While there are plenty of marquee names in rumors ahead of the 2023 MLB trade deadline, the Chicago Cubs and Tampa Bay Rays agreed to a small trade. The Cubs traded pitchers Adrian Sampson and Manny Rodríguez to the Rays in exchange for minor leaguer Josh Roberson, according to The Athletic's Sahadev Sharma. The Rays also acquired international free agency money in the trade.

The Cubs-Rays trade might end up being the most minor move of the entire 2023 trade deadline. Neither Adrian Sampson nor Manny Rodríguez has pitched in the majors during the 2023 season. Roberson is not a highly regarded prospect. The move comes after the Cubs declared they won't trade their most sought-after player in Cody Bellinger.

In 31 appearances for Triple-A Durham in 2023, Roberson has a 6.00 ERA. Roberson posted a combined 9.56 ERA in 35 appearances across Single-A and Double-A last season.

If anything, the Rays' trade gives Tampa Bay some more pitching depth. Sampson pitched well for the Cubs in 2022. The right-hander had a 3.11 ERA and 1.23 WHIP in 21 games, 19 of which were starts. In 2021, Sampson posted a 2.80 ERA across 35.1 innings.

Sampson failed to make the Cub's Opening Day roster after a poor spring training. He underwent knee surgery in the first week of May.

The Rays are among the top World Series contenders ahead of Tuesday's deadline. Tampa Bay trails the Baltimore Orioles by 1.5 games for first place in the AL East. The Rays are four games ahead of the Houston Astros for the first AL wild-card spot.

The Cubs are fringe playoff contenders, sitting 3.5 games out of the race for the third and final NL wild-card spot. Three games separate Chicago and the postseason.