The Trade Package: Aroldis Chapman to Houston for RHP Miguel Ullola. This is basically an American League version of last year's Cubs/Phillies trade that saw a veteran, expiring-free-agent closer (David Robertson) get swapped for a low-A pitcher with promising strikeout stuff (Ben Brown). And goodness knows Kansas City is in the market for long-term options in the starting rotation.

The Player: The Rockies haven't had much worth bragging about in recent years, but C.J. Cron has been a solid diamond in the rough, with 61 home runs and 202 RBI dating back to the beginning of 2021. Cron was an All-Star last year, and with four early home runs in the current campaign, he and LHP Kyle Freeland are on the short list of viable options to serve as Colorado's representative at this year's Midsummer Classic.

The Contract Situation: Cron is making $7.25 million in 2023. He will be a free agent this offseason.

The Landing Spot: Philadelphia Phillies. Rhys Hoskins (knee) probably won't play in 2023 after the freak injury he suffered late in spring training. His replacement, Darick Hall, is also now out indefinitely after suffering a torn ligament in his thumb last week. And considering the reigning NL champs were already going to be without Bryce Harper (elbow) at RF/DH for the first couple months of the season, the last thing they need is a band-aid solution at first base. They should trade for Cron, and they should do it as soon as possible.

The Trade Package: C.J. Cron to the Philadelphia Phillies for OF Gabriel Rincones Jr. We'll see how dire Philadelphia's 1B situation gets, but it might be willing to part with the 2022 third-round draft pick who hit .346 with 19 home runs at Florida Atlantic last year—especially if the Rockies are willing to make the deal happen sooner rather than later. The Phillies are also practically drowning in outfield prospects with eight among the top 14 players in their farm system, per MLB.com. And with Harper, Kyle Schwarber and Nick Castellanos each under contract through at least 2025, what else are they going to do with some of those outfield prospects?

The Player: Two years removed from the Chicago Cubs hitting the reset button at the trade deadline, the Chicago White Sox might consider doing the same, with 11 guys who either are unrestricted free agents or have club/mutual options for 2024. And if they do sell, there would be a long line of suitors for Lucas Giolito, who earned AL Cy Young votes in each of 2019, 2020 and 2021 before a down year in 2022. Giolito opened the year with a respectable outing in Houston but got lit up by Pittsburgh in his second start.

The Contract Situation: Giolito is making $10.4 million in 2023. He will be a free agent this offseason.

The Landing Spot: Milwaukee Brewers. Everyone has been assuming/projecting that Milwaukee—with what feels like the entire roster hitting free agency within the next two years—might have a fire sale and see how much it can get in return for 1.5 seasons of Corbin Burnes, Brandon Woodruff, Willy Adames, etc. But wouldn't it be more fun if the Brew Crew goes all-in on winning now by bringing in Giolito and putting together one of the best top-to-bottom rotations in the majors? They could still get a solid return for trading away Burnes and Co. during the offseason.

The Trade Package: Lucas Giolito to the Milwaukee Brewers for OF Hedbert Perez and RHP Cam Robinson. The asking price for a two-month rental of a starting pitcher isn't what it used to be. Pittsburgh packaged José Quintana with Chris Stratton last year for a decent corner infield prospect (Malcom Nuñez) and a starting pitcher who had a 4.65 ERA at the MLB level (Johan Oviedo). The cost for Noah Syndergaard was an outfielder with a career .129 batting average in the majors (Mickey Moniak) and an outfield prospect who isn't even top 30 in the Angels farm system (Jadiel Sanchez). Giolito has a better recent track record than those guys did, but the Brewers shouldn't need to give up a ton to get him. Perez and Robinson are both top 30 guys in Milwaukee's farm, but not top 15.

The Player: Ian Happ was a staple in trade rumors last summer, but buckle up for even more proposal banter now that he's in his contract year. Happ hit a career-best .271 with a career-high 72 runs and 72 RBI in 2022, and he has more than picked up where he left off with a .981 OPS through his first 10 games played in 2023. It's surprising that Chicago didn't sign Happ to a long-term extension this offseason after refusing to trade him last year, but we'll see if the Cubs at least learned their lesson from holding on to Willson Contreras for too long and getting nothing more than a compensatory draft pick when he signed with the Cardinals.

The Contract Situation: Happ is making $10.85 million in 2023. He will be a free agent this offseason.

The Landing Spot: Cleveland Guardians. Lack of offense coming from the outfield was arguably Cleveland's biggest weakness in 2022, and the Guardians did absolutely nothing this offseason to address that problem, seemingly content to bank on an Oscar Gonzalez/Will Brennan platoon in right while Steven Kwan and Myles Straw provide virtually no home runs from left and center. Bringing in the relatively inexpensive Happ for August-October should be a no-brainer.

The Trade Package: Ian Happ to the Cleveland Guardians for RHP Tanner Bibee. Even if the Cubs fall hopelessly out of the playoff picture, it's not going to be a fire sale. But they might trade away Happ and fellow impending free agent Michael Fulmer for some MLB-ready talent that improves their odds for 2024. And Bibee—who made 25 minor-league starts with a 2.17 ERA last year—could be a key back-of-the-rotation arm for a contender next year.

The Player: Early returns have not been great for Trevor May, but he, (currently injured) starting pitcher Paul Blackburn and (currently injured) left-handed hitter Seth Brown are just about the only tradeable assets left on Oakland's roster at this point. Including spring training, May has allowed 13 earned runs in 11 innings of work for the A's. And he has been unable to find the strike zone thus far in the regular season, issuing an AL-worst eight walks despite only pitching 4.2 innings. But he was a solid set-up man in years past and perhaps could be a closer if he gets those walks under control.

The Contract Situation: May is on a one-year, $7 million deal with the Oakland A's. He will be a free agent this offseason.

The Landing Spot: New York Mets. May pitched for the Mets in 2021-22 and didn't pitch particularly well for them last year. But with Edwin Díaz likely out for the season, Tommy Hunter currently on the IL and both Dennis Santana and Brooks Raley struggling out of the gates, New York might turn to a familiar face to help solve the bullpen woes.

The Trade Package: Trevor May to the New York Mets for IF William Lugo. It's not a blockbuster trade by any means, but we're putting it on the list because it could be the first semi-noteworthy trade of the season—and it's mostly noteworthy because it's a move that could push New York's payroll north of $350 million. Will be interesting to see how much is left in Steve Cohen's pockets if the Mets are still playing .500 baseball three months from now.

The Player: Say, have you heard of this Shohei Ohtani character? He might be pretty good. The two-way superstar won AL MVP in 2021, finished second to Aaron Judge last year and has gotten out to quite the impressive start in 2023 with a trio of home runs and—after yet another gem Tuesday night—a trio of quality starts already under his belt. His talent is undeniable. At this point, though, the tricky part might be finding a team willing to give Los Angeles a king's ransom for a unicorn who might sign a long-term deal elsewhere in free agency.

The Contract Situation: Ohtani is making $30 million in 2023. He will be a free agent this offseason.

The Landing Spot: Oakland Athletics. Just kidding. We all know it's most likely either the Dodgers, the Mets or the Yankees, with the Giants, Red Sox and Cubs as the wild cards who could enter the conversation if they have a legitimate playoff pulse at the time of the trade deadline. Sticking in LA with the Dodgers makes the most sense, though, as they have both the farm system to entice the Angels and the "cap room" to immediately sign Ohtani to a massive contract.

The Trade Package: Shohei Ohtani to the Los Angeles Dodgers for RHP Bobby Miller, OF Andy Pages, C Dalton Rushing and RHP Emmet Sheehan. There was reasonable hope early in the offseason that the Dodgers would get below the $233 million competitive balance tax threshold in order to reset that luxury tax clock and pay less in "overage charges," if you will, in future seasons—ideally with Ohtani on the team starting in 2024. But if he becomes available at the trade deadline, the Dodgers cannot risk letting the Mets or Yankees swoop in and lock up him before he reaches free agency. They must swing big, offering up three top-100 prospects, as well as a sixth-round pick from two years ago who has pitched well thus far in the minors.

The Player: Among MLB players who didn't go anywhere, Bryan Reynolds had arguably the most eventful offseason, requesting a trade from Pittsburgh in early December before coming ever so close to inking an eight-year, $106.8 million extension just before Opening Day. But as things stand, the only thing that has changed is that he's hitting the ball better than ever before. He could be shaping up for a Barry Bonds-like situation in which he wins NL MVP for the Pirates before opening next year elsewhere—if he even makes it to the end of this season in black and gold.

The Contract Situation: Reynolds is making $6.75 million in 2023 and has two years of arbitration eligibility remaining before hitting free agency in the 2025-26 offseason.

The Landing Spot: Boston Red Sox. With the exception of Masataka Yoshida, Boston does not have a single outfielder signed beyond next season. Plus, the "Adam Duvall for AL MVP" campaign lasted all of 10 days before the impending free agent suffered a fractured wrist. Thus, even though it's unlikely the Red Sox will contend for the postseason in 2023, they need an outfielder for this year and beyond. (They also kind of owe their fans a star player to pair with Rafael Devers after botching the Xander Bogaerts situation.)

The Trade Package: Bryan Reynolds to the Boston Red Sox for SS/OF Ceddanne Rafaela, 1B Triston Casas and RHP Bryan Mata. MLB.com rates Casas as the 21st-best prospect in baseball, Rafaela at No. 81 and Mata as Boston's seventh-best prospect. That might be too much. It might not be enough. (For what it's worth, the trade simulator at Baseball Trade Values accepts this proposal as fair.) It's going to take a lot to get Reynolds, though. Perhaps close to the same amount that Washington got for Juan Soto last year. And if Pittsburgh packages him with closer David Bednar, even better for the prospect haul.

The Player: It has been a hot minute since we've seen the Chris Sale of old—the left-handed ace who was consistently in the running for the AL Cy Young from 2012-18. But he still has great strikeout stuff when he's healthy—14.6 K/9 through two starts in 2023—and he's the type of tantalizing talent who would pique a lot of interest with even a half-decent run this June/July.

The Contract Situation: Sale is making $27.5 million in each of 2023 and 2024 with a $20 million club option for 2025 that would automatically vest (with an escalator) if he finishes top 10 in the 2024 Cy Young vote. There are also numerous incentives and a full no-trade clause in the contract.

The Landing Spot: Arizona Diamondbacks. Would be a bold move for a franchise that has finished 18 consecutive seasons with no greater than the 17th-highest payroll in the majors. But it was also bold of the D-Backs to trade away Daulton Varsho and to sign Corbin Carroll to an eight-year, nine-figure contract after about a month's worth of MLB experience. If Arizona can build on its strong 7-4 start and make a playoff push, Sale could be the missing piece of the puzzle.

The Trade Package: Chris Sale to the Arizona Diamondbacks for...a haul of prospects to be determined by his health and effectiveness over the next three months. After a litany of injuries, Sale entered this season with just 48.1 IP over the previous three years combined. He needs to first prove he can stay on the mound before Arizona considers selling a chunk of the farm to get him. If he does, though, just about anyone other than Jordan Lawlar and Druw Jones should be on the table. Boston might be able to get three of Arizona's top 10 prospects if willing to retain a fair amount of Sale's salary.

The Player: Gleyber Torres was an All-Star in both 2018 and 2019. He reharnessed maybe 80 percent of that form in 2022 with 24 dingers. And he has gotten out to a stellar start to 2023 with a pair of home runs, five stolen bases and a .371 batting average. But with DJ LeMahieu, Anthony Volpe, Oswaldo Cabrera and Oswald Peraza as the long-term middle-infield plans for the Yankees, Torres trade packages have been all the rage since last summer, most frequently involved in the Pablo López rumors.

The Contract Situation: Torres is making $9.95 million in 2023 and has one year of arbitration eligibility remaining before hitting free agency in the 2024-25 offseason.

The Landing Spot: Los Angeles Dodgers. With Gavin Lux (ACL) out for the year, the Dodgers have been forced to experiment with both Mookie Betts and rookie Miguel Vargas at second base. Neither has committed an error yet, but it's not the natural home for either player. Maybe they can hold down the fort until Michael Busch is ready to take the reins at second base, but bringing in Torres would take a question mark and turn it into a strength.

The Trade Package: Gleyber Torres to the Los Angeles Dodgers for 1B/3B Max Muncy and RHP Landon Knack. Keeping in mind that the Dodgers presumably plan on making a big offseason (or trade deadline) swing for Shohei Ohtani, they likely want any incoming money to be offset by outgoing money. Moving Muncy ($13.5 million this year; $10 million club option in 2024) solves that problem. And trading for Muncy would allow the Yankees to move LeMahieu back to second base instead of keeping him at the hot corner during the stretches of the season when 37-year-old Josh Donaldson is unavailable/ineffective.