ESPN Ranks Top MLB Trade Deadline Candidates: Miller Leads
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- ESPN's Kiley McDaniel and Jeff Passan ranked 100 MLB trade candidates ahead of the Aug. 3 deadline, ordering players by total trade value with rest-of-season impact as a tiebreaker and a 10% minimum trade likelihood floor.
- Mason Miller tops the rankings at #1 with a 20% chance of being traded; the Padres gave up top shortstop prospect Leo De Vries to acquire him less than a year ago but are now weighing whether to move him, with Xander Bogaerts' contract as a possible attachment.
- George Kirby ranks #5 with a 50% trade likelihood — the highest among the top seven — and is described as the top non-Skubal starting arm, with a 97 mph fastball and arguably the best command of any starter in baseball.
- Zach Neto sits at #3 with a 40% trade chance under interim Angels GM John Mozeliak, though the source flags uncertainty over how much owner Arte Moreno will allow Mozeliak to maneuver for what could be a full rebuild.
- Jeremy Peña is #4 with 25% likelihood of being moved; the Astros face a thinning farm system after he hired agent Scott Boras and killed a near-extension last year, with Houston now weighing whether to sell before Aug. 3 or the Dec. 1 lockout.
- Hunter Goodman ranks #7 with a 20% trade chance despite never being a top-10 Rockies prospect, hitting 30 home runs through Colorado's first 101 games as the team faces a dire pitching situation.
Why it matters: With the Aug. 3 deadline days away, the Padres' willingness to reverse course on Mason Miller — after trading Leo De Vries for him 11 months ago — could reset the entire late-inning reliever market, especially for fits the source names like the Yankees, Mariners, Phillies, Brewers, Pirates, and Rays. Simultaneously, Seattle's openness on George Kirby (50% likelihood, highest of any top-7 name) could thaw a starting pitching market the source describes as 'at a standstill' and deliver a hefty return before deadline day.
