Welcome to trade deadline week.

With mere days left until Thursday’s 6 p.m. ET / 3 p.m. PT deadline, chaos looms as contending teams look to reinforce their rosters ahead of the stretch run.

The trade market has slowly begun to churn, with the Seattle Mariners notably acquiring Josh Naylor and the New York Yankees swinging deals for some help at third base, but things should really start to heat up in the coming days.

One name that has slowly emerged as a potential trade candidate, after being initially considered untouchable, is that of Washington Nationals all-star starter MacKenzie Gore.

Gore, a 26-year-old southpaw who arrived in Washington as part of the return for Juan Soto, has arrived as an impact arm in 2025, striking out 144 hitters in 117.2 innings while carrying a 3.52 ERA.

With two and a half years of team control, Gore offers the kind of upside and certainty this trade season has largely lacked. And while a deal may still be unlikely at this point, ESPN’s Jeff Passan and Kiley McDaniel wrote in an updated trade candidate article Sunday that “the Nationals are, at the very least, listening.”

Chicago is tied with the Milwaukee Brewers atop the NL Central, but is also one of the teams in baseball that might have the prospect capital — headlined by Burlington, Ont.’s Owen Caissie — to sway Washington into potentially moving Gore.

But as we wait for the trades to actually start flowing, here are some of the latest rumours swirling around MLB.

With a 7-17 record since June 27, the Tampa Bay Rays find themselves 3.0 games back in the American League wild-card race and could be doing a 180 on their approach at the deadline.

Tampa Bay had signalled to inquiring teams that it would be reluctant to deal first baseman Yandy Díaz, who has twice re-upped with the Rays and has a vesting option for 2027 on his current contract.

However, with the club’s slide over the past month, The Athletic‘s Ken Rosenthal reported Saturday that the “Rays’ position on trading certain players — and specifically, first baseman Yandy Díaz — also might be softening.”

Rosenthal added second baseman Brandon Lowe and catcher Danny Jansen as two players who could also find themselves on the move if Tampa Bay can’t turn things around in the coming days.

Díaz, who is slashing .284/.345/.471 with 18 homers on the season, would instantly become one of the top hitters on the market if made available, factoring in his production in 2025 and additional years of team control.

“The Boston Red Sox will almost certainly be at the top of the list of teams interested” in the 33-year-old, Rosenthal wrote. MassLive’s Chris Cotillo added to the reporting that the Red Sox would be one of Díaz’s top suitors, writing Sunday that team decision-makers “identified him as someone at the top of the wish list” earlier this month.

White Sox asking for Vientos from Mets in Robert Jr. trade

Despite being in the midst of a second straight down year, Chicago White Sox centre-fielder Luis Robert Jr. is once again a hot topic ahead of the trade deadline.

Robert recently missed two games due to adductor soreness, but returned to the White Sox lineup on Sunday and was held hitless for just the second time this month. All told, he owns a .926 OPS this month and has the kinds of tools any team would hope to unlock for 2025.

If Robert were to impress following a trade, he has two more years of team control, which come in the form of $20-million team options.

Regardless of how Robert has performed this year, Chicago is asking for a significant return in any potential deal. One example of the asking price is 2024 playoff hero Mark Vientos, who the White Sox want from the New York Mets, according to USA Today‘s Bob Nightengale.

Vientos has struggled this season, but is still just 25 and one year removed from hitting 27 homers for New York and providing some October punch in the Mets’ run to the NLCS.

Teams that miss out on Suárez could pivot to Cards’ Arenado

But after Arenado exercised his no-trade clause to block a move to the Houston Astros in December, nothing else materialized. So the Cardinals found themselves with Arenado manning the hot corner in 2025.

However, with St. Louis trending back toward .500 rather than a post-season spot, MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand reports that Arenado could be on the move ahead of Thursday’s deadline.

Feinsand wrote that the Astros won’t pursue Arenado again, “but a source said some of the other clubs pursuing (Eugenio) Suárez could pivot to Arenado if they miss out on the Arizona slugger.”

The 10-time Gold Glover has been his solid self at third base in 2025, but is batting just .235 with a .663 OPS. So, if the Cardinals were able to get him to waive his no-trade clause, they would likely have to pay down some of the $42 million remaining on the final two years of his contract.