TROT COFFEY: July 22, 2025.

A repository of responsibly reported rumors as the trade deadline bears in on us. The clock is ticking.

Last year, we started these daily COFFEY’s (as supplements to the weekly entries that are included all year in Sunday Hops) with four days to go before the trade deadline. I figured we might as well start sooner this year. Lots of chatter out there.

As we get down to the wire, don’t be surprised if there are more than one of these Rangers-adjacent rumor-dumps a day. Last year, I fired off five different entries on deadline day alone.

I’m unlocking today’s entry. No paywall. If you want to jump on board as a subscriber, you can try the newsletter out for a month (for about the cost of a cup of [yeah] coffee) or subscribe for a full year, which is already discounted from the monthly rate but for the rest of July is discounted even further. It’s all a click away.

My guess is I will drop these around lunchtime each day, depending on my work schedule. For now, let’s get to today’s.

Last year, the first of these deadline-focused daily entries started this way:

Kinda eerie callback, yeah?

Here’s what’s out there:

• Jim Bowden (The Athletic) puts the Rangers in the “Buyers or Sellers — or Both” category, and the former MLB GM suggests they “should be buying because they’re only 3 ½ games out of the final AL wild-card spot and their pitching staff has the best ERA (3.21) in the majors. They just haven’t been able to get their offense on a roll yet, but it seems like it could come together in the second half.”

  • On the “buy” side, Bowden says the Rangers are “looking for offense and are flexible on the infield corners and the DH spot. They match up well with the Diamondbacks for both Josh Naylor and Eugenio Suárez. They also could use another high-leverage reliever.”

  • With the Rangers as potential sellers, Bowden pinpoints Adolis García, Patrick Corbin, Chris Martin, and Luke Jackson as “the most likely to be dangled.”

  • The story was published just before Martin’s calf injury. He’s obviously not a trade candidate at all at this point, as he’ll be sidelined well past the deadline.

  • In Bowden’s opinion, the Rangers “could do a little bit of buying and selling this year, but if I were them, I’d go for it. I think this offense is way better than it has played to date.”

  • Bowden also notes that the Phillies “are looking to boost their outfield and bullpen. They could chase center fielders like Luis Robert Jr. of the White Sox and Cedric Mullins of the Orioles, or they could go for a corner outfielder like Boston’s Jarren Duran or the Rangers’ Adolis García.”

  • (Hmm. Wonder what Ruben Amaro Jr.’s thoughts are on this. 👀 )

• Jeff Passan and Kiley McDaniel (ESPN) suggest the odds that Garcia — whom they rank as the No. 28 trade candidate in the league — gets moved are 50 percent, with Philadelphia, Seattle, San Diego, and San Francisco as the best fits. Passan and McDaniel point out that “[i]t's worth noting that per xwOBA, [Garcia] has been the 20th-most unlucky hitter in the big leagues this season, and he has another year of team control, so some teams could see an opportunity.”

  • Passan and McDaniel have Martin at No. 38 — also pre-injury.

  • They only make their No. 6 trade candidate, Twins closer Jhoan Duran, a 40 percent bet to change teams, with the Rangers listed among the best fits along with the Dodgers, Phillies, Yankees, Mets, Cubs, and Tigers.

• Mark Feinsand (MLB.com) identifies the headline trade candidate at every position on the field, plugging Garcia in as the right fielder — though with a "low “buzz factor” give that the Rangers may add rather than subtract. Feinsand notes that “the dearth of power bats on the market this month could result in an overpay by a contender in need of some pop, and his solid defense in right field makes him even more attractive.”

• In a separate story, Feinsand includes Garcia among 14 players “whose trade stock has been rising based on the way they finished the first half of the season,” noting that he sits in the top 20 percent of the league in average exit velocity (92nd percentile), barrel percentage (84th), hard-hit percentage (82nd), and outfield arm strength (93rd).

• On their “MLB Trade Deadline Big Board 2.0,” Tim Britton, Aaron Gleeman, and Chad Jennings (The Athletic) identify Texas as potential fits for Cardinals closer Ryan Helsley and Braves DH Marcell Ozuna and C Sean Murphy. They have Garcia at No. 26 on the list, and Martin No. 35.

• Evan Grant (Dallas Morning News) identifies five relievers who “might be most attractive to the Rangers”: Orioles RHP Felix Bautista, Pirates RHP David Bednar, Nationals RHP Kyle Finnegan, Braves RHP Raisel Iglesias, and RHP Peter Fairbanks.

• J.J. Cooper (Baseball America) puts together an “All-Deadline Deal Prospect Team” from the past decade, and includes Fairbanks (acquired by the Rays from Texas for IF Nick Solak in 2019) in the bullpen.

• A couple rumblings passed along by Jon Heyman (New York Post):

  • While the Guardians are listening on frontline relievers Emmanuel Clasé and Cade Smith, “[p]rices are understandably high. They are seen as not too likely to trade either top pen guy, and with MLB’s easiest closing schedule, they aren’t even a certain seller.”

  • The Marlins intend to “build around promising young players [Kyle] Stowers (1.332 OPS in July), [Agustin] Ramirez, and [Eury] Perez” but are “[e]xpected to listen on [Edward] Cabrera, [Sandy] Alcantara, [Jesus] Sanchez, [and Anthony] Bender.”

• The Phillies signed reliever David Robertson to a $16 million contract for 2025, prorated down to a little over $5 million. He’ll reportedly make a few minor-league appearances before joining the big club.

Last night, Texas announced the signing of the 12th pick in the draft, high school SS/3B Gavin Fien. If reports (and my math)) are accurate, the four deals the Rangers have now struck with their draft picks give them an extra $1,151,275 to work with — meaning that, for their remaining unsigned picks, that’s the amount available in addition to individual slot values for players in the first 10 rounds, and for players chosen in Rounds 11-20 if it takes more than $150,000 to sign them. I’m going to continue listing that standing number in the final column of this chart; it will always sit next to the most recent player signed:

• Fien will be introduced to the media at the ballpark at 1:30 today.