Insiders Vote: 4 Players To Be Traded During Spring Training

With the offseason coming to a close, and spring training getting underway, there is still some unfinished business for certain teams. There are a number of trade candidates that have been twisting in the wind over the course of the winter, who for some reason or another, haven't been dealt.

It's time to take a look at some predictions by The Athletic, as they've named the 4 players most likely to be traded during spring training.

Dylan Cease (San Diego Padres) — 12 Votes

Cease heads up the list, with 12 votes from Athletic baseball writers. His name has long been on the rumor mill, as the Padres want to cut payroll, and his expected $13.75 million salary in arbitration would help fulfill that desire.

But he is their best pitcher, and among his other attributes, has struck out more hitters than any other pitcher in baseball (891) over the past four seasons.

The Friars just added another starter, Nick Pivetta in free agency, which seems to indicate that they're no longer looking to trash their rotation to save money. In fact, that signing rounds out a pretty strong top 4, along with Yu Darvish and Michael King.

Nolan Arenado (St. Louis Cardinals) — 9 votes

Anyone who follows baseball is well aware that the Cards have been trying endlessly to trade the 10-game Gold Glover all winter. But there he is, still a Cardinal heading into camp. And it seems like the main reason is that the other big third baseman on the market (in free agency) this winter, Alex Bregman, ended up signing with Arenado's preferred destination, the Boston Red Sox.

St. Louis will still try to trade Arenado, but, like Cease, it's looking less likely than it did a few weeks or months ago.

Luis Robert Jr. (Chicago White Sox) — 6 votes

The White Sox's fire sale has one big ticket item left, and Robert has been out there on the trade market for about six months now. The thing about Robert is that he is damaged goods. He spends as much time injured as he does on the field. He did play 100 games last season (his 2nd most in five major league seasons), but he struggled with just 14 HR, 35 RBIs and a .657 OPS, and all that after a 38-homer season in 2023 seemed to indicate he was finally about to tap into his monster potential.

Now, after a winter of no takers, will someone panic and swing a deal this spring?

Jordan Montgomery (Arizona Diamondbacks) — 4 votes

The D'Backs went out and signed former Cy Young winner Corbin Burnes to a massive free agent deal this offseason, further pushing Montgomery out of the D'Backs pitching picture. As if a major league-worst 6.23 ERA and 1.65 WHIP last season didn't already do that.

Are there any takers out there for the lefty? Four writers seem to think so. In particular, a big spring could get some team desperate for pitching to bite.