Erick Fedde Rumors: 5 Best Trade Fits at the Deadline

Erick Fedde was a first-round pick by the Washington Nationals in the the 2014 MLB Draft. Across parts of six seasons with the team, Fedde turned in underwhelming results, posting a 21-33 record with a 5.41 ERA and 5.17 FIP.

But Fedde went to South Korea for a season and completely revitalized his career. Across 30 starts for the KBO’s NC Dinos, Fedde went 20-6 with a 2.00 ERA and 0.95 WHIP. In what turned out to be his lone campaign for the Dinos, Fedde was voted the league’s MVP.

Fedde used his tremendous season in the KBO as a springboard to return stateside, signing a two-year, $15 million deal with the Chicago White Sox. Quickly, that deal has become one of the most team-friendly in the sport.

In 16 starts for the White Sox, Fedde has turned in his best MLB results, going 5-2 with a 3.05 ERA and 3.53 FIP across 94.1 innings pitched. Because he’s under contract for 2025, the White Sox don’t necessarily have to trade the 31-year-old. But considering any acquiring team would be getting him for parts of two seasons, general manager Chris Getz could maximize the return for the veteran right-hander this summer. That would be in the best interests of the lowly Chi Sox.

With that in mind, here are five teams who could potentially be suitors for Fedde in advance of the July 30 trade deadline.

Houston Astros

If Astros general manager Dana Brown wants to add before the trade deadline but is still uncertain whether the team is capable of reaching the postseason this year, Fedde would be a nice compromise.

Adding Fedde would improve an Astros rotation that has been hit hard by injuries, and help Joe Espada’s team to compete with the Mariners and Rangers for the AL West title.

Even if the Astros miss the playoffs for the first time since 2016, Fedde will still be under contract next season. José Urquidy and Cristian Javier recently had Tommy John surgery, so they won’t be ready to begin the 2025 season. Justin Verlander’s contractual status for next year is in flux as well. So Fedde would give the Astros much-needed certainty in 2025, beyond the ability to compete in 2024.

Milwaukee Brewers

The Brewers have a tremendous bullpen and a lineup ready to win now, but behind Freddy Peralta, they don’t have much in the way of proven pitching depth. That may mean that general manager Matt Arnold needs to add multiple starting pitchers before the trade deadline to hold onto their NL Central lead.

If the Brewers hope to do damage in the postseason, Fedde probably can’t be their biggest starting pitching addition. But if he’s the second most notable starter the Brewers acquire, that would represent a really nice deadline.

In any event, Fedde would be under contract for 2025, when the Brewers will also have Brandon Woodruff back at the top of their rotation in addition to Peralta.

New York Yankees

The Yankees recently got reigning AL Cy Young Award winner Gerrit Cole back from the injured list, so it may seem like they are set in their rotation, particularly with the possibility that they’ll get Clarke Schmidt back at some point after the All-Star Break.

But while there is a scenario where the Yankees end up with more than five qualified starting pitchers, they don’t exactly have a rotation full of arms certain to make 33 starts. Cole is just returning from an elbow injury, Marcus Stroman hasn’t made more than 27 starts since 2021, Carlos Rodón has a fairly lengthy injury history, Nestor Cortes made just 12 starts a year ago and Luis Gil’s innings are going to have to be managed.

Fedde would give the Yankees back-of-the-rotation depth for the remainder of the season, which could be crucial as they try to fend off the Baltimore Orioles in the AL East race. If the Yankees end up with a surplus of starting pitchers in the offseason, Fedde could be flipped by Brian Cashman.

Atlanta Braves

The Braves lost Spencer Strider for the season when he had an internal brace procedure in April. The trio of Max Fried, Chris Sale and Reynaldo López has been a formidable one, but there are definitely questions about the durability of that group.

This is the first year that Sale has been healthy in half a decade, while López has already thrown more innings this year than he has in any campaign since 2019. On top of that, Fried only made 14 starts a year ago.

Alex Anthopoulos needs to add in the outfield, but he would be wise to build on the trio of Fried, Sale and López, knowing that each carries a level of injury risk. Fedde being under contract for 2025 would also make him attractive to the Braves, with both Fried and Charlie Morton facing uncertain futures beyond this season.

Baltimore Orioles

Like with the Brewers, it would be a risk for the Orioles if Fedde was their big addition to the starting rotation. Corbin Burnes and Grayson Rodriguez is a very nice one-two punch, but Dean Kremer is working is way back from a right triceps strain, while Kyle Bradish and John Means are both done for the season after undergoing Tommy John surgery.

This is clearly a team that needs to add another front-line pitcher capable of starting one of the first three games of a playoff series, which isn’t necessarily Fedde. Fortunately for the O’s, general manager Mike Elias has built such an incredible farm system that Baltimore could trade for a frontline starter and still add Fedde.

Fedde would help the Orioles compete for the AL East title, and could potentially be a Game 4 starter if the team advances to the ALCS. No one is suggesting Fedde would be a replacement for Burnes, but the former NL Cy Young Award winner can become a free agent after the season, so knowing Fedde would be with the team in 2025 would increase his attractiveness to the Orioles.