Haley Van Voorhis’ journey into college football history
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Alex Scarborough, ESPN Staff Writer
WINCHESTER, Va. — More than a decade after her three-year run as a Washington Commanders cheerleader was over, Heidi Van Voorhis never lost interest in the team. A mother of two working in marketing, she’d take her young family to Jack Kent Cooke Stadium whenever possible. At home in their small Virginia town west of Washington, she’d find the time to watch the team’s games on TV.
She can close her eyes and still picture her daughter, a toddler, sitting on the floor and studying the sport on screen, growing more and more enamored by what she saw. Haley was always quiet, but one day she turned to her mom with a pointed question: “Why aren’t there any girls on the field?”
Heidi was at a loss.
“I don’t know,” she said. “I don’t know why.”
Heidi could have said that girls weren’t allowed, and it might have changed everything. But she didn’t, leaving open a path that would culminate in her daughter becoming a pioneer in the sport. On Saturday, Haley, a junior safety at Division III Shenandoah University, appeared in her first game, becoming the first woman in NCAA history to compete at a non-kicking position. She was in for one play, helping to force a three-and-out by getting pressure on the Juniata quarterback. The following day, Shenandoah coach Scott Yoder said he hoped her role would increase: “Yesterday was certainly a huge moment in her path, but her path keeps going.”
As a child, Van Voorhis was more surprised by the lack of girls playing football than discouraged by it. Looking back, Heidi said, “I guess she didn’t take it as if there couldn’t be any.”
There were other signs, like how one Christmas, Heidi’s parents gave Haley and her brother, Claiborne, a set of Washington uniforms — a football player’s and a cheerleader’s. They ended up giving away the skirt and pompoms.
“It still had the tag on it and never got worn,” Heidi recalled. “She absconded her brother’s football uniform very early on and wore it for years.”
Chandler, Haley’s father, remembers going to Washington games when Haley was a child and how she’d tell the family, “One day I’m going to be on the field as a player.”
“That’s always been in her,” he said. “I think part of this is just kind of who she is.”
It was always so matter-of-fact, the way Haley moved from flag football in elementary school to tackle football in the sixth grade. She became the first girl to play football at her high school, Christchurch. And when the boys hit their growth spurts, she responded by spending countless hours in the gym to get bigger and stronger. She knew that to have a chance to play in college she had to get faster, so her family hired a trainer to improve her speed. She earned all-state honorable mention as a junior in 2019 before seeing her senior season canceled due to COVID-19.
She wasn’t bothered when some boys refused to tackle her. Other parents would whisper about the little blonde girl playing such a violent game, but Heidi and Chandler didn’t pay them any mind. They didn’t buy into the notion that women were more fragile than men. Besides, they had neighbors who let their kids ride horses and every once in a while they read about someone who fell off and died; that seemed scarier than football to them.
All they wanted was for their children to find something they were passionate about — to find their dream and follow it. To see her put in the work to make that happen and earn a spot on a college team, Chandler said, “It’s the best feeling in the world.”
“Even the days I didn’t want to [train], I was like, ‘But if I don’t, I’m not going to get anywhere,'” Haley said. “Being the first made me do extra because I wanted it more than anything.”
BYRON MITCHELL WAS in charge of the shuttle station at a recruiting camp on a cold December day in 2020. The assistant coach from Shenandoah watched kids rotate in, darting back and forth, back and forth, between the orange cones.
There were about 150 prospects trying to capture the attention of coaches from Division II and Division III colleges. But only one player caught Mitchell’s eye.
“I don’t think it was her being a female,” Mitchell said of Van Voorhis, who played receiver and defensive back. “That’s what stuck out, her appearance.”
As in, how muscular she was.
If only Mitchell knew what it took to become the 145-pound ball of muscle he saw. Van Voorhis’ parents had watched in awe as their daughter turned into a workout warrior in high school. Then, when COVID-19 canceled her senior season, she became even more obsessed, training around the clock at home. She worked with weights and resistance bands in the garage, ran sprints in the driveway, did ladder drills in the backyard. She spent hours researching different diets online and how to add weight, lamenting that most were geared toward the physiology of men rather than women.
She signed up for a speed-training class, and when the neighborhood gyms opened back up, she seemingly spent every waking hour there. Chandler pointed to the Michael Jordan documentary “The Last Dance” as Haley’s inspiration, specifically the moment when a young Jordan is getting beaten up by the more physical Detroit Pistons and the decision he made to transform his body and take his game to the next level.
“That made an impression on her,” Chandler said. “If you had a camera in our house during that lockdown, you would have thought this was Gold’s Gym for 6-7 hours a day, seven days a week.”
Mitchell thought Van Voorhis had adequate speed but superb technique. “Almost picture perfect,” he said. While most players would finish the shuttle drill by pulling up the split second it was over, Van Voorhis would run through the line, which meant something to him.
During a break, a coach from Wagner sidled up to Mitchell. “You won’t believe who caught the ball better than anyone,” he said.
Mitchell knew. When the camp was over, he found Van Voorhis and handed her a business card.
And that might have been the end of it had Mitchell not felt compelled to ask a simple question: “What’s your goal?”
“It was her response that really triggered all this,” he said. “She said, ‘Coach, I just want to play Division III football.'”
Mitchell said most players he recruits don’t picture themselves in Division III. Some are modest enough to shoot for Division II, but most imagine themselves in the FBS, formerly known as Division I. When Mitchell tells someone he has a spot for them at Shenandoah, they usually hold out for a scholarship offer elsewhere.
“That just told me that she’s confident in herself, but she’s very, very humble,” he said. “She knows where she is and she knew where she fit in. And I thought the world of that.”
As Mitchell got ready to make the two-hour drive home, he stopped and looked Van Voorhis up on Twitter. He found her highlights and was impressed. If she wasn’t a girl, he thought, everyone would be recruiting her. He said he arrived at a conclusion: “Haley deserves to play college football.”
Mitchell wasn’t looking to make history when he followed up and invited her to campus. For a while, he kept his interest in recruiting Van Voorhis to himself.
But one day, he pulled aside defensive coordinator Brock McCullough to tell him about Van Voorhis. McCullough had been Mitchell’s position coach at Shenandoah and was about to begin his 18th season with the university.
“Why don’t you recruit her?” McCullough asked matter-of-factly. “I mean, are you not going to recruit her?”
Mitchell looked at him, surprised.
“Yeah,” he said, expecting an argument and instead getting a green light. “I am.”
McCullough nodded.
“I don’t see why not,” he said before moving on with his day.
A few weeks later, Mitchell stood in the doorway of head coach Scott Yoder’s office and explained what was happening — how Van Voorhis and her parents were on their way for a visit, and to be prepared.
Mitchell left and Yoder pulled up Van Voorhis’ highlights, agreeing with Mitchell’s assessment. He liked how she got up to top speed quickly.
The only question Yoder had was, “Why?” He wanted to know why football was important to her and whether she and her family were in it for the right reasons.
“They’re legit,” he said. “This is not some type of attention grab, because at the end of the day all I want to do is coach college football. I don’t want the circus, I don’t want the distractions, because at the end of the day we’ve got a team. There’s 115 kids on the team.”
Once Van Voorhis committed, the only thing Yoder had to figure out was logistics — what accommodations would need to be made to ensure her privacy. Yoder’s first thought was to find a room at the stadium for her to dress in, but Van Voorhis didn’t want to be removed from the team, which dressed at the football facility a half-mile walk from the field.
Symbolically, Yoder thought, that said a lot about Van Voorhis. Because the locker room was where connections were made. And it’s where, when it’s game time, the players gather to walk to the stadium — as a single unit, as a team.
Van Voorhis didn’t want to miss any of that. So she changed in a training room one floor up from the locker room; that way she could be nearby when it was time for the coaches to address the team and for everyone to leave for practice and games.
It’s all she has ever wanted — to play the game she loved, to compete and to be a part of something bigger than herself.
The media attention that comes with that isn’t what she said she’s after. If anything, she’s uncomfortable in the spotlight. Shy around strangers, she turned down a number of opportunities to share her story, even though in the age of name, image and likeness, she could have monetized her journey.
A blend of quiet and confident — “determined” is the word Yoder uses — Van Voorhis said she’s a doer and not a talker.
“I like proving it,” she said. “It’s really cool being the first, but there’s something inside of me saying that I haven’t done anything here yet.”
If she wanted to take the easy route, Shenandoah was not it.
If all Yoder and the school wanted was to make history, they would have done it two years ago.
Van Voorhis needed time to get healthy and develop as a football player. Which is why she said she was so confident coming into this season. She felt herself improving and getting stronger between her sophomore and junior years. “Great things happen when you work hard,” she said matter-of-factly.
“At the core of this thing is a young person chasing their dream and earning an opportunity and taking advantage of an opportunity that they earned,” Yoder said. “If you asked anybody on our team, they might not use the same words, but they’re going to tell you she’s a great teammate. She does everything that’s asked of her — she’s in the weight room, she’s at practice, she’s working hard, she’s getting better.”
TRAMMEL ANTHONY, a former Shenandoah defensive back, remembers getting a text during the summer of 2021 about a girl joining their team. His response: “Bro, what position does she play?”
He was relieved when he found out she’d be playing safety rather than receiver, believing defense was the safer and more palatable option.
“Nobody is going to want to see a woman get hit over and over again,” he said.
He wound up following Van Voorhis on Twitter and watched some of her highlights that day. Then he sent her a direct message, welcoming her to Shenandoah. He thought the whole thing was “pretty cool.”
While Anthony admits that some of his teammates were in a sort of “wait-and-see mode” about Van Voorhis at first, their attitude changed quickly once summer conditioning began. The most grueling test was the 110-yard sprints — 16 sets with only 45 seconds of rest in between.
As a freshman, Anthony remembers struggling to keep up.
“If you’re out of shape,” he said, “it’s brutal.”
Van Voorhis made it on her first try. Competing among the skill players, who have the most difficult target time to reach, she was one of only a few freshmen to make her time on all 16 sprints.
Anthony was impressed.
“She went from the top half to the top third to the top quarter,” he recalled. “And her pace never changed.”
Yoder looked on.
“You knew she took it seriously,” he said. “That’s my moment when we came off the field like, ‘She’s prepared.'”
Not that it was always easy for Van Voorhis. She said she was nervous in the beginning. She’d been on campus only a few days and was thrown in the deep end — trying to learn the playbook while going against players 3-4 years older than her.
And like any freshman, she got burned. During one practice, two receivers were set to one side of the field — one ran an underneath route, one ran a post. Van Voorhis bit on the underneath route and watched helplessly as the ball sailed over her head for a would-be touchdown.
McCullough pulled her aside, reminding her to let the linebackers clean up the short passes. It was her job to guard the deep part of the field.
Two plays later, the offense ran the same play, Van Voorhis stayed deep and took away the post.
A few days later, on a similar play, Van Voorhis backpedaled, jumped up and high-pointed a pass, snatching it from the receiver. She landed hard on her back, securing one of the first interceptions of camp.
Mentally, McCullough said, “She’s elite.” She may be only 145 pounds, but he said that pound for pound, she’s among the strongest players on the team.
And she’s tough. McCullough noticed how she played through what he thought was a broken wrist as a freshman and never said a word to anyone about it.
“She just feels like one of the guys on the team,” Anthony said. “Like it’s nothing, no one special, just like she’s one of us.”
That’s all Van Voorhis could ask for. While her teammates acknowledge that she is a woman, she said, they never dwell on it. She credited their positive energy and the culture of the program for snuffing out any potential awkwardness.
“We fit perfectly,” she said.
Watching from the sidelines that first year, she said she learned about pulling through difficult situations and how the game takes more mental toughness than physical — “more than you would think.”
As a freshman, she was confident her time was coming. She just didn’t know when.
“Maybe not yet this year,” she said at the time, “but later if I keep working at it, getting more reps.”
TWO YEARS LATER, Van Voorhis came running off the sidelines and into the game for the first time.
Against Juniata on Saturday, with Shenandoah leading 21-0 in the first quarter, coaches called for No. 10 to go in. Van Voorhis popped in her mouthguard, lined up near the line of scrimmage and sprinted off the edge, making a beeline for the quarterback, who hurriedly threw an incompletion before getting wrapped up and tackled to the turf by Van Voorhis.
The public address announcer called out Van Voorhis’ quarterback hurry and the crowd lit up in applause. Van Voorhis hustled back to the sideline, where senior safety Quante Redd waited to congratulate her, along with a handful of other teammates on defense. David Agyei, who helps coach linebackers, walked over and gave her a high-five. She didn’t play the rest of the game.
It didn’t hit Yoder right away what had taken place. He was too preoccupied with the flow of the game, which was affected by a storm passing through the area.
“I knew she was in,” he said, “but it didn’t really register with me until after everything happened and the energy from the crowd and our players’ reaction on the sideline. I was just like, ‘Wow, that just happened.'”
It didn’t register to Van Voorhis at first, either, because at the end of the day she said she was doing something natural: playing the game she loved since she was a child. But then it dawned on her what she’d done.
“Not just for my team but for the whole community of people behind me,” she said. “Nobody’s ever done this before, so it’s just cool to be able to do something so big that can impact so many people after you, and just make history.”
After the game, Van Voorhis found her parents outside the stadium. Dad gave her a big bear hug. Mom clenched her jaw and fought back tears. “So proud,” she said.
“You don’t have to cry,” Van Voorhis replied. “It’s not that emotional.”
Mom wasn’t having that.
“It’s a big deal,” she said. “It’s a long road.”
Van Voorhis and her parents knew two years ago that it might take time to get here. What they couldn’t know was how difficult her freshman season would be: how she’d contract COVID and miss 10 days; how she’d be sick on and off for weeks after that; how she’d find out that the wrist pain she was playing through was actually a torn ligament that required surgery. Recovery took months, knocking her out of spring practice. And by the time she was cleared, she’d lost so much muscle that it felt like she was starting from scratch in the weight room.
Truth be told, Van Voorhis said, she felt cursed.
“It’s a lot,” she explained, “because coming in, just being the only female, it’s probably enough adversity.”
In the grand scheme of things, she acknowledged that injuries are normal.
“But it’s just stress added on when you don’t need it,” she said. “And that’s the situation: Everyone’s waiting for you to quit or give up.”
It wasn’t something anyone specifically said or did that made her feel that way. Van Voorhis reiterated that her coaches and teammates have been great. Shenandoah, she said, is home.
But even though she stays away from social media — she has a grand total of four Instagram posts — she knows there’s negativity lurking online. She saw what Sarah Fuller went through at Vanderbilt, becoming the first woman to score a point at the Power 5 level as a place-kicker in 2020, and the white-hot microscope she was under.
Asked what advice she’d give to little girls who want to do what she has done, Van Voorhis said they should not expect it to be easy.
“You can’t even expect it to generally be hard,” she said. “It’s going to be hard-hard. Like extremely hard, mentally, because everyone can be physically prepared for something. But when you go into something and you’re not the same as anyone else, it adds pressure. You’re noticed everywhere you go. There’s a lot of pressure to not only live up to your own standards but the ones around you. From my experience, you have to have a new level of mental toughness to be able to go through that pressure and play football.
“Because you can’t take plays off. And, honestly, you can’t mess up. In my opinion, it’s like you can’t let the girl mess up one play because then everyone knows. But if a guy messes up, mistakes happen, it’s fine.”
Van Voorhis said there’s nothing wrong with shooting for perfection. It’s just a lot to deal with.
“My best advice is, just don’t hold back anything, make the most of the opportunity,” she said.
McCullough called Van Voorhis a “pioneer.” He said he has a teenage daughter who is interested in football and inspired by Van Voorhis’ journey.
“It’s really neat to see,” he said. “You know it’s coming. In 10-15 years from now things will be a lot different.”
Case in point: In the past year, Yoder has had two football coaches reach out who are recruiting women. If they’re as genuine as Van Voorhis and her family, Yoder said, they’ll be fine.
Now that the not-so-small matter of making history is out of the way, Van Voorhis is moving forward.
“Now that I’ve hit a goal, I have to make my next one,” she said. “I mean, that’s what it’s always been. It’s always just striving to be a better football player. Once I play, I want to play more.”
She wants to get better.
She wants to get on the bus as part of the travel roster.
She wants to keep playing football this year and next year and however long it lasts.
“I mean, at the end of the day,” she said, “I’m just doing this because I love the game.”
Some have had a few. Some have had many. The Oregon Ducks seemingly come up with a new one every week.
The topic is, of course, alternate uniforms. The best of the best have become beloved staples of the fall calendar for college football fans. Just as many, though, have been relegated to the dustbin of history (or at least a campus storage closet). A vaunted few have risen to an even higher tier: cult classic.
With the 2025 college football season approaching, we decided to run through the extensive catalog of alternate uniform offerings in the sport since 2000 and parse through it all to determine some of the most memorable — for better or for worse.
We broke our superlatives list down into a number of categories — three broad, three specific, each with multiple nominations, and six exclusive awards. Some of these categories reward aesthetic beauty. More prefer just plain zaniness.
Here are the best, worst and wildest of alternate uniforms from the past 25 years.
Best in show
In the nominations for our best of the best, we covered a wide range of topical ground. From distinct colors to well-executed throwbacks, our five picks offer an array of different ways to make an alternate uniform pop.
Hawai’i Rainbow Warriors: Retro and rainbow, 2015
Florida International Panthers: Miami Vice, 2024
Houston Cougars: Paying homage to the Oilers, 2023
Florida Gators: Simplistic throwback perfection, 2019
SMU Mustangs: Repping Dallas, 2019
Most … ambitious
It’s always encouraging when a team is willing to try something new — creativity and boldness are two traits that help make college football fun. That said, not every outside-the-box alternate uniform idea is created equal. We’re not necessarily saying these uniforms are bad, but they definitely were… enterprising.
Florida Gators: Gator-print, 2017
Michigan State Spartans: Neon green, 2019
Colorado Buffaloes: Throwbacks gone too simplistic, 2009
Notre Dame Fighting Irish: Yankee Stadium crossover, 2018
Miami Hurricanes: Orange sleeves, 2005
Craziest helmets
A great — or poor — helmet can make or break a uniform, so we created a separate category for some of the most notable lids. Bonus points were awarded for distinctiveness, regardless of how well-executed.
Western Kentucky Hilltoppers: Big Red front and center, 2024
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets: Honeycomb theme, 2012
Utah Utes: Rose Bowl specials, 2022
Georgia Bulldogs: Georgia tries grey, 2011
Virginia Tech Hokies: The flexing HokieBird, 2012
Most “State-triotic”
A key element of college football is representing a school’s hometown or home state. These three schools went the furthest in going above and beyond to fulfill that mission, incorporating their state’s flag into their alternate uniforms. The aesthetic results were varied.
Maryland Terrapins, 2011
Colorado State Rams, 2017
Texas Tech Red Raiders, 2014
Best from the final frontier
An unlikely source of quality alternate jerseys in recent years? Outer space. In fact, space-themed uniforms produced enough impressive alternates that we deemed it worthy of its own category. Here are the best of the best to have drawn inspiration from the stars.
UCF Knights: Space U, 2023
Purdue Boilermakers: Honoring the school’s astronauts, 2019
Air Force Falcons: Representing the Space Force, 2022
Best tribute
Context matters for uniforms, too. Almost all alternate uniforms represent or honor something, but some threads have particularly special motives. These two alternates have established themselves as particularly distinguished in the backstory category.
Boston College Eagles: The red bandana series
The Eagles have donned uniforms featuring a red bandana pattern and a “FOR WELLES” nameplate once a year since 2014. The uniforms pay homage to Welles Crowther, a Boston College alum who died saving lives in the Sept. 11 attacks while wearing a red bandana.
UAB Blazers: The Children’s Harbor series
A tradition since 2016, UAB has worn special jerseys for select games as part of a partnership with Children’s Harbor, a service center for seriously ill children and their families in Birmingham, Alabama. The Blazers’ Children’s Harbor jerseys feature the names of patients on the back in place of those of players.
Worst trend to never catch on
Block letter jerseys
A very brief but nevertheless unfortunate stint in the pantheon of alternate uniform history was the spurt of designs in the early 2010s featuring jerseys with block letter logos front and center. Of the assorted pitfalls an alternate uniform can hit, these ran the gauntlet.
Changing the aesthetics for the jerseys of teams with classic traditional threads? Check. Unwieldy designs without grounding in a school’s history or tradition? Check. Creating a strange on-screen viewing experience? Check. Blissfully, these never took hold outside of a few Big Ten one-offs.
Lifetime achievement award
Oregon
Undoubtedly the most prolific uniform-producing school, the Ducks put out more uniform combinations in a season than some programs do in a decade. Instead of trying to choose which categories to slot them into — since they’ve produced enough memorable combinations to be involved in just about every option, really — we’re simply giving the Ducks a lifetime achievement award, showcasing a short palette of their range here.
Best alternate uniform reveal series
Notre Dame
While there have been plenty of great alternate uniform reveals, nobody in the game has committed to a bit quite like Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish started in 2022, parodying “The Hangover” to unveil their uniforms for that year’s Shamrock Series game in Las Vegas. They’ve since established the movie parody lane as their niche, riffing “Jerry Maguire” in 2023 and “Wolf of Wall Street” in 2024.
Some guys CAN handle Vegas
Feel It. October 8 pic.twitter.com/HdzdAOaCDs
— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) July 27, 2022
Best consistent yearly alternate uniform matchup
The Army-Navy game
Admittedly, there are not a ton of matchups producing alternate uniform matchups on an annual basis. Or any, for that matter. But it simply wouldn’t be an alternate uniform story without plaudits being given to the level of detail put into Army and Navy’s respective uniforms on a yearly basis for their rivalry game in recent years. So, like Oregon, we’ve created a specific category to highlight some of the best Army-Navy alternate uniform showdowns.
Techs Stick Together unity award
Virginia Tech vs. Georgia Tech, 2007
It felt right to end this piece with an “alternate” uniform that, while very much not intentional, was certainly memorable. On November 1, 2007, Virginia Tech played a routine road game against Georgia Tech. There was just one issue — some of the Hokies’ jerseys had gone missing. As a result, four Virginia Tech players had to play with the only extra uniforms on hand: Yellow Jacket road jerseys, with new names scrawled on the back and “Georgia Tech” blacked out on the front.
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David Hale
At a media event Friday, North Carolina Central coach Trei Oliver was asked about the most ridiculous moments he has faced in coaching, and his response set off alarms across the state of Virginia.
Oliver said he found a Virginia Tech assistant coach on the sideline for one of North Carolina Central’s games last year and suggested the coach was there to lure his star running back, J’Mari Taylor, into the transfer portal.
“Virginia Tech was actually on my sideline recruiting our running back,” Oliver told reporters, according to WRAL News. “That was pretty bold. I couldn’t believe it.”
Oliver didn’t name the running back, but he said the player later transferred to Virginia. Taylor was a first-team all-conference player who is now on Virginia’s roster.
Oliver said he needed assistant coaches to calm him down on the sideline, noting several told him, “He’s just down here visiting.'”
“But I knew what it was,” Oliver said.
Virginia Tech released a statement Saturday saying this was the first time the issue had been raised and that the school would investigate.
“This is the first time the issue has been brought to our attention, and no concern has previously been shared with us through any formal channel,” the team said. “Virginia Tech takes all NCAA rules seriously and is committed to conducting our program with integrity. We are reviewing the matter internally and will address any findings appropriately.”
Taylor, a graduate transfer, will be part of the Virginia backfield rotation this season, and Oliver said he will be rooting for his former player at his new school — particularly when the Cavaliers play Virginia Tech on Nov. 29.
“Thank God he went to UVA,” Oliver said, “and UVA is going to beat the smoke out of them other folks.”
The 2025 MLB trade deadline is just around the corner, with contending teams deciding what they need to add before 6 p.m. ET on Thursday, July 31.
Could Jarren Duran be on the move from the Boston Red Sox? Will the Arizona Diamondbacks deal Eugenio Suarez and Zac Gallen to contenders? And who among the Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago Cubs, New York Mets, New York Yankees, Detroit Tigers and Philadelphia Phillies will go all-in to boost their 2025 World Series hopes?
Whether your favorite club is looking to add or deal away — or stands somewhere in between — here’s the freshest intel we’re hearing, reaction to completed deals and what to know for every team as trade season unfolds.
More: Top 50 trade candidates | Passan’s preview | Fantasy spin
Jump to: Completed deals | Latest intel
Completed deal tracker
Yankees make another deal for infield depth
The New York Yankees acquired utility man Amed Rosario from the Washington Nationals in exchange for two minor leaguers. Story »
Royals get outfielder in trade with D-backs
The Kansas City Royals acquired veteran outfielder Randal Grichuk from the Arizona Diamondbacks in exchange for right-hander Andrew Hoffmann. Story »
Yankees land infielder McMahon in deal with Rockies
The New York Yankees are acquiring third baseman Ryan McMahon in a trade with the Colorado Rockies, sources confirmed to ESPN. Story » | Grades »
Mets get bullpen help from O’s
The New York Mets have acquired left-handed reliever Gregory Soto from the Baltimore Orioles, sources confirmed to ESPN. Story » | Grades »
Mariners start trade season with deal for Naylor
The Seattle Mariners have acquired first baseman Josh Naylor from the Arizona Diamondbacks for left-hander Brandyn Garcia and right-hander Ashton Izzi are headed back to the Arizona Diamondbacks from the Seattle Mariners for first baseman Josh Naylor, sources told ESPN. Story » | Grades »
MLB trade deadline buzz
July 27
Can Mets find an ace at deadline? The market has been very thin in teams offloading, but according to sources, the Mets continue to look around to see whether there’s a match for a starting pitcher capable of taking the ball for a Game 1, Game 2 or Game 3 of a postseason series. Merrill Kelly of the Diamondbacks could be that guy, or maybe it’s Seth Lugo of the Royals, or the Padres’ Dylan Cease. Perhaps it’s one of the two big-time starters who will be under team control beyond this season, the Marlins’ Sandy Alcantara or the Twins’ Joe Ryan. The Mets’ rotation was exceptional early in the year, before injuries and natural regression began to take a toll, and the team could use a boost in the front end of this group as they fight the Phillies for NL East supremacy. — Buster Olney
Which way will deadline bubble teams go? The staredown continues as deadline week begins, with perhaps as many as a half-dozen teams waiting to declare their status. “This weekend is big for a lot of teams,” said one evaluator.
The Rays, who appeared to be gathering momentum a month ago, are now just a game over .500, and given the organization’s longstanding focus on maximizing the value of their players, some rival evaluators think they could now be considering dealing some pieces away.
The St. Louis Cardinals are two games over .500, with the industry waiting to see whether they will deal closer Ryan Helsley. The expectation is that they will, given the tough NL playoff landscape. The Tigers could be interested, maybe the Phillies, Mets, Dodgers or Yankees.
The Los Angeles Angels are now five games under .500, and the presumption is that they will eventually move some players before the deadline, but the Angels don’t always operate in the way teams typically do. Taylor Ward has drawn interest from other organizations. — Olney
July 25 updates
Will the Royals trade Lugo — or extend him? Seth Lugo is an intriguing name in the trade market, but rival evaluators don’t sense the Royals are especially motivated to make a deal. Kansas City could also use this moment to explore an extension with Lugo, to keep their deep well of starting pitching intact. — Buster Olney
Angels’ deadline plans coming into focus: Any confusion about whether the Angels will add or subtract ahead of the trade deadline has seemingly cleared up in recent days, with a four-game losing streak that has them five games under .500.
The Angels are telling teams their pending free agents are available, sources with knowledge of the situation said. That includes third baseman Yoan Moncada, utility infielder Luis Rengifo, starting pitcher Tyler Anderson and closer Kenley Jansen. Left fielder Taylor Ward, controllable through 2026, can also be had with the right deal.
The Angels famously never rebuild under owner Arte Moreno and are prone to adding even in times when they seem like long shots to contend — most notably in 2023, when they not only held on to Shohei Ohtani but also traded for Lucas Giolito and Reynaldo Lopez before collapsing in August.
At this time last year, they tried to move the likes of Anderson and Rengifo but did not believe they would have received enough back to justify holding on to them through the following season. And so it is worth noting: Even if the Angels do decide to punt on 2025, their goal would be to contend again next season.
Any moves they make would probably be geared toward that. By trading away rentals, the Angels will try to use the trade deadline to add accomplished players who can help the team next year. — Alden Gonzalez
What the Astros might be looking for: The Astros’ best fit in a hitter is someone who could play second base or left field, and they can move Jose Altuve accordingly. Per FanGraphs, the Astros have a 94.5% chance to reach the postseason; they lead the Mariners by five games in the AL West. — Buster Olney
How Arizona could shape the trade deadline: The Diamondbacks informed other teams in the past that they would “probably” be dealing away players, but even after trading Josh Naylor to Seattle, it’s unclear just how far Arizona will go. If the D-Backs decided to go all-in on trading veterans, they could reshape their organization significantly, by moving free-agents-to-be Merrill Kelly, Zac Gallen, Lourdes Gurriel Jr. and, of course, Eugenio Suarez.
The perception of other front offices is that Diamondbacks owner Ken Kendrick does not want to completely offload, especially with the Dodgers drifting back toward the pack in the NL West — and as of Thursday night, Suarez wasn’t even officially on the market.
The Diamondbacks, who reached the World Series in 2023 after winning just 84 games during the regular season, won their first three games after the All-Star break, but have subsequently lost three in a row. What some rival evaluators believe is that if the D-Backs keep dealing, it’ll be because of a nudge from the front office. Arizona has been extensively scouting other organizations in preparation. — Buster Olney
White Sox starter drawing interest from contenders: About a half-dozen or more scouts will be in attendance at Rate Field on Friday night when Adrian Houser takes the mound for the White Sox. He has compiled a 1.89 ERA in 10 starts for Chicago after being picked up midseason. Teams don’t believe they’ll have to give up a lot to acquire him, and he could make for a good back-end starter or depth piece for a contender. The White Sox are likely to move him at his peak, and Friday could be the final look for those who are interested. — Jesse Rogers
July 24 updates
Could Mets land this deadline’s top slugger? Eugenio Suarez could be an intriguing option for the Mets as they’ve gotten little production out of Mark Vientos at third base. And if things work out and Suarez wants to stay — and they want him to — he could also provide protection for the Mets at first base in case Pete Alonso moves on next season. The Mets rank 23rd in OPS at third, so why wouldn’t they inquire about Suarez, knowing they can hand the position back to Vientos in 2026 if they wish. — Jesse Rogers
July 23 updates
Houston is in the market for a third baseman: Add the Astros to the list of contenders looking for a third baseman. With All-Star Isaac Paredes expected to miss significant time because of what manager Joe Espada described as a “pretty serious” right hamstring strain, the Astros have begun poking around for available third basemen. One of them is the Rockies’ Ryan McMahon, who also has drawn interest from a few other clubs.
The 30-year-old represents a solid veteran option. McMahon is slashing .217/.314/.403 with 16 home runs, and the metrics indicate he has been one of the top defensive third basemen in the majors this season. He is under contract over the next two seasons for $32 million, so he wouldn’t be just a rental, which should raise the Rockies’ asking price. — Jorge Castillo
A big addition to the available deadline starting pitching options? A surprise name has emerged in the starting pitcher market: Dylan Cease, who will be eligible for free agency at year’s end. Perception of other teams is that the Padres are intent on making a push for the playoffs and would use Cease to help fill other roster needs. Mets, AL East teams, Cubs among teams that have talked about him. — Buster Olney
How Cubs are approaching deadline: The Cubs are looking for a starting pitcher first and foremost, but won’t part with any top prospects for rentals. They would be willing to trade a young hitter for a cost-controlled pitcher or one already under contract past this season. They are desperate to add an arm who can help while Jameson Taillon recovers from a calf injury. Bullpen games in Taillon’s place haven’t gone well. — Jesse Rogers
Will Twins trade top pitchers? Several high-profile teams are in need of bullpen help ahead of the trade deadline — including the Mets, Yankees, Phillies and Dodgers — and the Twins have two of the best available in Griffin Jax and Jhoan Duran. The sense is that at least one of them will be traded, but those who are looking for relief help expect the asking price to be very high, partly because both of them are controllable through 2027 and partly because the Twins’ uncertain ownership situation has clouded the approach with those who are not pending free agents.
The Twins are widely expected to trade outfielder Harrison Bader, super-utility player Willi Castro, starter Chris Paddack and lefty reliever Danny Coulombe. But Jax, Duran and young starter Joe Ryan are the ones who would bring back the biggest return. The Twins are said to be listening on everyone. But the team being up for sale since October, and in limbo ever since prospective buyer Justin Ishbia increased his ownership stake in the White Sox in early June, has complicated matters with longer-term players. — Alden Gonzalez
July 22 updates
An Orioles starting pitcher to watch: It seems very likely that Charlie Morton (3.47 ERA last 12 appearances) will be traded, within a relatively thin starting pitching market with a lot of teams looking for rotation help — the Padres, Yankees, maybe the Mets or Astros; a number of teams have expressed interest. In the past, Morton has had a preference to pitch for a team closer to the East Coast and his Florida home, but he doesn’t control that. O’s GM Mike Elias does. — Buster Olney
Will Cleveland deal All-Star outfielder? The player asked about the most on the Guardians’ roster is Steven Kwan, but given that he is two and a half years away from free agency, it’s unlikely he’ll be traded, according to sources. Kwan’s slash line this year: .288/.352/.398. He also has 11 stolen bases and has made consecutive All-Star appearances. — Olney
Braves not looking to move Murphy: Sean Murphy‘s name has been tossed around in trade speculation, but according to sources, he will not be available. Atlanta’s catcher is playing well this year and will be playing under a high-value contract for the next three seasons — $15 million per year from 2026 to 2028, plus a team option in ’29. And the Braves are set up well with the right-handed-hitting Murphy and left-handed-hitting Drake Baldwin perhaps sharing the catching and DH spots into the future. — Olney
Why the 2022 Cy Young winner isn’t the most in-demand Marlins starter: Edward Cabrera has become more coveted than Sandy Alcantara, who teams believe might take an offseason to fix. Alcantara’s strikeout-to-walk ratio is scary low — just 1.9 — and his ERA is 7.14. Cabrera, on the other hand, is striking out more than a batter per inning and his ERA sits at 3.61. The 27-year-old right-hander will come at a heavy cost for opposing teams. — Jesse Rogers
How Kansas City is approaching the trade deadline: The Royals have signaled a willingness to trade, but with an eye toward competing again next year — meaning they aren’t willing to part with the core of their pitching staff. Other teams say Kansas City is (unsurprisingly) looking to upgrade its future offense in whatever it does.
Right-handed starter Seth Lugo will be the most-watched Royal before the deadline, since he holds a $15 million player option for 2026 “that you’d assume he’s going to turn down,” said one rival staffer. That’ll make it more difficult for other teams to place a trade value on him: The Royals could want to market him as more than a mere rental, while other teams figure he’ll go into free agency in the fall when he turns down his option. — Olney
What the Dodgers need at the deadline: The Dodgers’ offense has been a source of consternation lately, with Max Muncy out, Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman slumping, and key hitters tasked with lengthening out the lineup — Teoscar Hernandez, Tommy Edman and Michael Conforto — also struggling.
But the Dodgers’ focus ahead of the deadline is still clearly the bullpen, specifically a high-leverage, right-handed reliever. Dodgers relievers lead the major leagues in innings pitched by a wide margin. Blake Treinen will be back soon, and Michael Kopech and Brusdar Graterol are expected to join him later in the season. But the Dodgers need at least one other trusted arm late in games.
It’s a stunning development, considering they returned the core of a bullpen that played a big role in last year’s championship run, then added Tanner Scott and Kirby Yates in free agency. But Scott and Yates have had their struggles, and there are enough injury concerns with several others that it’s a need. — Alden Gonzalez
Which D-backs starter is most coveted? The Diamondbacks are getting as many calls — if not more — about Zac Gallen as they are for Merrill Kelly, even though the latter starting pitcher is having the better season. Teams interested in adding to their rotations still have more faith in the 29-year-old Gallen than the 36-year-old Kelly. — Rogers
Who are the White Sox looking to deal? Chicago’s Adrian Houser seems likely to move, as a second-tier starter who has performed well this season. The 32-year-old right-hander was released by the Rangers in May but has been very effective since joining the White Sox rotation, giving up only two homers in 57⅔ innings and generating an ERA+ of 226. Nobody is taking those numbers at face value, but evaluators do view him as a market option. The White Sox also have some relievers worth considering.
But it seems unlikely that Luis Robert Jr. — once projected as a centerpiece of this deadline — will be dealt, unless a team makes a big bet on a player who has either underperformed or been hurt this year. The White Sox could continue to wait on Robert’s talent to manifest and his trade value to be restored by picking up his $20 million option for next year, which is hardly out of the question for a team with little future payroll obligation. — Olney
Why Rockies infielder could be popular deadline option: Colorado’s Ryan McMahon is the consolation prize for teams that miss out on Eugenio Suarez — if he’s traded at all. The Cubs could have interest and would pair him with Matt Shaw as a lefty/righty combo at third base. — Rogers
Does San Diego have enough to offer to make a big deal? The Padres have multiple needs ahead of the trade deadline — a left fielder, a catcher, a back-end starter. How adequately they can address them remains to be seen. The upper levels of their farm system have thinned out in recent years, and their budget might be tight.
The Padres dipped under MLB’s luxury-tax threshold last year, resetting the penalties. But FanGraphs projects their competitive balance tax payroll to finish at $263 million this year, easily clearing the 2025 threshold and just barely putting them into the second tier, triggering a 12% surcharge.
Padres general manager A.J. Preller might have to get creative in order to address his needs. One way he can do that is by buying and selling simultaneously. The Padres have several high-profile players who can hit the market this offseason — Dylan Cease, Michael King, Robert Suarez, Luis Arraez — and a few others who can hit the open market after 2026. Don’t be surprised to see Preller leverage at least one of those players, and their salaries, to help fill multiple needs. — Gonzalez
Which Orioles could be on the move? Not surprisingly, Baltimore is perceived as a dealer and is expected by other teams to move center fielder Cedric Mullins, first baseman/designated hitter Ryan O’Hearn and some relievers. — Olney
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