"As part of our 2026 MLB season preview, ESPN's Buster Olney surveyed those around the industry to help him rank the top 10 players at every position as part of his annual positional ranking series. Today, we rank the best of the best relievers. The objective of this exercise is to identify the best players for the 2026 season, not who might be best in five years or over their career."
"As Padres general manager A.J. Preller recalled in a recent conversation, there didn't seem to be any traction for a possible deal. But about a week before the trade deadline, with A's GM David Forst talking to a handful of teams about Miller, Preller indicated he'd be open to including 19-year-old shortstop Leo De Vries, considered one of the best prospects in baseball."
"Typically, executives are not willing to surrender high-end position prospects for relievers. This was different, Preller felt. "When you're talking about someone like Mason Miller," he said, "no one should be off the table." Forst had been focused on structuring a potential Miller trade around pitching, but that immediately shifted. "Leo was a difference-maker," he recalled. With the possible anchors of a deal in place,"
Spring training camps are underway. A positional ranking series identifies the top 10 players at every position for the 2026 season, beginning with relievers. The objective is to identify who will be best for the 2026 season rather than who might be best over a career or in five years. A schedule lists the order of position rollouts across the coming days. The Padres pursued Mason Miller, engaging the Athletics in 2024 and again last June, and negotiations intensified before the trade deadline. The inclusion of 19-year-old Leo De Vries changed the trade calculus, and Miller delivered strong strikeout results after the move.
Read at ESPN.com
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