MLB Trade Rumors Podcast

Anthony Franco joins Darragh McDonald to discuss the news from the Winter Meetings. Topics include the Phillies resigning Kyle Schwarber, how Pete Alonso fits on the Orioles' roster, the Pirates making big offers to free agents, how the the Reds will pivot after missing out on Schwarber, Edwin Diaz's deal with the Dodgers, what the Mets will do after losing so many of their key players, the Nationals trading reliever Jose Ferrer to the Mariners for top catching prospect Harry Ford, and the Twins deciding to hold onto their trade chips and try to compete next year.

B.B. Abbott, an executive vice president at Wasserman, joins Darragh McDonald to discuss the process of free agency from the perspective of the agent, including who makes the first call, how much bluffing goes on when talking to front offices, why he doesn't like to leak stories to the media, what industry members think of MLBTR's free-agent predictions and other media speculation, how involved players are during negotiations, the different ways that contract extensions can come together, Zack Wheeler's recovery, how data has changed the draft, and the current state of baseball as a whole. Then Anthony Franco joins to go over the week's news, including Dylan Cease's big contract with the Blue Jays, the Mets seemingly buying low on Devin Williams, the Orioles hoping for a bounce back from Ryan Helsley, and the Red Sox acquiring Sonny Gray.

Anthony Franco joins Darragh McDonald to discuss the Mets trading Brandon Nimmo to The Rangers for Marcus Semien and what moves those teams could make next, why the Orioles sent Grayson Rodriguez to the Angels for Taylor Ward, what last week's signing of Josh Naylor means for the Mariners moving forward, if the Braves will play Mauricio Dubon at shortstop or still look to bring back Ha-Seong Kim, some surprising players that were tendered contracts, and what players accepting qualifying offers says about the free-agent market and a potential lockout next year.

Tim Dierkes, Steve Adams and Anthony Franco all join Darragh McDonald to discuss the site's annual Top 50 Free Agents list. Topics include how the threat of a lockout will affect free-agent contracts, if there's a team that will be willing to give Kyle Tucker a massive deal, the factors that could drive up Bo Bichette's price, how difficult it is to predict what Dylan Cease will sign for, what to make of Japanese stars Munetaka Murakami and Tatsuya Imai, if this will be the year that Cody Bellinger and Pete Alonso get huge deals, how the guys nailed the terms of Josh Naylor's contract, the best comps for Zac Gallen and Michael King, if teams will be able to overlook Devin Williams having poor ERA last year, if Robert Suarez can get a three-year deal going into his age-35 season, and players with qualifying offer decisions.

Steve Adams joins Darragh McDonald to discuss Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz getting indicted due to their involvement in a gambling scandal, Shane Bieber's surprising decision to pick up his player option with Toronto, Jack Flaherty choosing to stay in Detroit for another year, the Rays declining the option on Pete Fairbanks, Trevor Story deciding to not to opt out of his deal with the Red Sox, Gleyber Torres and Shota Imanaga getting offered qualifying offers, guys like Lucas Giolito and Devin Williams who didn't receive one, and the Rockies hiring Paul DePodesta as their new president of baseball operations despite him working most recently as an NFL executive.

Steve Adams and Anthony Franco join Darragh McDonald to preview the offseason with a discussion of the site's list of top trade candidates. First they give some final World Series thoughts, discuss the Cubs declining Shota Imanaga's option, and Ha-Seong Kim becoming a free agent. Trade-candidate topics include whether the Cardinals will try to move Brendan Donovan to help them rebuild, if Mackenzie Gore is a shoo-in to get traded, CJ Abrams' value, the direction the Twins will go in following their deadline fire sale, if the Pirates will trade pitching to acquire hitting help, how the Rays could move some guys who are set to make a significant salary, speculation that the Brewers will trade Freddy Peralta, the potential for the Marlins to trade Sandy Alcantara or Eduard Cabrera, what the A's will do as they start to come out of their rebuild, and if the Reds and Angels could line up on a trade of Brady Singer for Taylor Ward.

Steve Adams joins Darragh McDonald to discuss how much Bo Bichette's return in the World Series will impact his free agency, what MLB teams could offer Kazuma Okamoto when he gets posted this offseason, how strong the market will be for Dylan Cease, and the new managers hired by the Orioles and Angels. Listener question topics include what an extension for Addison Barger would look like, if veterans on minor league deals are eligible to be picked in the Rule 5 Draft, and whether Jarren Duran will get traded.

Anthony Franco joins Darragh McDonald to discuss how writing for MLBTR affects your fandom, if the Dodgers can be stopped, reports that the Phillies will move on from Nick Castellanos and what they could do in the outfield, which teams would be interested if Tarik Skubal were on the trade block, the record-breaking money he could get when he hits free agency, the Giants potentially hiring Tennessee's Tony Vitello as their new manager, the challenges a college coach would face if managing a major-league team, and the Brewers' deciding whether to keep Freddy Peralta or trade him. Listener question topics include what the Astros' priorities should be this offseason, how the Brewers could add some power to their lineup, whether health problems could lead Kyle Tucker's contract to work out as poorly for the team as Kris Bryant's has, and if the Padres should go after J.T. Realmuto.

Steve Adams joins Darragh McDonald to discuss news that Japanese slugger Munetaka Murakami will be posted this offseason and the unprecedented eight managerial positions that are currently open. Listener email topics include what it would take for the Tigers to trade Tarik Skubal to the Mets, what contract Pete Alonso could get, if the White Sox will look to trade from their supply of back-end starters, if the Nationals should consider moving James Wood to first base, how the Mariners' roster is set up for postseason success and if they will bring Josh Naylor back next season.

Anthony Franco joins Darragh McDonald to discuss the Rockies parting ways with GM Bill Schmidt, which direction the Rangers will go in after naming Skip Schumaker as the new manager, and how the ability to challenge balls and strikes next year will affect the emphasis that teams put on pitch framing. Listener question topics include whether we're headed for a quiet offseason with next year's CBA negotiations looming, how late-season runs by teams like the Guardians will affect how teams approach the trade deadline, which free agents could be signed and flipped next year by a bad team, and who the realistic free-agent targets are for the Orioles.

Orioles president of baseball operations Mike Elias joins Darragh McDonald to discuss what went wrong for the team in 2025, why they haven't signed free agent pitchers to big contracts, the difficulty for players to make the jump from AAA to the majors, the plan moving forward with catchers Adley Rutschman and Samuel Basallo both on the roster, how the O's ended up acquiring six players from the Padres' 2024 draft class, weighing future value when making trade deadline deals, and what led the team to target Ryan O'Hearn back when he was struggling with the Royals. Then Steve Adams joins to discuss Chaim Bloom's transition to lead the Cardinals' baseball operations department and the reports that the team is headed toward a multiyear rebuild, the Rangers parting ways with Bruce Bochy and seemingly set to have a much lower payroll next year, what the fallout will be for the Mets after they missed the playoffs, the Nationals deciding to hire Paul Toboni as president of baseball operations, and why the Rockies passed on claiming Alek Manoah off waivers.

Anthony Franco joins Darragh McDonald to discuss the major struggles of the Tigers, the Guardians surging to try to take a playoff spot, and the Astros limping toward the playoffs after losing Yordan Alvarez and others to injuries. Listener question topics include what kind of package would entice the Cardinals to trade Brendon Donovan, whether the Phillies will resign Kyle Schwarber or any of their other free agents, and how much money teams receive in revenue sharing.

Steve Adams joins Darragh McDonald to discuss the Mets' rotation issues and what led them to rely on three rookie pitchers as they try to avoid a collapse, if the Diamondbacks, Giants or Reds could sneak into the playoffs, San Francisco deciding to call up Bryce Eldridge for the stretch run, and the meteoric rise and impressive debut of the Blue Jays' Trey Yesavage Listener question topics include what the Astros could do this offseason to address their glut of position players, if the Braves will trade from their core, and if the Red Sox are poised to make a postseason run.

Mariners' president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto joins Darragh McDonald to talk about the team's aversion to multi-year free-agent contracts, if it's a struggle to convince players to sign in Seattle, the possibility of resigning Josh Naylor, PR factoring into roster construction, and how trade deadline deals are one of the main ways the Mariners acquire players. Then MLBTR founder Tim Dierkes joins to discuss the career of Anthony Rizzo, if the Braves should consider trading Sean Murphy, Lourdes Gurriel Jr. tearing his ACL and what the Diamondbacks will need to do to compete in 2026, Listener question topics include what it would take for the White Sox to lock up their young core, which version of Pete Crow-Armstrong we will see going forward,

Anthony Franco joins Darragh McDonald to discuss the Red Sox extending Aroldis Chapman after a surprisingly good year at age 38 and Walker Buehler getting released and signing with the Phillies. In an extended mailbag section, listener question topics include the Braves claiming Ha-Seong Kim and if they will spend more now that they've gotten under the luxury tax threshold, what the Rangers need to address this offseason, what the Pirates could realistically do in left field next year, and if the Marlins will trade starting pitching or commit to winning instead.

Pirates General Manager Ben Cherington joins Darragh McDonald to discuss how he's diving deeper into player development in Pittsburgh, why the team has had more success developing pitchers than hitters, how the Pirates considered drafting a position player instead of Paul Skenes, why the they haven't signed a player to a multi-year deal during his tenure, and the necessity of small-market teams to acquire players via trades. Then Anthony Franco joins the pod to discuss the Orioles locking up their young catcher Samuel Basallo with an 8-year extension, if Adley Rutschman could get moved, Felix Bautista being out for a full year after undergoing shoulder surgery, Zack Wheeler's diagnosis of thoracic outlet syndrome and the timeline for his return, and whether the Rangers will decide they are out of the playoff race and place players on waivers to dump salary in order to get under the luxury tax threshold.

Steve Adams joins Darragh McDonald to discuss news that the Pohlad family will retain majority ownership of the Twins, why fans are unhappy about it, and whether it will lead the team to trade guys like Pablo Lopez and Joe Ryan this offseason. Also, what led the Nationals to designate Nathaniel Lowe for assignment and for the Red Sox to sign him, how Josh Hader's capsule sprain will seemingly sideline him for the rest of this season, Zack Wheeler's unknown timeline to return after suffering a blood clot, and how mid-August has become an important time on the calendar in regards to prospect promotion incentives and service time. Listener question topics include which bullpen guys could potentially be placed on waivers this month to help their teams shed salary, if the Dodgers will target Kyle Tucker this offseason, and the craziest "come from nowhere" teams to make the playoffs and whether there are any possibilities of that happening this year.

Steve Adams joins Darragh McDonald to discuss the most recent update to the Free Agent Power Rankings, including a lot of weak performances by players in their walk years, but also guys such as Brandon Woodruff, Lucas Giolito and Bo Bichette who are trending upward. They also get into the details of Roman Anthony's contract extension with the Red Sox. Listener question topics include whether Tigers fans should be worried, if Tarik Skubal should be traded this offseason, whether or not Mark Vientos and Pete Alonso will be a part of the Mets' infield next season, and if piggybacking starters makes sense for the Blue Jays down the stretch.

Anthony Franco and Steve Adams join Darragh McDonald to recap the trade deadline. They discuss the Padres' deadline haul and A.J. Preller's willingness to trade away prospects, Leo De Vries and the rest of the Athletics' return for Mason Miller and JP Sears, the Twins selling off most of their bullpen and dumping Carlos Correa's salary on the Astros, the Mariners bolstering their offense with Eugenio Suarez and Josh Naylor, the Diamondbacks keeping Zac Gallen, the general lack of high-end starters moved this year, whether the Rangers acquisition of Merrill Kelly will put them over the luxury tax, the Mets targeting pitchers with different styles to beef up their bullpen, the Yankees making bullpen moves and those guys struggling in their first looks with their new team, if Ke'Bryan Hayes will hit better with the Reds than he did with the Pirates, whether trading a top prospect for Shane Bieber was a good idea for the Blue Jays, why the Red Sox made the trade for Dustin May, and the Tigers and Cubs not making any big moves.

Steve Adams and Anthony Franco both join Darragh McDonald to preview Thursday's trade deadline. Topics include how teams like the Padres try to simultaneously buy and sell at the deadline, the Royals extending Seth Lugo and deciding to go for it, Luis Robert's future, where pieces from the clear-selling Pirates and Marlins might end up, how the Mariners could leverage their strong farm system in trades, Eugenio Suarez and other trade chips that the Diamondbacks hold, the Yankees trading for Ryan McMahon and how they will act in light of Aaron Judge's injury, the Rockies actually making deadline trades, if the Twins will trade more than just their rentals, how the Emmanuel Clase situation will affect the Guardians' decision making, the Cardinals' questionable retooling strategy, the Brewers not being involved in prominent rumors despite having the best record in baseball, Cincinnati being an unpredictable team as they still sit on the bubble, the Giants probably planning to buy despite being pretty disappointing, whether the Phillies will be motivated to make a huge move, and if the Nationals will move MacKenzie Gore.