The trade deadline is approaching and with that, trade season is upon us!
We have already seen a few trades go down,with the Nationals involved in the first notable one,
sending Hunter Harvey to Kansas City in exchange for minor leaguer Cayden Wallace and Kansas City’s Competitive Balance A pick, which was then used to draft catcher Caleb Lomavita. More recently and notably, the Marlins dealt reliever A.J. Puk to Arizona for a couple of minor leaguers, the Mariners won the Randy Arozarena sweepstakes, and the Orioles and Phillies completed a solid swap of major league players. With the deadline under a week away, it is obvious the trades will continue to pick up, and the Nationals are expected to be active participants in one of my favorite parts of the year.
Mike Rizzo has a strong hand in this year’s trade deadline, with a number of players that could
be of interest to other major league ball clubs. The Nationals’ most likely trade participant was
Jesse Winker, who was traded over the weekend to the New York Mets, as the outfielder has enjoyed a resurgent season to the tune of a .796 OPS after signing a one-year deal with the Nationals. Outside of Winker, the Nationals could now move fellow corner outfielder Lane Thomas. Following the two outfielders, the Nationals do not have any other position players that are likely to be traded. That is unless they can find someone interested in Juan Yepez, albeit his small sample size at the major league level this year. Even then, it is unknown how likely the Nats are to move Thomas given his year of team control in 2025. On the pitching side, the Nationals might be able to find suitors for relievers Derek Law, Dylan Floro, Robert Garcia, and Kyle Finnegan. When it comes to the rotation, it is unlikely any of the starters get traded, unless some team miraculously wants to take Patrick Corbin. With all
that being said, a good chunk of these guys will be free agents at this seasons end, meaning they will not net the Nationals any insane prospects.
That might not be the case for Kyle Finnegan and Lane Thomas, who both won't be free agents until after the 2025 season. Therefore, I am taking a look at the trade market for those two, including at which teams could make a move for them and what the prospect return for the Nationals might look like. I am no major league scout by an means, so most of these prospect selections are somewhat like throwing darts blindfolded.
When analyzing the market for Lane Thomas, there are two teams that stand out as prospective
matches for the Nationals’ right fielder: the MIlwaukee Brewers and Cleveland Guardians. Both
of these teams find themselves in the thick of the playoff races despite subpar offensive production from the right field position, with both being in the bottom half of baseball in wRC+ in right field. Thomas is also rumored to have interest from the Pittsburgh Pirates, though it is unclear how active the Pirates will be as buyers.
The Brewers have received below average production from their right fielders, more specifically at a rate of a 98 wRC+. The Brew Crew currently hold a six game lead over the second place St. Louis Cardinals in the NL Central, and hope to take home the division crown under first year manager Pat Murphy. Unfortunately for them, Christian Yelich just landed on the 10 day IL with a back injury that could possibly end his season, putting a bigger need on landing an outfield bat at the deadline. The Brewers do not have the strongest farm system outside of their top prospects, but that would not be a realistic return when it comes a Lane Thomas trade. I pinpointed two potential trade candidates in the Brewers system. Right hander Josh Knoth is currently 18 years old in A, so he has a while until he’s major league caliber, but the talent is there. He has a solid pitch mix, highlighted by his plus fastball, curveball, and slider. He currently sits as the 11th ranked prospect in Milwaukee’s system. There is also Catcher/First Baseman Wes Clarke, the Brewers 24th ranked prospect, who got a quick promotion to AAA this year after tearing up AA, producing an OPS of .910 in his first 13 games.
Looking at the Cleveland Guardians, they are yet again looking for an outfielder to add to their offensive attack, as their right fielders sit at a collective 87 wRC+ this year. Left hander Joey Cantillo would be a prize addition, as he sits ranked as Cleveland’s number 10 prospect. Cantillo definitely has some work to do, especially on the command side of things, but the potential is there. Think of him as another potential DJ Herz kind of move. Another lefty in Parker Messick, Cleveland’s number 21 prospect, could be another name to look into for Washington.
Moving on over to Kyle Finnegan, two teams that immediately look like fits include the New York Yankees and Houston Astros. Despite these two teams having big name closers in Clay Holmes and Josh Hader, they both also have bullpens that rank in the bottom 11 of Major League Baseball in WAR. Every team needs bullpen help and could benefit from adding Finnegan, but the Yankees and Astros figure to be more aggressive considering their status as top tier contenders.
The New York Yankees farm system is a fun one, with top prospect Jasson Dominguez being on any teams’ wishlist. Unfortunately, Kyle Finnegan is nowhere near Jasson Dominguez territory, but could still land the Nationals some interesting prospects. RIght hander Clayton Beeter, the Yankees’ 13th ranked prospect, has posted a 2.53 ERA in AAA this year, striking out 44 in 32 innings. Outside of Beeter, if he is even made available, names like Jorbit Vivas and Benjamin Cowles could be potential package pieces from New York.
Similar to the Yankees, Houston has struggled to get consistency out of their bullpen this year, thus placing them in the market for a high leverage reliever. Prospects Zach Dezenzo and Zach Cole would be high on my wishlist from Houston, but they might not be in the picture. Outside of those two, infielder Will Wagner and outfielder Pedro Leon could be very solid additions to the Nationals farm system.
When it comes to trade season, it can be hard to predict what prospects will be shipped where, but this was an attempt to pick out the potential suitors for the Nationals more pricey trade chips. There is no guarantee that both of them will be traded, let alone one, but if they do decide to make a move to deal them, those teams could be suitors with the listed prospects being potential pieces the Nationals get back for the future.