While trades for relievers at the deadline are rarely hot moves involving the best prospects, they often are. As the summer reaches its climax, contenders begin to think about their bullpen down and beyond, and the modern bullpen seems to be as dense as bullpen cover. Sgt. Pepper’s, there is always room to add a quality arm. Let’s dig into them!
Editor’s Note: This release compilation does not include the recent trades of Carlos Estévez, Nick Mears, and Jason Adam. Ben Clemens will cover those steps in a separate post.)
The Arizona Diamondbacks acquired LHRP AJ Puk from the Miami Marlins for 1B/3B Deyvison De Los Santos and OF Andrew Pintar.
Don’t focus too much on a raw ERA or a dismal walk rate when judging the merits of Arizona’s AJ Puk trade. Partly in response to a slew of injuries to their rotation in the spring, the Marlins took Puk’s effort back into the rotation seriously, and he started the season there after a successful spring. I still think that was a well-founded assessment, but it didn’t pay dividends for Miami. Puk was very intimidating as a starter, and it wasn’t long before he hit the IL with a shoulder strain. His four starts have resulted in a 9.22 ERA, 6.29 FIP, and a staggering 17 walks in 13 2/3 innings. He was sent back to the ‘pen when he returned in mid-May, but the damage to his season’s line was so great that it looked unplayable at the time of the trade (4.30 ERA, 3.62 FIP, 44 IP).
As he has been for the past few years, Puk dominates as a liberator; in 30 1/3 innings of relief with the Marlins, he had 33 strikeouts and, perhaps most importantly, only six walks. The result was a 2.08 ERA/2.42 FIP, with hitters holding a dismal .159/.204/.252 against him. The Diamondbacks are short on left-handed relievers, with Joe Mantiply shouldering the lion’s share of the southpaw’s load. Puk was historically better against fairies than Mantiply, so it can be used in most situations.
In return, the hungry Marlins picked up a few bats to add to their farm system. With .325/.376/.635 homers and 28 homers combined across two levels in the minors this year, Deyvison De Los Santos looks impressive at first glance, but it’s important to put those numbers together. He’s playing at high offensive positions and there’s a lot of heat to take out of those numbers to turn them into expected MLB performance. ZiPS translates his 2024 minor league performance to .263/.302/.428 in the majors and projects wRC+ lines between 95 and 110 in future years with the Marlins. Now, that’s enough for the Marlins to be interested in him and pursue any upside, but don’t be alarmed if he’s not an offensive force.
Similarly, ZiPS projects Andrew Pintar’s season at .235/.302/.365 and doesn’t see a ton of upside from him offensively, viewing him as a potential backup if he hits high points. I talked to my colleague Eric Longenhagen a little bit about him on Friday and Eric still lists Pintar as a five outfielder, which is about how ZiPS is evaluating him. Still, like De Los Santos, Pintar is interesting enough for a team like the Marlins to take a chance on him and give him an extended look; Guessing is often wrong, after all, by design!
The Seattle Mariners acquired RHRP Yimi García from the Toronto Blue Jays for OF Jonatan Clase and C Jacob Sharp.
Since the Blue Jays are temporary sellers, it would not be surprising to see them trade Yimi García, who is a free agent at the end of the season. His three-year, $16 million deal was a success for the Jays; he earned 2.7 WAR and posted a 3.44 ERA/3.28 FIP over 163 appearances over two-plus seasons. This season was arguably his best, as he struck out nearly 13 batters in nine innings. With Gregory Santos limping slightly after a knee injury — believed to be serious — García has held his own behind Andrés Muñoz in a barking way for the Mariners’ bullpen. Seattle’s Warriors have been in the middle of the pack, but adding García to a team that includes Muñoz, a healthy Santos, and Taylor Saucedo gives the M’s an excellent quartet of top guys, which could be crucial in what happens. been a tight race for the AL West.
Jonathan Clase was listed as FV 40 earlier this month when Eric ran down the Mariners’ top prospect, but with Julio Rodríguez anchored in the field and supported by other outfielders who can cover the position (Victor Robles, Cade Marlowe, and even, a little, newly acquired Randy Arozarena), Clase’s ability to do that was just that important in Seattle. Beyond that, the team needs more gear in its lineup at this point, and that’s not Clase’s specialty. For the Jays, Kevin Kiermaier is a free agent after the season and the organization has a real lack of center field candidates anywhere near the majors. ZiPS projects Clase at .218/.291/.373 with an 84 wRC+ for 2025 but sees him as an above-average defensive center fielder, suggesting he’s at least a reasonable stopgap option or utility role player for Toronto. Jacob Sharp is off the radar as a prospect, a young catcher who hits well, even though he’s 22 years old in A-ball.
The New York Mets acquired RHRP Ryne Stanek from the Seattle Mariners for Rhylan Thomas.
The Mets have a very unlikely bullpen beyond Edwin Díaz, and now that they’re in strong contention for the NL Wild Card spot this season, they’re looking to improve their bullpen. Ryne Stanek didn’t make it in Seattle, but the veteran reliever is still pitching in the high-90s, solid, and missing bats. Guys like that will always wake up. Especially after trading for García, the Mariners have better pitching options than Stanek in high-profile, non-save situations. But that’s not the case in Queens, and he’s a welcome addition to the bullpen.
Rhylan Thomas is not a high price to pay and fills a similar role to the departed Clase in Seattle’s organization, albeit a different type of player. As a heavy contact hitter, Thomas could work well at T-Mobile Park alongside the pitcher. ZiPS sees Thomas as a .263/.313/.333 hitter with more corner defense in 2025.
The Tampa Bay Rays acquired RHRP Cole Sulser from the New York Mets for cash
Cole Sulser is a softie who relies on deception. He had a breakout season in 2021, but after being traded to the Marlins, he struggled with his command in ’22 and his season was marred by a late injury that landed him on the 60-day IL. A shoulder injury ruined his 2023 and he spent ’24 trying to rebuild his value in the minors for the Mets, with mixed results. This is the third time the Rays have traded Sulser in his career, so it seems like they see something in him, and given Tampa Bay’s record with undrafted relievers, I wouldn’t be shocked if he becomes a utility for the Rays next season.
Cash is a form of money, which can be exchanged for goods and services. It can be vulnerable to inflation, and because of this, it does not represent a stable form of foreign exchange. But cash also has the advantage of being more flexible.
Chicago Cubs acquire RHRP Nate Pearson from Toronto Blue Jays for Yohendrick Pinango
Nate Pearson was a hot prospect at the time, and there were good reasons to think he would play an important role in Toronto. Both scouts (he graduated in FV 55 here) and speculation (ZiPS was a fan) thought a lot of his skills, but the question was how he would hold up physically as a starter. This concern has been a real problem, and for the most part since 2019, his seasons have been marred by a variety of nagging injuries, which have cost him time to develop. Pearson is throwing hard, but he’s still green, which is a problem when he turns 28 in a few weeks and only has two years left in charge of the club after this one – not much time for a rebuilding project. The Cubs decided to take a shot at fixing him. They are short-term sellers, but if Pearson pays off, he could be a key player for their ‘pen in 2025 and ’26.
Yohendrick Pinango is also raw, a corner outfielder with decent power who hasn’t really shown that home run in the minors yet. The Cubs are associated with raw, exciting outfield prospects, while the Jays are sorely lacking in them, making Toronto a better home for Pinango. ZiPS only translates Pinango’s 2024 season to a .344 slugging percentage; he hit well in High-A, but that was as a 22-year-old in his third stint there. Like Pearson, Pinango’s lottery ticket.
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