With just a few days left until the MLB trade deadline, it’s only natural for desperation to begin setting in. For buyers and sellers alike, this is the last chance saloon — if you don’t pull the trigger now on a deal that can change your fortunes in 2026 or beyond, you might never get another opportunity. In that light, doing something drastic can start to feel awfully enticing, especially if you’re trying to get a trade over the line for the one player who can give your title odds a boost.
That’s why it’s crucial to have some lines in the sand. Whether your favorite team is looking to buy or sell before Aug. 3, everyone has at least one player who should be part of their future plans no matter what. So consider this ranking of each club’s most untouchable trade asset a warning of sorts, lest your GM agree to something they can’t take back.
Arizona Diamondbacks: 2B Ketel Marte
Teams will continue to ask, as long as he outperforms his team-friendly AAV and the perception lingers that he and D-backs brass don’t exactly see eye-to-eye. But Arizona should be looking to buy as they continue to climb the Wild Card standings, and while they need more pitching if they want to make real noise in October, no arm short of Tarik Skubal would be worth blowing up a key piece of this core.
Atlanta Braves: OF Eric Hartman
Few Minor League breakouts this year have been as loud as Hartman’s, who’s gone from speedy slash-and-burn center fielder to slugger with plus power at Single-A this year. Granted, there’s very little track record of him showing this kind of pop, and he’ll need to make it stick as he continues to climb the ladder. But if any of this is real, that combination of defensive utility, speed and power is exceedingoy rare — and the Braves have enough pitching prospects to supplement their big-league roster without moving him.
Athletics: C Shea Langeliers
Langeliers was the obvious answer to this question before he was lost for the year with a knee injury last week, so we’re keeping him here regardless. Yes, Langeliers has just two years of arbitration remaining until hitting free agency, and yes, the A’s desperately need to find some pitching if they hope to contend by the time the move to Vegas rolls around. But that move is itself a pretty good reason to hold on to one of the team’s two best players at the moment, and two-way catchers like Langeliers don’t come around very often. There’s enough talent here for the A’s to try and build a winner around him first, knowing they can always move him down the line.
Baltimore Orioles: LHP Joseph Dzierwa
Should the O’s be buyers? Probably not, considering the quality they’ve shown to date. Will they be? Almost certainly, given how desperate this organization has become and how chaotic the AL standings are. Giving up Dzierwa would be way too aggressive, though: In a season in which the team’s top overall prospect, outfielder Nate George, has been on the IL since May with an undisclosed non-baseball injury, the lefty has emerged as a bright spot, mowing down batters at High-A and Double-A despite sitting in the low 90s with his fastball. This team needs as many homegrown pitching wins as it can get, and sacrificing one for a futile Wild Card push feels shortsighted.
Boston Red Sox: SS Franklin Arias
Boston is fully buying now that an improbable and historic hot streak has catapulted them right back into the AL postseason picture, but Arias has simply been too good to consider moving. MLB Pipeline’s No. 7 overall prospect torched Double-A and Triple-A to a combined .972 OPS so far this season, knocking on the door of the Majors at just 20 years old. Given all the long-term questions the Red Sox have in the middle of their infield — and the pitching depth they can still deal from, even with Connelly Early already gone — this is one player they can’t afford to budge on.
Chicago Cubs: OF Seiya Suzuki
If you wanted to swap in top prospect Josiah Hartshorn here, I wouldn’t argue too much. But Hartshorn’s funky swing and defensive questions — is he just a first baseman at the MLB level, and how does that affect his value? — make me feel like a Cubs team that should be win-now mode shouldn’t blanche at including him in a package for someone like Skubal. And while I understand how deep and balanced this lineup is when it’s clicking, I still feel like Suzuki is simply too good a hitter to part with ahead of the stretch run. As a rental, he’s probably not getting you a real A-lister, and anything else doesn’t feel worth it.
Chicago White Sox: INF Caleb Bonemer
Word out of the South Side is that Chicago isn’t wild about sacrificing future value in pursuit of chasing contention this season. I think that’s pretty misguided — this team is good, and you might never have a more wide-open American League again — Bonemer has become too enticing a prospect to move. The whiff rate is a concern, but the power is downright prodigious and has remained so after a promotion to Double-A. It’s not the kind of offensive profile you see from a potential shortstop every day, and he’d be excellent at third if he eventually has to move to the hot corner. Plus, the White Sox should still have enough prospect depth to swing a trade for a controllable pitcher like Reid Detmers.
Cincinnati Reds: RHP Hunter Greene
What are we doing here, exactly? The Reds should have an exciting core in place with Greene and Elly De La Cruz, but despite both being locked up for years to come, Cincy already seems to be weighing whether to blow the foundation up. That’s an indictment of this front office and this ownership group. Yes, 2026 has been wildly disappointing. But that’s more a product of not spending any money whatsoever; there’s still plenty here to be optimistic about moving forward, and you can always sell Greene for a haul this winter or next summer when he’ll still have multiple years of control remaining.
Cleveland Guardians: SS Angel Genao
Based on the Guardians’ inactivity at the trade deadline in recent years, this is probably a moot point. But if Cleveland does decide to — gasp! — add a meaningful bat or two to supplement a Wild Card contender, it shouldn’t involve Genao. He’s the latest in a long line of enticing infield prospects this organization has produced, but he’s got a higher ceiling than just about any of them thanks to his combination of a solid shortstop glove and a really sturdy offensive profile. Heck, you could argue he should supplant Brayan Rocchio at the six tomorrow.
Colorado Rockies: No one
I’m not saying Colorado has to trade star catcher Hunter Goodman, whose arbitration clock doesn’t start until next year. I’m just saying that if a desperate contender were willing to give them a haul, selling high on a catcher with contact and defensive questions wouldn’t be the worst idea for a rebuilding team. And beyond him, there are no big-league pieces worth getting that precious over.
Detroit Tigers: OF Riley Greene
Of course, this all comes down to what the Tigers decide to do. If the team decides to stick it out with Tarik Skubal, we’ll have a very different conversation, though I don’t expect Scott Harris to dip into his top tier of prospects to supplement this team. If Detroit is selling, practically everything that isn’t nailed down figures to be headed out the door. Greene has found his name thrown into that group with the team’s big-name rentals — he’s got two years of arbitration remaining after 2026, and he’s fallen just short of the offensive superstar fans expected — but I think that would be a mistake. He’s still a very, very good hitter at a position of need, and this team can reasonably hope to bounce back in 2027 even without Tarik Skubal.
Houston Astros: SS Jeremy Peña
Even amid Houston’s recent climb up the AL Wild Card standings, Peña has found his name in trade rumors. I’m not buying it, though. Sure, he’ll be a free agent after 2027, but that’s a reason to explore moving on in the winter — not in the midst of a stretch run in which the AL is wide open and you’ve got Yordan Alvarez flirting with a Triple Crown win. The Astros need pitching, but they can move someone like Isaac Paredes for that. Peña is too good a two-way player to give up, at least right now.
Kansas City Royals: 1B Vinnie Pasquantino
As the Royals ask hard questions in the midst of a profoundly disappointing season, the idea of flipping Pasquantino has been floated along with veteran pitchers like Seth Lugo and Michael Wacha. I wouldn’t sell low, though: This just feels like a lost year all around, and the bet here is that with a healthy offseason and no WBC distraction next spring the Pasquatch can get back to being a much-needed middle-of-the-order thumper next to Bobby Witt Jr., Jac Caglianone and Maikel Garcia. Don’t cut bait just yet.
Los Angeles Angels: RHP Walbert Ureña
In truth, hardly anything about MLB’s most dysfunctional organization should be considered untouchable, not with the state of this farm system. Ureña has been one of the very few bright spots so far in 2026, though, and unlike rotationmates Reid Detmers and Jose Soriano, the rookie’s still got loads of team control remaining.
Los Angeles Dodgers: OF Josue De Paula
The Dodgers sent Yordan Alvarez to Houston for a song, only to watch him develop into a Triple Crown candidate. The bet here is they don’t risk making that mistake twice. De Paula has that sort of potential as a hitter, no matter the defensive question marks (hey, just like Alvarez). And Los Angeles has so many other outfield prospects that they can get whoever they want without putting JDP on the table.
Miami Marlins: INF Otto Lopez
As Miami falls apart in July, speculation has kicked up that they’re considering a full fire sale — including both star infielders in Xavier Edwards and Otto Lopez. I’ll have to see it to believe it, though. Lopez has been too good this season, an elite defender who keeps on improving as a hitter and is still just 27 years old. The Marlins are close enough to contention that I have a hard time seeing a deal that makes sense here, unless a contender gets crazy.
Milwaukee Brewers: SS Jesus Made
The consensus best prospect in baseball isn’t going anywhere at this trade deadline, no matter how big the Brewers decide to swing. Made is that good, currently more than holding his own in Double-A at 19, and Milwaukee has too much prospect depth to see them including him in any talks.
Minnesota Twins: SS Kaelen Culpepper
The Twins have reportedly played themselves into the buyer category, although they’re certainly not parting with top prospect Walker Jenkins for a team that’s flirted with .500 pretty much all year. I think you can probably add Culpepper to that list as well, though: He’s killed it in Triple-A, and his combination of decent hit, power and defense at shortstop sure has him looking like a future starter at a premium position. If he’s ready right away, this team could really make some noise in 2027.
New York Mets: SS Francisco Lindor
The Mets obviously aren’t touching any piece of their young nucleus of righty Nolan McLean and outfielders Juan Soto, AJ Ewing and Carson Benge. And I guess “untouchable” isn’t quite right here; given Lindor’s age (33) and contract, New York would probably consider moving on from their star shortstop if they got value commensurate with his status as a star-caliber player. But there’s virtually no chance any team is willing to pay what he’s worth to the Mets moving forward, and thus virtually no chance of a deal. even before you get to his no-trade clause.
New York Yankees: SS George Lombard Jr.
There’s a better chance that Lombard Jr. is New York’s starting shortstop at this time next week than that he winds up traded. He’s done a lot to answer hit-tool questions with a torrid stretch at Triple-A of late, and his power, plate discipline and shortstop defense are all awfully enticing (especially considering all the agita around the Yankees’ infield situation at the moment). New York has other prospects like Dax Kilby, Elmer Rodriguez and Carlos Lagrange to move in a potential blockbuster, not to mention young big-leaguers like Will Warren, Jasson Dominguez and Spencer Jones.
Philadelphia Phillies: OF Francisco Renteria
Andrew Painter and Aidan Miller have imploded their stocks, and while Gage Wood is a fine prospect, he doesn’t have the sort of future frontline potential that should take him off the table if, say, Philly wants to land Skubal. But in a system almost completely barren of quality position-player prospects — this is all feeling very late-period Dave Dombrowski — Renteria stands alone. He’s only 17, and he’s yet to even come to the States, but the results so far have been jaw-dropping. You could argue that everyone should be on the table here as the Phillies look to make one last postseason push, but Renteria’s the closest you’ll get to untouchable.
Pittsburgh Pirates: RHP Seth Hernandez
It seems almost unfair that a team currently employing Paul Skenes also has the best pitching prospect in baseball on the farm. But Hernandez has already blown away all possible expectations when he was drafted No. 6 overall last year, overwhelming A-ball before an oblique injury cooled him off. If he comes back healthy, he could be in Pittsburgh as quickly as next year, and his upside should make him more precious to the Pirates than Bubba Chandler, Hunter Barco or any of their other young starters.
San Diego Padres: RHP Mason Miller
It seems like Miller chatter has cooled off a bit as the Padres have beat up on the Marlins and Rockies to keep their postseason hopes alive. But it was always fair to be skeptical about San Diego’s willingness to sell the best reliever in the sport, AJ Preller’s aggression aside. He’s too good, with too many years of control remaining, and he’s even more valuable to the Padres than he is to any other contender.
San Francisco Giants: RHP Logan Webb
It’s understandable that, amid another miserable Giants season, every option would be at least considered — up to and including moving on from Webb, the face of the franchise who’s on an affordable deal through 2029. His numbers are uncharacteristically down this year, though, and there’s no reason to be selling low on a No. 1 or No. 2 starter with that much control remaining. San Francisco should try to reset financially as much as possible, but that doesn’t need to include a Webb deal (yet).
Seattle Mariners: RHP Ryan Sloan
Seattle’s willingness to part with breakout righty Spencer Hancock is also an implicit admission that they’re not so willing to part with either of their two top pitching prospects, Sloan and Kade Anderson. You can really flip a coin as to which one you’d prefer — they both could be frontline guys in time, though they get it done in vastly different ways — but I’ll take Sloan for the ways in which his ability to spin the ball looks an awful lot like Nolan McLean. His topline numbers haven’t quite caught up yet, but they will in time, and he’ll be essential in backfilling potential departures like Hancock and even Logan Gilbert or George Kirby.
St. Louis Cardinals: C Rainiel Rodriguez
It’s much more likely that St. Louis sells rather than buys amid a recent swoon that has dropped them down the Wild Card standings. If they do decide to try and supplement the 2026 team, though, Rodriguez is obviously off the table. He’s a legitimate middle-of-the-order bat who just so happens to also be a viable catcher, and that’s a very rare breed. There’s a reason the Cardinals are floating a trade for incumbent Ivan Herrera, despite Herrera himself being a legit starter.
Tampa Bay Rays: OF Theo Gillen
There might not be a more meteoric ascent through the Minors this year than Gillen, a fringe top-75 prospect at the start of the season who has played himself into top-10 conversations thanks to a .326/.431/.565 line across High-A and Double-A. Contact questions remain until he proves it in the high Minors for an extended period, but this combination of pop and the ability to potentially stick in center field is awfully rare. Expect Tampa to move one of their twin top catching prospects before touching Gillen.
Texas Rangers: INF Sebastian Walcott
Tommy John surgery cost Walcott the end of 2025 and the start of 2026, but he’s back healthy now, and he’s picked up right where he left off at Double-A. One of the most physically imposing prospects in baseball, he’s got monster physical tools and enough approach at the plate to tap into most of them. Even if he winds up at third base rather than shortstop, the sky is the limit here considering how much damage he can do with the bat. Especially with Corey Seager in sharp decline, the Rangers won’t think about touching him even if they’re currently leading the AL West.
Toronto Blue Jays: C Alejandro Kirk
The Blue Jays are in hard sell mode, and that means rentals like Kevin Gausman, Daulton Varsho and Shane Bieber are as good as gone. Some fans have suggested moving on from Alejandro Kirk, considering Brandon Valenzuela’s ascent while he was on the IL, but that strikes me as incredibly premature. He remains dynamite behind the plate, and that defense alone would make his current five-year, $58 million deal a steal. But he also showed last fall the kind of upside he offers as a hitter, and a slow start amid an injury-plagued season shouldn’t change that. A team that wants to contend in 2027 should want Kirk on its roster.
Washington Nationals: SS CJ Abrams
If the Nationals were further away from contention, I’d understand. But Abrams is hitting at a borderline MVP level, and even if he comes back to Earth a bit moving forward, he’s too important to an offense that can really make some noise if Paul Toboni is able to build a semi-competent pitching staff around it. You can always revisit a trade this winter or in 2027, even if his value will likely never be higher. This is a core and a player development team worth believing in.
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