2025 Trade Deadline Overview
With the trade deadline fast approaching, teams will be looking to make moves to better their squad. We look at whether teams should buy or sell, and which players should they be targeting to help their cause.
Brooklyn Bulldogs: Buyers
Brooklyn needs to get promoted to the Silver League this season. Unlike most BL teams, Brooklyn’s stars are getting older, whilst most of the BL is shifting younger. Who do they need to buy?
Well, I wouldn’t necessarily say, “who”. It’s more of “what”.
They need to buy luck.
To put it plainly, they haven’t had much luck in their three seasons in the BL. They lost the promotion series their first year, they finished fourth in a division of four good teams, and now they’re a game ahead of fourth place, barely making their way into the promotion series if the season were to end today. They’ve got a promotion worthy roster, but, as time and time again has shown, for some reason they can’t get over the hump.
If they were to buy a player, they should worry about getting a bopper – a player who can mash home runs in a big ballpark. If they aren’t getting a home run hitter – which, by all accounts, they should – they should focus on getting a speedster who can play at the top of their lineup. Somebody who can steal bases, and transform the team into a smallball strategy.
Mexico City Chupacabras: Buyers
Mexico City has ridden the wave of pitching to get to where they are now – ranking first in starters ERA, runs given up, and defensive efficiency. All that defense doesn’t come without a price, though, as they are ninth in runs scored and 10th in batting average. Only one person, Kyle Kemerly, is hitting above .300 for the team, and he also leads the team with only 14 home runs. Again, they are stuck in a Brooklyn problem – their pitching is good, but there’s a good chance that any offensive improvement will likely require their defense to go down, negating the offensive impact. They have good speed – their 79 stolen bases are third in the SL – so that’s not really an issue for them.
Who I do expect them to try to go get is a DH/1B type player who can hit. Ryan Wright is currently in the DH spot and can play a better first defensively than their current first baseman, Danny de la Paz, who is also hitting sixth in the lineup. Kevin Shaheen is scheduled to come back soon, but if his struggles at the plate continue, Mexico City might find themselves pulling a last minute agreement together.
Denver Wolves: Buying
Denver has a PL worthy team, and, if you need proof, look at their offense. In the world of Detroit, Florida, and Dallas, Denver somehow finds themselves stuck in with the third most runs scored of any team in the PL. With that in mind, how are they eighth in the standings? Their pitching has given up the most runs of any team, and their starters are averaging an ERA of nearly 6.00.
To put it simply, they need a starter – bad. Rumors are circulating that Boston’s starters are on the market, and if Denver is able to secure a reasonable price for one, they should pull the trigger – saving the team’s status in the Premier League is, in the long run, going to be worth it. Guzman and Kim should be back next season, and staying in the PL also helps them to pay Guzman’s contract.
Midwest Plainsmen – Selling
It’s a tough call whenever a PL team has to start selling their assets, knowing that a run in the BL might soon be upon them. However, Midwest doesn’t have the pieces it needs to continue in the PL, and in the SL things might start to get worse for an aging lineup. There is, of course, one shining piece of hope in Midwest land.
His name is Jamie Malchow.
It’ll be a tough call for the Midwest GM about whether or not he should trade away Malchow – after all, Jamie is the heart and soul of the team, the guy worth the fourth overall pick in the inaugural draft, and a player who you’d love to build your franchise around. However, Malchow is 30 years old and isn’t getting younger any time soon. By the time this Midwest team is able to compete again, Malchow might be 33 and declining, rendering his keeping useless. We saw what a start second baseman can get in the Andy Mobley trade to Dallas, so Midwest might find themselves with the tough call of whether or not to sell this deadline.
New York Roar – Sellers
Here’s an interesting call – New York is only five games back of the promotion series, and if the team catches fire, there’s a good shot they can make up that difference and make it back to the PL. However, looking at their pitching staff would give any GM worry – Jared Demartino, their star reliever, is 34. Their top two starters, Steven Mrazek, and Nate Bailey, both find themselves at 33 years of age. Their setup man, Corey Yoder, is 36. Brent Savage is now 30 years old, after being praised for his youth with the first overall selection in the inaugural draft.
If there’s anything that can save the team from being a disaster if it gets blown up, it’s the young core at the start of the lineup. Eric Bohnert, Mike Homan, and Josh Watkins are all 27 or younger, meaning they’ve got years until they start to decline, and will be able to stick around if a rebuild is deemed necessary. With pitchers in great need at this stage of the game, they should look to capitalize on their aging staff now, and come back in two years rebuilt.
Salt Lake City Snappers – Sellers
This one doesn’t make a lot of sense when you look at it at first – SLC is second the BL, only 2.5 games back of Bay Area, and close enough that promotion is in their grasp. My issue isn’t with how the team is built – I think their roster is worthy of promotion from the BL this season – but the age of the roster.
Of the 13 pitchers on the major league squad, only five are 29 or younger.
The core of that team is built on 32+ year old relievers, most of whom may not be able to last much longer in the league. They’ve got the best offense in the BL, scored the most runs, hit the most home runs, but they are dead last in defensive efficiency and, with the way their bullpen is built, will be without a bullpen in two seasons. By trading those pieces now, they at least guarantee they will receive something in return.