With the MLB trade deadline now about a month away, smart fantasy baseball managers will be looking to free up roster space. Many players will emerge as fantasy factors as a result of trade deadline deals. Teams with room on the bench can add those players immediately, or they may be able to get ahead by acquiring players who are likely to benefit from the most rumored trades. To make this happen, managers will want to make two-for-one or three-for-one trades this month, swapping multiple useful players for one difference-maker. If you’re looking for such a trade, here are a few names that could come up:
Sell at a high price
Ryan Helsley (RP, St. Louis Cardinals)
There should be a strong market to trade Helsley to a team in need of saves. After all, the right-hander leads the major leagues by a wide margin with 31 saves and a 2.54 ERA. But Helsley has been walking a tightrope lately trying to pull off some tough wins, walking 10 batters in his past 11 starts. The purpose of including Helsley in this article is not to predict that his season will be the result of a major downturn. Rather, it is to suggest that the manager trade him for a big payout and then either acquire a less coveted relief pitcher or comb waivers for a replacement. Helsley is a good reliever, but he benefits from the Cardinals generating more save chances (45) than any other team. There are teams with similar records that have 10-15 fewer save chances.
Buy cheap
Josh Hader (RP, Houston Astros)
This is crazy. Hader has been healthy all season, holding opponents to a .196 batting average and missing just one save. And despite doing the work he can control, the left-hander ranks 16th in the majors with 13 saves. The Astros’ recent run of form hasn’t helped much, with Hader recording just five saves in the month of June. Many fantasy managers will look at his lack of saves and mediocre 3.82 ERA and conclude he’s had a rough year, but a closer look reveals he has recorded an astounding 60 strikeouts, the second-highest total of any player to earn a save this year (behind only Mason Miller). It’s easy to envision a scenario in which Hader becomes the most valuable closer in the second half of the season.
Kim Ha-seong (2B/3B/SS, San Diego Padres)
Despite an increase in stolen bases across the league, it’s hard to find players who put up respectable numbers in both home runs and stolen bases. For example, there are only eight players with at least 10 home runs and 15 stolen bases, and nearly all of those players were selected in the first three rounds of the 2024 draft. Kim, Brenton Doyle, and Jalen Duran are the outliers in this group, with most managers agreeing that Duran and Doyle are in the midst of breakout seasons. Kim is arguably the most acquireable player in this group, and he becomes even more appealing when you realize that Statcast has assigned him an xBA of .251, 23 points higher than his actual numbers.
Buy at a high price
Marcell Ozuna, outfielder, Atlanta Braves
While it was unthinkable during draft season, Ozuna has emerged as the best hitter in the star-studded Braves lineup. Fresh off a 40-homer season, it shouldn’t be surprising to see the 33-year-old putting up some impressive power numbers. And it’s not surprising to see him hitting .296, either, considering he hit .312 in 2017 and .338 in 2020. The key with Ozuna is that he’s dominating the ball. His 93 mph average exit velocity is equal to his 2020 season mark and up 1.2 mph from last season. Ozuna ranks behind Aaron Judge, Juan Soto and Shohei Ohtani in xSLG, an accurate indicator of late-season power potential.
J.D. Martinez, outfielder, New York Mets
Martinez had a good batting performance in June (.874 OPS), but didn’t dominate enough to dramatically increase his trade value. The recommendation here is to make a reasonable offer for the 36-year-old, who is ninth in xSLG and has the potential to become one of the best power hitters in baseball this summer. Ideally, Martinez will be traded this month to a championship-contender playing in the bandbox. But even if that doesn’t happen, he will perform well enough in the Mets’ burgeoning offensive line to remain in every fantasy lineup. Martinez missed Tuesday’s game with ankle soreness from his new cleats, but managers will want to see him back in the lineup before making an offer.
Sell at a low price
Alex Bregman (3B, Houston Astros)
Bregman hasn’t had a terrible season, but it’s still been disappointing, with just nine home runs, two stolen bases and a batting average of .248. Additionally, his OPS of .702 is over 100 points lower than his performance over the past two seasons. Statcast suggests that the 30-year-old Bregman has been lucky to be average so far. His xBA (.235) and xSLG (.360) are noticeably lower than his actual performance. This season is shaping up to be the worst of the nine-year veteran’s career.
