As we’re just days away from July, this is just about the time in Major League Baseball that the rumor mill really starts churning in terms of trades. The trade deadline this season is Aug. 3, so we’re just over a month away. Part of the issue right now is that nearly every team is within earshot of contention. Only six teams are more than five games out of a playoff spot and every clubhouse within five games of a playoff berth believes it can make a run. 

On that note, let’s dive into the latest rumors. 

Orioles looking to buy

As noted, so many teams are technically in contention. Take the Orioles. They are six games under .500, sitting in fourth place in the AL East and still are only 2 ½ games out of the third American League wild-card spot. Remember, this was one of the worst teams in baseball from 2018-21 before making the playoffs in both 2023 and 2024, so this isn’t a situation where the front office is looking to rebuild or anything.  

Sure enough, president of baseball operations Mike Elias made no secret of the Orioles’ plans in front of the deadline. 

“I know our record is backwards, but apparently, this is infecting a whole bunch of other teams, too. I can’t explain it,” Elias said Saturday (via MLB.com). “I wish we were arriving at that in a much different way, and the context around that is unusual. But we’re right there.

“So, we’re going for it. I’ll let you know if that changes.”

In terms of possibly being aggressive in trades to win right now, he said: 

“I really hope so. We’re planning that way in case it’s the case. But I’m going to have to look at the circumstances and what happens, and I will be doing the right thing for the franchise regardless of everything else. So we’re going to have to see what the standings are and what our team is looking like at that time.

“But we’re certainly making those preparations, and everybody in this building is in the mindset of going for it in 2026.”

The big takeaway here? There are only seven teams with a worse record than the Orioles right now and the O’s are hoping to get aggressive in win-now mode. It’s gonna be a seller’s market. 

Angels up in the air

One of the teams definitely in a position to sell would be the Angels. Just a few days ago, they fired general manager Perry Minasian and handed the reins to former Cardinals boss John Mozeliak. 

The Angels could have a fruitful sell-off this next month, in theory. The big prize would obviously be Mike Trout, if he decides he’s OK with being traded, but there’s more. Jorge Soler is a free agent after the season and once moved at a deadline and won World Series MVP. Jo Adell hit 37 home runs last season and is a free agent after next year. Reid Detmers is under team control for two more years and is cheap. Same with catcher Logan O’Hoppe. Yusei Kikuchi could be a buy-low candidate (he’s due a bit over $21 million next season before hitting free agency). The big fish in terms of what lands the most in a trade could be starter José Soriano. That said, the Angels may be standing pat instead, as owner Arte Moreno wants to hang on to Detmers, Soriano and Adell, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reported last week.

For Mozeliak, though, he’s not sure which way the wind will blow yet (or, at least, he’s not saying it out loud).

“My answer now is that I don’t know the answer to that,” Mozeliak said. “In time, I think we will come up with a trade deadline strategy that we are all comfortable with.”

Hey, he just took over and the deadline is more than a month away. Keep your eyes on this one.