Marcus Stroman might be the top pitcher on the market ahead of the Aug. 1 trade deadline. Is he on the move?
The 2023 All-Star has been the subject of several trade rumors, as the below .500 Cubs are pondering whether to sell at the deadline. If Chicago opts to be a seller, Stroman would almost certainly fetch back some assets. The right-handed pitcher is currently 10-7 with a 3.09 ERA.
As the deadline looms, the Cubs aren’t the team favored to have Stroman on their roster after Aug. 1. That title goes to the Astros, who are the betting favorites to land Stroman following the deadline, holding +380 odds. The Cubs come in second at +425 on DraftKings Sportsbook.
Many other contenders are also in the mix, so, let’s take a look at the odds.
Marcus Stroman post-trade deadline odds
Houston Astros +380 (bet $10 to win $48)
Chicago Cubs +425 (bet $10 to win $52.50)
Texas Rangers +550 (bet $10 to win $65)
Los Angeles Dodgers +700 (bet $10 to win $80)
Tampa Bay Rays +750 (bet $10 to win $85)
Toronto Blue Jays +1000 (bet $10 to win $110)
New York Yankees +1000 (bet $10 to win $110)
Baltimore Orioles +1200 (bet $10 to win $130)
Cincinnati Reds +1300 (bet $10 to win $140)
Atlanta Braves +1300 (bet $10 to win $140)
San Francisco Giants +1500 (bet $10 to win $160)
Any other team +1500 (bet $10 to win $160)
Odds as of 7/26/23
FOX Sports MLB Analyst Ben Verlander thinks Stroman will end up in Houston at the deadline.
“Stroman is perhaps the top arm available at the deadline as of right now,” Verlander wrote in a recent column predicting where the top five players on the market will end up. “I believe that the Houston Astros are the perfect fit for him. They have what it takes to go get him, and we have seen them be aggressive this way in the past, with a mindset of what will make them better in the playoffs.”
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Verlander added that the Astros’ ability to bring in strong draft classes has helped their prospect pool and can help them gear up for a second-half run as they look to win back-to-back titles.
The Astros might have to pay the extra premium to keep Stroman out of their division, too. The Rangers have the second-best odds among teams that aren’t the Cubs. Texas has led the AL West for much of the season, as its big-money free agency spending has paid off. But it could also use another rotation arm after Jacob deGrom went down for the season in June (Tommy John surgery).
The Dodgers and Rays are also in the mix, with both teams holding the third- and fourth-best odds among the non-Cubs teams. Los Angeles has dealt with multiple injuries and some regression in its rotation throughout the season, leading manager Dave Roberts to admit that starting pitching is the team’s biggest need. The Rays have also been linked to numerous starting pitchers, too.
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