Why Did Trade Frenzy Bypass Biggest Names?

By Dan Schlossberg

And how about the dozens of top names who weren’t traded?

Exorbitant prices, coupled with unrealistic postseason postures, convinced countless clubs to sit tight — as the Angels did with Shohei Ohtani last summer.

That’s why the trade deadline lacked the star-power names most experts expected.

More than a dozen teams clamored after his powerful left arm but Garrett Crochet somehow remained with the woeful White Sox.Photo byDan Schlossberg

Just look at the players who weren’t moved: Garrett Crochet, Luis Robert, Jr., Javy Baez, Tarik Skubal, Brent Rooker, Cody Bellinger, Jameson Taillon, Blake Snell, Gleyber Torres, Bo Bichette, Vladimir Guerrero, Jr., Michael Conforto, Mike Yastrzemski, Tyler Anderson, Taylor Ward, Luis Rengifo, Max Scherzer, Kyle Finnegan, Charlie Blackmon, Elias Diaz, Cal Quantrill, Mason Miller, etc.

Contenders either weren’t willing to add payroll — even for a pro-rated two-month rental — or wouldn’t submit to the economic blackmail of ridiculous demands by sellers (we’re looking at you, Chicago teams).

I’m willing to bet virtually all of the players on this list will be wearing different uniforms in 2025.

Some, like Bellinger and Snell, can opt out of their contracts and test free agency.

Others, like Crochet and Robert, will move when their current employers auction them off after difficult seasons (the Chisox are on pace to exceed the 1962 Mets in futility). Crochet complicated his own situation by foolishly stating he wouldn’t pitch in October without a contract extension. Bill Veeck must be rolling over in his grave.

And then there are those, like Bichette and Guerrero, Jr., who are fan favorites kept in place because their teams wanted a king’s ransom in exchange.

Speaking of money, there are 258 prospective free agents who will be competing for big bucks on their own unless they sign in the next few months.

That list is long and impressive, with star pitchers Max Fried and Corbin Burnes at the top, possibly joined by Gerrit Cole if he opts out of his contract with the Yankees.

Along with Bellinger, a former MVP likely to opt out of his Cubs contract, Houston third baseman Alex Bregman figures to be one of the most coveted position players this fall. And let’s not forget Jack Flaherty, just traded from the Tigers to the Dodgers after the Yankees questioned his medical reports.

Waiver trades, once permitted in August, are no longer in play but former major-leaguers who have spent the whole year in the minors can still be moved. One of those is former batting champion Yuli Gurriel, mired at Triple-A Gwinnett because Matt Olson is married to the first base bag in Atlanta (he has the longest consecutive games playing streak of any active player).

With both division and wild-card spots up for grabs, all six title chases could change hands several times during the Dog Days of August. And all of the wild-card spots will move like the contents of a snow globe — count on it.

Consider the NL East for example: the Mets and Phillies are starting tough road trips, while the Braves are starting the easiest part of their schedule. Just look back to 2021, when Atlanta was under .500 when August began but wound up as world champions.

The Braves have already shaved four games off Philadelphia’s lead in the NL East and are determined to extend its best-in-baseball division title streak of six straight.

It’s going to be an interesting stretch drive. You heard it here first.

Former AP sportswriter Dan Schlossberg of Fair Lawn, NJ covers baseball for forbes.com, Memories & Dreams, USA TODAY Sports Weekly, and other outlets. He’s promoting his newest biography, Home Run King: the Remarkable Record of Hank Aaron. Dan’s email is ballauthor@gmail.com.