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Jul 1, 2025; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates relief pitcher David Bednar (51) pitches against the St. Louis Cardinals during the ninth inning at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Late-breaking Trade Market Limits D-backs Bullpen Upgrade Outlook

Originally posted on Arizona Diamondbacks on SI
By Jack Sommers | Last updated Jul 8, 2025 3:51 PM ET

As the July 31 MLB Trade Deadline approaches in just over three weeks, the dearth of sellers could severely limit the opportunity for the Diamondbacks to upgrade their bullpen for the stretch run.

It's not clear at this juncture if the D-backs will even be buyers, they could just as easily end up sellers. Some may even feel the team should be sellers right now.

But as the organization, players, and management haven't given up on the season, it's important to examine what the challenges are from a buyer's perspective first.

Simply put, there are not enough teams that are sure-fire locks to be sellers at the moment. The few that are appear to be holding out for sky-high returns for their available relief pitchers.

While it may seem like now is the time for the D-backs to make a bold move, amid all their injuries, the cost is prohibitive. That's especially true for a team 4.5 games out of the NL Wild Card with four teams in front of them.

Below is a breakdown of what the market looks like heading into play July 8. The focus for the Diamondbacks if they are to be buyers must be on relief pitching, so that is where we'll focus as well.

Five Teams are Locks and Four Teams are Likely to be Sellers

The Colorado Rockies, Washington Nationals, and Pittsburgh Pirates in the National League are sure to be sellers. Over in the American League, the Chicago White Sox and Oakland A's are certainly sellers.

Likely sellers include Atlanta Braves, Miami Marlins, Baltimore Orioles, and Cleveland Guardians. However any one of those four teams could make a move to get into contention if they got extremely hot over the next two weeks.

Thus they are likely to wait a while before joining the ranks of sure sellers. We should not expect these teams to make that decision until after the All-Star break.

With that said, however, we can still look at the relievers that might be available off these teams.

There are two tables below, broken out by pitchers that are free agents in 2026, immediately following this year, and pitchers that have a year of control through the end of 2026. The lists are not intended to be all-encompassing. But these are the pitchers we're highlighting today.

Current year innings, ERA and FIP (Fielding Independent Pitching) are shown. The table is sorted by FIP because random variance in batted ball results (BABIP) can heavily skew ERA in the small inning samples that accompany relievers.

PURE RENTALS, 2026 FREE AGENTS

Jack Sommers

Kyle Finnegan is a closer, and could potentially be a prime target for the Diamondbacks, but he will surely be in high demand. Caleb Ferguson has the ERA and FIP to match, and the Pirates will likely be able to demand a high price for him.

Rafel Santana, Gregory Soto and Tyler Alexander may have slightly suppressed trade value due to higher ERA, but their underlying numbers suggest they've pitched better than those ERA.

2027 FREE AGENTS with 1+ YEARS OF CONTROL

Jack Sommers

David Bednar is the prize in the 2027 free agent class among selling teams. He has pitched extremely well this year, and with the exception of 2024, has been one of the best closers in baseball the last several years.

The price to pry him away from Pittsburgh will be steep. The same can be said for teammate Dennis Santana.

The Braves have three solid relievers signed through 2027 in Pierce Johnson, Aaron Bummer and Enyel De Los Santos. It's possible they may be willing to move one of them for the right offer.

WHAT OTHER TEAMS MIGHT SELL?

Beyond these teams and players, the list of teams that might join the ranks of sellers within the next two to three weeks is not long. It includes the Diamondbacks perhaps, although that's not very likely at the moment, based on public comments from Mike Hazen.

The Cincinnati Reds, Minnesota Twins, Kansas City Royals, Texas Rangers, and Los Angeles Angels are five teams that could go either way in the standings the next two weeks. None are so far out as to be considered serious sellers at the moment.

At the same time there is a list of very interesting names that could come on the market if one or more of those five decide to move assets at the trade deadline.

The Rangers have four relievers on expiring contracts having good to decent seasons, including Chris Martin, Hoby Milner, Luke Jackson, and Shawn Armstrong.

The Reds have Taylor Rogers, Emilio Pagan, and Scott Barlow all scheduled to be free agents at the end of the year.

Then you have Kenley Jansen on the Angels. The veteran closer is still chugging along with a 3.58 ERA and 15 saves with only one blown.

The Angels are four games behind the Mariners with only the Red Sox between them and Seattle. They play a huge four-game series against the Mariners at home July 24-27.

The outcome there could determine if Jansen hits the market. This is just an example of the late-breaking nature of this year's trade deadline.