4 Under-the-Radar Stars Who Could Be Moved at the Trade Deadline

In a trade market devoid of obvious candidates, George Springer headlines a list of sneaky bats who could be on the move and the deadline.

By Peter Appel | July 28, 2026 | | 0

TORONTO, ONTARIO - OCTOBER 20: George Springer #4 of the Toronto Blue Jays celebrates after hitting a three-run home run against the Seattle Mariners during the seventh inning in game seven of the American League Championship Series at the Rogers Centre on October 20, 2025 in Toronto, Ontario. (Photo by Mark Blinch/Getty Images)

Where is Tarik Skubal going? Is Mason Miller on the move? Will the Nationals actually trade CJ Abrams?

MLB trade deadline talk gets stale fast, because the same names get floated over and over. I’m always searching for updates, but at some point, how many do we really need on the same handful of players?

Nobody predicted Connelly Early would get traded for Curtis Mead; few even predicted either of them would get moved at all, let alone for each other. That’s what this article is about: finding players who could be on the move at the deadline that nobody’s discussing. My goal is for your thinking to go from “he’s crazy” to “wait, I could actually see it.” I can’t predict the future, but I can give it my best shot.

George Springer (DH/OF, Toronto Blue Jays)

Contract Details: Final season of a six-year, $150M deal ($24M this season)

Springer got off to a rough start this season, posting back-to-back months to open the year with an OPS in the .600s. But as the season has progressed, he’s gotten better and better. In June, he posted a .738 OPS with nearly double the walks, and in July, he took off for an .867 OPS. Since the All-Star break, albeit in a short sample, he’s hitting .343 with a .966 OPS.

Springer was a postseason hero last year, and he’s showing he still has more in the tank. He’s primarily a DH at this point, but a team could stash him in a corner-outfield spot in a pinch. This market is starved for right-handed bats, and if this surge continues, he could be a difference-maker for a playoff team.

He’s also a rental and expensive, so it shouldn’t cost a team much to acquire him. The Blue Jays are ten games under .500 at the time of writing; it would make sense for them to shed expiring contracts.

ST. LOUIS, MO -APRIL 02: St. Louis Cardinals catcher Ivan Herrera (48) runs the bases after hitting a three-run home run, his third of the day, during a major league baseball game between the Los Angeles Angels and the St. Louis Cardinals on April 02, 2025, at Busch Stadium in St. Louis, MO. (Photo by Keith Gillett/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Ivan Herrera (C/DH, St. Louis Cardinals)

Contract Details: Free Agent in 2030 (Arb 1 next season)

The Cardinals aren’t playing great baseball right now, and at the moment they have just a 17% chance of making the playoffs, per FanGraphs. Chaim Bloom was brought in to rebuild this team, not be a deadline buyer; unless they had a 50/50 shot at the playoffs, I assumed he’d sell anyway.

The expectation for St. Louis is to move off expiring contracts. The problem is, they don’t have that many good ones. Dustin May’s name has been floated, as have a few bullpen arms, but it’s doubtful either brings back a valuable return. If they’re open to any opportunity, Ivan Herrera’s name should be in the mix.

The knock on Herrera is he’s not a good defensive catcher; that’s why he’s only played a third of his games behind the dish. But that’s the only real problem: he’s young, comes with years of control, and he can really hit. His career OPS is .785, and he posted an OPS above .800 in each of the last two seasons. He’s not having his best year at the plate right now, but he’s still been 14% better than league average per wRC+.

The Cardinals have so much young talent on offense that I could see them trading Herrera for young, controllable pitching, just like the Nationals did with Curtis Mead, and we saw how much that netted them for a half-season of production. What could Herrera net them?

Trevor Rogers (LHP, Baltimore Orioles)

Contract Details: Free Agent in 2027 (Final Year of Arbitration)

Even though Rogers is a rental, his name hasn’t come up much in deadline conversations, for a couple of reasons. First, nobody knows what the Orioles are going to do at the deadline — they sit four games under .500, but just 2.5 games back of the final wild-card spot. Second is his production. He got off to a rocky start, and many (myself included) began to wonder whether last year was just a flash in the pan.

I was wrong, and now it looks like his rocky start was the flash in the pan, not the other way around. He’s posted a 2.21 ERA over his last ten starts, pitching into the sixth inning in nine of them. Not only is he giving you ace-level production right now, but he won’t cost as much as other arms that come with years of control.

If Tarik Skubal is truly available, he’s in a class of his own, but outside of him, Rogers could be the best rental arm moved at this deadline.

Francisco Alvarez of the New York Mets looks on prior to a spring training game between the Miami Marlins and the New York Mets at Roger Dean Stadium. — JUPITER, FLORIDA – MARCH 08: Francisco Alvarez #4 of the New York Mets looks on prior to a spring training game between the Miami Marlins and the New York Mets at Roger Dean Stadium on March 08, 2024 in Jupiter, Florida. (Photo by Rich Storry/Getty Images)

Francisco Alvarez (C, New York Mets)

Contract Details: Free Agent in 2030 (Arb 2 in 2027)

Luis Torrens has emerged as one of, if not the, best defensive catchers in baseball this season. It’s a good problem to have; the Mets now have two solid catchers, but only one can play the position. Alvarez is the better player, but would they be willing to move him for a haul? I think so.

We’ve already talked about how starved the market is for right-handed bats, but catchers are in the same boat. With Shea Langeliers on the IL and the Rockies needing an overpay to move Hunter Goodman, Alvarez could be the happy medium teams are looking for.

He’s not a perfect catcher; his defense has been an issue this season. But the bat is still really good, with an OPS near .800 both last year and this season. Alvarez is likely to finish with 20 home runs this year, and he’s still just 24 years old. If the Mets think they have an answer with Torrens, Alvarez could be on the move.