Kuzul

It’s that time of year again. Now the teams out of contention put “For Sale” signs in their front yards, and the contenders look to buy spare parts for their October runs. Now teams decide whether they are buyers or sellers.

With a number of top-tier players on teams out of contention, there could be a flurry of moves as we near the July 31 trade deadline. As always, pitching is at a premium, and some of the best are on the market. There are some boppers that could be available as well.

Here are a look at some of the top trade targets leading up to the deadline at the end of this month and their potential destinations.

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Each offseason, owners and general managers of all 30 ball clubs in the Majors work tirelessly trying to put together a collection of players that will contend for the playoffs.

They trade, they sign, they draft and they evaluate talent in hopes that those players have what it takes to succeed at the professional level.

Only eight of those teams see their playoff aspirations realized, however.

The rest must take a step back and reevaluate the direction their franchise is taking.

For some, that point comes sooner than others.

The July 31 trade deadline, for many underachieving teams, is the point at which they decide to scrap their current formula and go in a new direction.

Here is a look at a number of teams that will be sellers during this season’s trading period.

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