MLB trade rumors: Giancarlo Stanton clears trade waivers

Marlins outfielder Giancarlo Stanton has cleared trade waivers and is now eligible to be traded to any club, according to Jeff Passan of Yahoo! Sports.

Stanton clearing waivers comes as no surprise, as he’s owed $295 million through the 2027 season and no team would likely be willing to take the risk of assuming that deal outright by claiming him. But he is a legitimate trade candidate for the rest of the month with Miami’s ownership situation now settled.

Stanton has drawn inquiries from four teams looking to deal for him, according to Passan, who adds that talks involving him before last month’s non-waiver trade deadline got to the “exchanging names” stage with one club. While Passan doesn’t list names, it’s believed that the Dodgers, Giants, Cardinals are among the clubs who consider such a move.

Stanton hit his 43rd home run of the season last night, raising his line to .283/.374/.640 in 115 games this season. He is the hottest hitter in all of baseball, so he’ll surely draw interest from contenders looking for a late-season lineup boost.

Stanton’s full no-trade clause isn’t expected to be an issue, according to Passan, who notes that the slugger would prefer to play for a contender. The Marlins organization, under the new ownership group led by Bruce Sherman and Derek Jeter, may look at a Stanton trade as a way to start over as an organization by freeing itself of the largest contract in baseball history.