Pros and cons for 7 top trade candidates

Pros and cons for 7 top trade candidates

July 29th, 2024

With the clock ticking down toward the Trade Deadline on Tuesday at 6 p.m. ET, decision time is nearly here for general managers around MLB.

While front offices may spend weeks or longer doing their due diligence on possible targets before the Deadline, the decision of whether to actually go through with a trade or not might come down to only one or two major factors.

With this in mind, let’s break down the biggest pros and cons potential suitors are surely considering with regards to seven of this year’s top trade candidates.

, SP, White Sox

Pros: Crochet has broken out in a big way in his first season as a starter, posting a 3.07 ERA while leading the AL with 157 strikeouts, 126 of them coming via either his four-seamer or his cutter. His peripheral stats are incredible as well -- he leads the AL in FIP (2.30) and ranks in the 93rd percentile or better in whiff rate, expected batting average allowed and expected ERA. On top of that, Crochet is just 25 years old and controllable through 2026, which means that any team trading for him would have him for at least two more prime seasons after 2024.

Cons: Because he missed all of 2022 after undergoing Tommy John surgery and pitched exclusively in relief prior to 2024, Crochet entered this season with just 85 1/3 professional innings under his belt, topping out at 54 1/3 frames in 2021. He’s already blown past that, casting doubt on what type of workload he’ll be able to handle down the stretch. Further complicating matters are reports that, if he’s traded, he would require a contract extension to be willing to pitch in the postseason this year.

, SP, Giants

Pros: Snell, who won his second career Cy Young Award with an MLB-leading 2.25 ERA a year ago, can be as dominant as any pitcher in baseball when he’s right, and he’s certainly on a heater at the moment. The left-hander struck out 15 batters over six scoreless innings on Saturday and owns a 0.75 ERA with 30 K’s in 24 innings spanning four starts since returning from the injured list on July 9. Strong finishes are typical for Snell, who has recorded a 2.43 ERA after the All-Star break in his career (3.98 ERA pre-break).

Cons: As we saw earlier this season, things can get ugly for Snell when he’s off his game. The southpaw began this season by posting a 9.51 ERA with 32 hits and 14 walks allowed in 23 2/3 innings over his first six starts. Snell led MLB with 99 walks in 2023 and has averaged 4.5 walks per nine innings since the beginning of 2021. There are also some durability concerns here, considering Snell has only twice exceeded 129 1/3 innings in a season and already made two trips to the injured list in 2024. Then there’s Snell’s contract, which gives him all the leverage. He’s guaranteed $30 million in 2025 but can opt out of his deal to become a free agent.

, SP, Tigers

Pros: Flaherty has rejuvenated his career after signing a one-year, $14 million deal with the Tigers, rediscovering the form that led to a fourth-place finish in the 2019 NL Cy Young Award voting. In many ways, he’s been even better this year than he was in 2019, posting a comparable ERA (2.95) with a career-best FIP (3.10), WHIP (0.96), K/BB ratio (7.0) and xERA (2.93). Flaherty, Tarik Skubal, Paul Skenes and Matt Strahm are the only qualifying pitchers who rank in the 90th percentile or better in both strikeout rate and walk rate.

Cons: Memories of what Flaherty did across 2022-23 haven’t entirely faded. He had a 4.84 ERA, a 1.59 WHIP and a 2.06 K/BB ratio in that span, including a 6.75 ERA after being traded from the Cardinals to the Orioles at last year’s Deadline. The Tigers’ coaching staff has unlocked an improved version of Flaherty, but it’s fair to wonder how he’ll perform when he gets outside Detroit’s ecosystem.

, OF, White Sox

Pros: Robert is a dynamic force with the ability to contribute across the board, as he showed last season. The 26-year-old produced 38 homers and 20 stolen bases over 145 games and displayed superb range in center field, tying for second at the position with 13 Outs Above Average. Robert is also controllable for three more years after 2024, via a reasonable $15 million salary next season and a pair of $20 million club options.

Cons: Availability is a major question mark with Robert, who has missed considerable time due to injuries in three of his four full big league seasons. Last year was the first time he played more than 98 games. Robert hasn’t done much to bolster his trade value lately, either, striking out in 22 of his past 37 plate appearances. His K rate on the year is up to 36.6%.

, SP, Cubs

Pros: Taillon’s tenure with the Cubs got off to a rough start last year, but he has pitched to a 3.16 ERA with a 1.13 WHIP and a 3.79 K/BB ratio over his past 33 games (32 starts) dating back to July 2023, the equivalent of a full season. After battling a number of ailments earlier in his career, including multiple Tommy John surgeries and a cancer diagnosis, Taillon has proven durable over the past four years, ranking 15th in the Majors in starts (107) during that span.

Cons: With an arsenal that doesn’t elicit many whiffs (10th percentile whiff rate) or swings outside the zone (56th percentile chase rate), Taillon doesn’t have much margin for error. His 3.77 FIP and 3.68 xERA suggest he’s due for some ERA regression.

, DH/OF, Athletics

Pros: After breaking out for 30 homers and a 127 OPS+ with the A’s in 2023, Rooker quietly has been one of the best hitters in the game this season, ranking fourth among qualifiers in OPS+ (170) behind Aaron Judge, Shohei Ohtani and Juan Soto. He’s been scorching hot lately, producing 12 homers and a 1.263 OPS over his past 26 games. What’s behind the surge? Elite contact, with Rooker ranking in the 93rd percentile or better in hard-hit rate, launch-angle sweet-spot rate and barrel rate. Rooker, too, is controllable for quite a while, with three-plus years to go before free agency.

Cons: Although he was a first-round pick (35th overall) by the Twins in 2017, Rooker took a long time to find his footing in the Majors. The right-handed slugger hit just .200 with a .668 OPS over 81 games for three clubs through the end of 2022 before being claimed off waivers by the A’s. As a result, it’s difficult to know what to expect from him moving forward, especially given his age (he’ll turn 30 in November) and penchant for striking out (30.4% K-rate in 2024).

, SP, Angels

Pros: Anderson has recorded a 2.96 ERA over 21 starts this season, two years after he finished with a 2.57 ERA. The soft-tossing lefty doesn’t miss a lot of bats, but he’s shown the ability to limit hard contact, with an average exit velocity of 86.5 mph and a hard-hit rate of 30.9% allowed in his career. He’s an affordable option, owed just $13 million next year in the final season of a three-year, $39 million deal.

Cons: Anderson may have a sub-3.00 ERA this season, but his K/BB ratio (2.02) is far worse than his mark (4.06) from 2022, as are his FIP (4.34 vs. 3.31) and xERA (4.15 vs. 3.10). All of those figures suggest he’s more of a back-end starter than someone who is going to make a big difference for a contending club down the stretch and into October.