The MLB trade deadline looms on Friday. With less than a week to go, the rumor mill is churning. We'll round up the hottest rumors here throughout the day.
Mariners 'making a push' for Merrifield
The Mariners defeated the Athletics on Sunday, shrinking the gap between the two in the race for the second AL wild card spot to 1 ½ games. It appears the Mariners are intent on ending the longest playoff drought in the majors, as they're "making a push" to acquire Royals second baseman Whit Merrifield, according to MLB.com's Mark Feinsand.
Merrifield, 32, is an attractive target for numerous reasons. He's hit .272/.320/.401 (96 OPS+) this season with eight home runs and 25 steals (on 26 tries). Merrifield is a protean defender who has ample experience in the outfield. He's also signed to a team-friendly contract, which will pay him less than $15 million over the next two seasons (both are club options).
It's unclear what the Mariners would relinquish for Merrifield, though he wouldn't be the first All-Star second baseman traded this week. The Padres reportedly acquired Adam Frazier from the Pirates on Sunday night in exchange for three prospects.
NL West contenders looking at Duffy
The Dodgers and Giants are both interested in Royals lefty Danny Duffy, reports Mark Feinsand of MLB.com (Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle first reported the Giants' Duffy interest).
Duffy is currently on the injured list with a flexor strain and might even be out until September, so it would be a move looking toward the last month of the season and then the playoffs.
Duffy, 32, is 4-3 with a 2.51 ERA (182 ERA+), 1.21 WHIP and 65 strikeouts against 22 walks in 61 innings this season.
The once-deep Dodgers rotation now includes David Price -- who started the year in the bullpen -- and rookie Josiah Gray, thanks to Dustin May being out for the season, Clayton Kershaw being injured and Trevor Bauer being on administrative leave while investigated for sexual assault.
The Giants would simply be looking for an upgrade.
Buxton, Twins unable to reach extension
Recent word from Minnesota has been that the Twins are likely to trade center fielder Byron Buxton at some point if they can't reach a contract extension with him. He's not due to hit free agency until after next season, so it's possible they'll hold onto him into the offseason, but the extension talks appear to have broken down. The two sides have been unable to agree on terms of an extension, report Dan Hayes and Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic.
Buxton, 27, has only appeared in 27 games this season, but when he was healthy he was an absolute force. He is hitting .369/.409/.767 (222 OPS+) with 11 doubles, 10 homers, 19 RBI, 21 runs, five steals and 2.9 WAR.
Health is always going to be the question with Buxton, though. He has immense upside, but since 2017, he's appeared in 28, 87, 39 (out of 60) and so far 27 games by season.
It'll be interesting to see how much the Twins could get for Buxton in a trade, whether that's in the next few days or this coming offseason.
Pirates 'likely' to deal Anderson
The Pirates are "likely" to trade starting pitcher Tyler Anderson this week, reports Jon Morosi of MLB Network.
Anderson is very cheap, making just $2.5 million this season and he remains under team control through next season. The 31-year-old southpaw is 5-8 with a 4.35 ERA (95 ERA+), 1.20 WHIP and 86 strikeouts against 25 walks in 103 1/3 innings this season. A few outings (such as nine runs on 10 hits in five innings on May 21) have skewed his numbers, as he's actually been strong for the most part.
Zeuch traded to Cardinals
The Cardinals have acquired right-handed reliever T.J. Zeuch from the Blue Jays, reports Robert Murray of Fansided. Zeuch was recently designated for assignment and he will be headed to Triple-A, per Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The 6-foot-7 Zeuch had a 1.59 ERA in 11 1/3 innings last season, but was roughed up (6.60 ERA, 2.00 WHIP) in 15 innings this season.
