Top Five Biggest Names Still on the MLB Trade Block

Players report to spring training in less than six weeks, but there will almost certainly be a slew of transactions between now and then, and a lot of movement will be via trades.

Between Cody Bellinger moving from the Chicago Cubs to the New York Yankees, Kyle Tucker being traded from the Houston Astros to the Cubs, and pitcher Garrett Crochet being sent from the Chicago White Sox to the Boston Red Sox, the trade market has already been hot this winter.

Still, there are multiple top players on the trade block that are yet to be moved, so as Opening Day of the 2025 season creeps closer, who is still available?

Top 5 Names Still on the MLB Trade Block

Dylan Cease

On December 11, NY Post’s Jon Heyman reported that the San Diego Padres had “received inquiries on Dylan Cease,” and after just one season with the team, the 29-year-old starter is very likely to move again before Opening Day.

After firmly establishing himself as an ace with the Chicago White Sox, Cease was traded to the Padres on March 13, 2024. In 189.1 innings of work, the right-hander went 14-11 with a 3.47 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, and 224 strikeouts, marking his fourth consecutive season with at least 200 strikeouts. He threw a no-hitter on July 25, becoming only the second pitcher in Padres history to do so, and finished fourth in NL Cy Young voting only behind Chris Sale, Zack Wheeler, and Paul Skenes.

The Padres are looking to reduce payroll this winter, and in his last year of club control, Cease is projected to earn around $13 million. Once he hits free agency after the 2025 season, Spotrac projects Cease’s market value will land him a five-year, $109 million deal, so since San Diego aren’t interested in breaking the bank next winter, it makes sense for them to move him now and offload his 2025 salary in the process.

The Baltimore Orioles have been linked to Cease all offseason, with MLB Network’s Jon Morosi reporting the team’s interest during the Winter Meetings. Rumors have only gotten louder since Baltimore failed to re-sign pitcher Corbin Burnes out of free agency, and on December 31, Bleacher Report’s Zachary Rymer named the Orioles as a “best fit” for Cease, who could slot in as the team’s new ace. The Padres have effectively emptied their farm system over the last few seasons, so if the Orioles put together a trade package of prospect hitters, it could get a deal done.

Luis Arráez

Another trade candidate on the Padres this winter is three-time batting champion Luis Arráez, who would be looking at his fourth team in as many years. After debuting in the majors with the Minnesota Twins in 2019, Arráez quickly proved himself as a force to be reckoned with at the plate before being traded to the Miami Marlins in January 2023. He was moved again — this time to the Padres — in May 2024, and now, Arráez is likely to be on his way to yet another team as San Diego looks to shed payroll.

In his six major league seasons, Arráez has never posted a batting average under .290, and if weren’t for his still-incredible .294 in 2021, he’d have six seasons over .300. Going into 2025, he has three All-Star selections and two Silver Slugger Awards to his name, has led MLB in batting average for three consecutive seasons, and has ranked in the 100th percentile of all qualified hitters for whiff rate in each of the last four years.

Arráez is extremely reliable at getting on base, but he’s a long way from a power hitter — in fact, his 10 home runs in 2023 were the most he’s ever managed in a season. Despite a .314 batting average and an incredible 4.3% strikeout rate in 2024, he only posted 4 home runs and slugged just 23.7% of his hits with an exit velocity of 95 mph or higher.

The 27-year-old’s defense is also a concern. In 2024, Arráez posted an abysmal -13 Outs Above Average (OAA) to rank in the bottom 1% of all qualified fielders, with a -9 Fielding Run Value (FRV), -3 Defensive Runs Saved (DRS) at first base, and -3 DRS at second.

Still, the Padres are unlikely to have too much trouble finding teams interested in adding the reigning batting champ to their roster, even if he’s not going to be a power slugger or elite fielder. The Seattle Mariners are in desperate need of offensive support — they finished 29th in batting average and 29th in strikeout rate in 2024 — and adding a reliable hitter to get on base could be a game-changer.

Another possible suitor is the New York Yankees, who are yet to replace Gleyber Torres at second base and could use another bat. Arráez certainly isn’t going to be show-stopping at second for them, but he can’t be worse than Torres was in 2024, and is a far more reliable batter.

Luis Castillo

On December 12, MLB.com’s Daniel Kramer reported that in the wake of Max Fried joining the New York Yankees and Garrett Crochet being traded from the White Sox to the Boston Red Sox, the Mariners had “been taking a higher volume of calls” from teams interested in pitcher Luis Castillo — and “they’re not hanging up.”

After a slow start to 2024 where he allowed four earned runs in each of his first three outings, Castillo quickly shook off the cobwebs and finished the season with a 3.64 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, and 175 strikeouts in 30 starts. He suffered a Grade 2 hamstring strain on September 10 that prematurely ended his season, but there’s no reason to believe that will impact his 2025 campaign.

As is the case with many teams around MLB, the Mariners are looking to cut payroll this season, and Castillo is owed almost $73 million over the next three seasons, plus a $25 million vesting option for 2028. With Seattle needing to add at least one impact bat to their lineup this winter, trading the ace is an easy way to open up a lot of payroll flexibility, but still, the Mariners aren’t going to give Castillo away for just any trade package.

Like Cease, Castillo has been linked to the Orioles this winter, with Feinsand even saying Castillo would be the better fit for Baltimore of the two star pitchers. As the Orioles continue their search for an ace to replace Burnes, they will almost certainly snag one of either Cease or Castillo, and while Cease is a cheaper option in 2025, Castillo will be locked into the roster for at least three more seasons.

The Chicago Cubs have also shown interest in Castillo, with The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal listing them among “the teams to at least inquire on him” since the Winter Meetings. Having gone into the offseason with starting pitching as their biggest need, the Cubs have already firmed up their bullpen, but are yet to find an ace to join their rotation. Castillo could fill that hole, but the Cubs would need to put up a strong package of hitters to make it happen.

One potential complication to any move is that Castillo’s contract includes a no-trade clause for one more season, meaning he can block any proposed trade he finds undesirable, regardless of how beneficial it would be to the Mariners and their trade partner.

Luis Robert Jr.

After trading away Cease to the Padres last winter, the White Sox have already jumped in with a major trade this offseason, sending Crochet to the Red Sox to receive prospects Kyle Teel, Braden Montgomery, Chase Meidroth, and Wikelman Gonzalez in return. As Chicago continues their rather brutal rebuild, another big move could be in the works before Opening Day — this time, with outfielder Luis Robert Jr. on the trade block.

In 2023 — the only season he has played more than 100 games — Robert slashed .264/.315/.542 with 38 home runs, 80 RBI, and 20 stolen bases, earning the first All-Star selection of his career and winning the Silver Slugger Award. His production dipped significantly in 2024, with the center fielder only managing 14 home runs and 35 RBI with a slashline of .224/.278/.379, but the White Sox are presumably banking on potential trade partners believing he can get back to where he was just a season ago.

When Robert is healthy, he’s fierce — but that doesn’t seem to be particularly often. Other than the 2020 pandemic-shortened season when he made his debut, the 27-year-old has missed significant portions of each season due to injuries, including being sidelined for 62 games in 2024. His 145 games in 2023 were the most he’s appeared in during a single season, and even then, he wasn’t able to participate in the All-Star Game due to a calf injury.

Still, Robert is just one season removed from winning a Silver Slugger, so even with his injury history, there have reportedly been a number of teams inquiring about taking him off the White Sox’s hands this winter.

Before the Dodgers re-signed Teoscar Hernández, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reported they were interested in Robert, but that’s unlikely to happen now that they’ve locked in the right-handed bat they were looking for. The Cincinnati Reds are arguably the most likely trade partner, especially with the depth of their farm system. According to MLB Pipeline, the Reds have five prospects in the top 100, and if they’re prepared to part ways with some combination of them, they could easily convince the rebuilding White Sox to move Robert.

Nolan Arenado

The St. Louis Cardinals are looking to “reset” the roster this winter, according to president of baseball operations John Mozeliak, and trading away third baseman Nolan Arenado is an important part of that. At 33 years old and with $74 million in salary owed to him over the next three seasons, Arenado is an obvious candidate to be moved, especially with the Cardinals’ goals of shedding payroll and pushing the development of young up-and-coming players.

Unfortunately, things so far haven’t gone to plan. On December 18, Arenado invoked his contract’s no-trade clause to block a proposed move to the Houston Astros, leaving both teams out of luck. The Astros promptly moved on to lock in their infield, signing free agent Christian Walker and adding Isaac Paredes in a trade with the Cubs, but the Cardinals still looking for a new team to trade for Arenado — one that will entice the third baseman enough to waive his no-trade clause.

According to MLB.com’s John Denton, Arenado would be willing to accept a trade to the Los Angeles Dodgers, Padres, Los Angeles Angels, Philadelphia Phillies, New York Mets or Red Sox, with the first three teams being on his “wish list.” Unfortunately, there haven’t been any reports of serious trade discussions with those teams — or many others.

While rumors have swirled this winter about potential trade destinations for Arenado, few teams seem to be genuinely interested in adding the 10-time Gold Glove winner to their roster. There was speculation that the New York Yankees could be open to a trade, but MLB insider Joel Sherman poured cold water on that last week. Even for the now-blocked trade to Houston to get off the ground, St. Louis had to offer $15-20 million to subsidize the Arenado’s remaining salary, according to MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand. 

Not only is Arenado a risky acquisition because of the payroll hit that comes with acquiring his contract, but his stats have declined over the last few seasons and could continue in a downward trajectory. In 2024, his slugging hit a career-low .394, and he hit just 16 home runs, the fewest he’s managed since 2013. A comeback certainly isn’t out of the question for the 8-time All-Star and 10-time Gold Glove Award winner, but he needs a big year to bounce back, regardless of where that happens.