Manny Machado is “very close” to being traded away from the Baltimore Orioles. That is the information Jon Heyman dropped right in the middle of Monday night’s Home Run Derby.
While Heyman doesn’t reveal the team Machado will soon be suiting up for, he did have some details. The shortstop will be suiting up as a member of the Orioles during Tuesday night’s All-Star Game, and the New York Yankees are not the team he’ll be going to.
Heyman names the Philadelphia Phillies, Milwaukee Brewers and Los Angeles Dodgers as leaders for Machado, with the Yankees and Cleveland Indians lagging behind.
Machado is an impending free agent, so wherever he goes it will likely be as a rental. That will clearly hurt his trade value. That said, the 26-year-old superstar should bring back a solid return. He’s currently hitting .315 with 24 home runs, 65 RBI and what would be a career-best .962 OPS.
We’ll update with more information as we hear it.