Michael Shapiro , SI.com : "Bumgarner has justified his lofty trade value of late as the Giants mull offers for the former World Series MVP. A few first-half outings indicated a possible dip in performance for the 29-year-old lefty, with the most disappointing start coming in a ten-hit, six-run loss to the Dodgers on June 20. Bumgarner has been cruising since. MadBum sports a 1.80 ERA in his last four starts, with just four earned runs and 28 strikeouts in 20 innings. Opponents are slugging just .387 against Bumgarner since June 25. His 9.33 K/9 is his best mark since 2016. After a pair of injury-plagued seasons, Bumgarner appears ready for a September pennant race."

Jeff Passan, Yahoo! Sports: "Even a week ago the prospect of Felipe Vazquez leaving the Pirates wasn't all that great. It still might not be, even as the Pirates stumble through July. As Buster Olney, there are good and bad reasons for the Pirates to deal Vazquez. The good, of course, is the enormous return they'd receive for him. Vazquez has been exceptionally consistent as the Pirates' closer the past three seasons, sits 98 mph with his fastball, has a legitimate four-pitch mix, is death on right-handed hitters (and historically the same on lefties) and agreed to one of the most team-friendly contracts in baseball last year. He'll make only $5.25 million next year, $7.25 million in 2021 and has a pair of club options at $10 million apiece that can be exercised one at a time. The Pirates could look at the NL Central landscape, see the Cubs' window closing, the Brewers and Cardinals stagnating and the Reds still with holes, and reasonably believe they could contend for division titles over the course of that deal. They also could say that while acknowledging that a one-inning relief pitcher who provides massive return is baseball's version of a gift horse."