Oakland Athletics starting pitcher Frankie Montas is now the most coveted, available hurler on the trade market after the Seattle Mariners acquired Luis Castillo from the Cincinnati Reds on Friday. As was the case with the Reds, the Athletics are aiming to reach for the stars in any potential Montas trade.
As noted by The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal, Oakland wants “some of the same prospects for Montas that the Nationals want for [Juan] Soto.” Rosenthal reported last week that the Washington Nationals’ asking price for their All-Star outfielder centers on “four to five top young players” with a combination of prospects and major leaguers with low service time.
Mariners president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto shook up the trade market with the acquisition of Castillo, as he parted ways with four prospects, including three of who were ranked in the top five of their farm system according to MLB.com. The Athletics could very well set a sky-high trade demand for Montas, who, according to one executive in the majors, may have both a “higher ceiling and higher floor” than Castillo.
Oakland may not end up seeing a shortage of suitors interested in acquiring Montas ahead of Tuesday’s MLB trade deadline. Rosenthal linked the St. Louis Cardinals to Montas, and the New York Post’s Jon Heyman noted that the veteran right-hander is the “top starter target” for the New York Yankees. The Yankees were in the running for Castillo, and they have also been in the rumor mill with a possible move for Los Angeles Angels hurler Noah Syndergaard.
Montas is under team control with Oakland for a mere one more season, as he will be arbitration-eligible for the 2023 campaign.
Montas did not make the All-Star team for the American League this year, although he has been quite a durable pitcher for Oakland, logging a 3.18 ERA to go along with a keen 9.4 strikeouts per nine innings mark. He is also on track to reach at least 150.0 innings pitched for the second consecutive campaign.
The wait continues on just which playoff contending team will end up completing a move for Montas before the upcoming trade deadline.
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