MLB trade deadline landing spots: Predicting new teams for Tarik Skubal, Mason Miller, CJ Abrams, more

Thanks to the muddled standings, the 2026 MLB trade deadline looks like it’ll go down to the wire. Front office executives are scrambling to make a final call on buying or selling, as almost all 30 teams remain ostensibly in the playoff race, though that says more about the low bar for contention than it does about many of the teams. That means it’s a seller’s market ahead of the Aug. 3 deadline.

So who goes where? That’s for agents and general managers to figure out. As for your CBS Sports experts? Let the guessing games begin.

Tarik Skubal

Mike Axisa: It feels like we’re heading toward a situation where other teams balk at giving up top prospects, and Skubal falls into L.A.’s lap. We don’t know when Shohei Ohtani will pitch again because of his knee and biceps issues, and Tyler Glasnow and Blake Snell are dealing with injuries (but are working their way back). They’re also motivated to three-peat. It just feels like other teams will overthink this and the Dodgers will eventually drop the hammer.

Dayn Perry: Consider it a throwback blockbuster for the Brewers, who famously added CC Sabathia for the stretch drive and playoffs back in 2008. It says here the Brewers will pay the prospect cost for Skubal and give them a devastating 1-2 punch alongside Jacob Misiorowski in the postseason. It’ll be a wise play for a club that’s never won the World Series. 

Matt Snyder: This is an un-Brewers-like move with the current front office, but making the playoffs every single year with zero World Series trips at this point isn’t good enough anymore. They’ve already lost Brandon Woodruff, and while Kyle Harrison is on the comeback trail, his forearm injury is worrisome. With Skubal and Jacob Misiorowski, the Brewers would have a pair of top-shelf aces while Harrison and Logan Henderson fill out a rotation that could help topple the Dodgers. The Brewers’ sights need to be on the Dodgers, not just another division title.

Mason Miller

Mike Axisa: They’ve picked up enough wins this week for me to think they’ll buy, not sell. I don’t think president of baseball operations A.J. Preller wants to sell and they’re close enough to the third wild-card spot to justify not selling.

Dayn Perry: They’re above .500 at this writing, and the third NL wild-card spot presents a very low bar. Throw in A.J. Preller’s “go for it” inclinations, and I think they’ll wind up keeping Miller and trying to sneak into the postseason. 

Matt Snyder: Unless AJ Preller can get back Skubal, for example (he can’t), I think he’s gung ho about keeping his best players and going hard to try and win with this group. It’s not as ridiculous as a lot of people seem to think. The 2022 Padres won 89 games and took out the 111-win Dodgers in the NLDS. Preller will hope magic like that happens again — and continues the following two rounds. 

Clay Holmes

Mike Axisa: A starter they can keep beyond 2026 would be preferable, but I’m not sure that player will be available at a good price for them. Holmes is a great compromise, even coming off the leg injury. He can start, he can relieve if they want to use him that way (in October?), and he’s postseason battle-tested. A young White Sox team can use some of that.

Dayn Perry: Holmes’ successful reliever-to-starter conversion in Queens makes him a coveted name leading up to the deadline, and the Rays definitely need help in the rotation. Holmes is also likely to pass on his player option for 2027, which means the Rays won’t be committed to his salary beyond the current campaign. 

Matt Snyder: The Cubs need another starting pitcher and after losing out on Skubal — along with the customary “we tried” messaging — they’ll grab Holmes. He’ll be a nice addition, and a possible playoff rotation of Matthew Boyd, Shota Imanaga, Clay Holmes and Edward Cabrera is decent enough when paired with one of the league’s best groups of position players. They’ll need to figure out the bullpen, too, but one thing at a time here. 

Zach Neto

Mike Axisa: They need a shortstop now and long-term, and I get the sense POBO Alex Anthopoulos wants to do something big. Skubal would be ideal. They really need offense too, though, and Neto would fit nicely this year and the next few.

Dayn Perry: Boston still needs infield help after the injury to Curtis Mead (and you could argue they still needed infield help even before that happened). He’s a great fit in Boston for years to come, and they can figure out Trevor Story’s role once he returns from injury. The Sox also have the farm system depth needed to land a controllable talent like Neto. 

Matt Snyder: They need another bat after Curtis Mead immediately went down with an injury after the trade, and Neto is under team control for several more years. Neto is also a pull-heavy, fly-ball hitter and moving into Fenway Park for his home games would turn a decent number of flyouts into doubles, not to mention a few extra home runs. The Red Sox could then shift Trevor Story to second base as he returns from sports hernia surgery, and their group of utility men who have held down the infield spots the last few months would become excellent bench options.

CJ Abrams

Mike Axisa: It doesn’t hurt to listen (the front office wouldn’t be doing its job if it didn’t listen), but I have a hard time seeing Abrams getting traded right now. He’ll remain under team control for two more years and would command an enormous package. A package I don’t think any team will pay to get him.

Dayn Perry: He’s young-ish, very good, and controllable for multiple seasons beyond the current one. To my thinking, it wouldn’t make much sense for the Nats to trade him — rebuilds tend to bear fruit pretty quickly these days — so I don’t think they will. 

Matt Snyder: He’s a foundational piece who turns 26 in October and is under team control through 2028. I say they hold onto him and work on a contract extension. Even if he has to eventually move off shortstop, his bat is good enough to stick anywhere.