In his latest insider piece, ESPN’s Buster Olney discusses some of the biggest needs for contending teams at the deadline.

  • The Angels will be looking for starting pitching, and could use infield prospect Jean Segura as a potential trade chip. The Angels have been linked to James Shields, Zack Greinke and Francisco Liriano, according to CBSSports.com’s Jon Heyman.
  • As Knobler has previously mentioned, the A’s continue to show interest in Blue Jays shortstop Yunel Escobar. 
  • The Pirates are looking for some help, but teams are asking for the Pirates best pitching prospects. The Pirates might be hesitant to part with Gerrit Cole or Jameson Taillon at the deadline.
  • The Indians could be buyers or sellers, according to Olney. If they buy, they’ll be looking for right-handed hitters. 
  • Baltimore will be looking at starters, but the Orioles might have to consider lesser options like Shaun Marcum. Heyman has linked the Orioles to Bartolo Colon and Francisco Liriano. They will also be looking at hitters. 
For more up-to-the-minute news and analysis on the latest rumors from bloggers Chris Cwik, Jack Moore and Navin Vaswani, follow @MLBRumorsCBS.