MLB Trade Rumors: Top 10 Starting Pitchers on Trade Block At Deadline

June 16, 2026 , , , , , , ,

Trade talk is starting to pick up around baseball, as we get ever closer to the MLB Trade Deadline, just about six weeks away now. 

A number of notable names have been floated this season, so let's consolidate it with a list of the Top 10 Starting Pitchers on the trade block, with the help of Kerry Miller of Bleacher Report. 

  1. Tarik Skubal, Detroit Tigers
  2. Sandy Alcantara, Miami Marlins
  3. Joe Ryan, Minnesota Twins
  4. Freddy Peralta, New York Mets
  5. Robbie Ray, San Francisco Giants
  6. Casey Mize, Detroit Tigers
  7. Kris Bubic, Kansas City Royals
  8. Justin Verlander, Detroit Tigers
  9. Tomoyuki Sogano, Colorado Rockies
  10. Jose Soriano, Los Angeles Angels

The top of this list is littered with aces and Cy Youngs galore. The two-time defending Cy Young winner Skubal is obviously the cream of this crop. But whether or not the Tigers will trade the pending free agent will apparently have to wait. They won't decide until the deadline, which is Aug. 3rd. 
Insider Jeff Passan says any team worth its salt will be in on Skubal.

"Nobody can't use the best pitcher in the world. ... He's the kind of guy ... who wins you World Series," said Passan. 

Ryan was an All-Star last season, and is certainly pitching like one again this year. He will be heavily in demand, likely moreso than Alcantara, I would say. With a 3.17 ERA, 0.99 WHIP and a sensational 92:16 K/BB ratio, the Twins could bring back a haul for Ryan, who still has another year of team control after this one. 

Alcantara was a Cy Young winner. But that was four years ago. Since then, he's missed an entire season to Tommy John surgery, and hasn't quite been the same dominant pitcher since coming back. But he's still a solid upper-end of the rotation arm. Miller writes, "He's still a darn good pitcher, though, and the average velocity on his fastball is right on par with what it was pre-surgery."

At #5, we find another former Cy guy who missed a season to Tommy John, in Robbie Ray. He will be a free agent after the season, so the Giants would be off their rockers not to trade him and get some return. They won't be making the postseason this year. 

We've inserted Jose Soriano at the bottom of this Top 10 list, as the Angels should be taking advantage of that insane start that the previously unheralded Soriano had, and recouping a bunch of assets for him. He is still under team control for two more years. But his wild first six weeks, that saw him allow just one run in six starts with a 0.24 ERA, will still be etched in the minds of teams around baseball. Who cares if he had a 5.34 ERA in May, and a 3.45 in June? SOME team will pay up for that crazy stretch he began the year with. 


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