While trade deadline talk generally focuses on marquee talent -- the players every team covets -- there are only so many players like that to go around. There's one Jose Quintana, not a whole inventory on the shelves in which anybody can simply buy and bring home their very own Jose Quintana.
Some teams simply don't have the prospects to pry loose a player of that talent level, and prospects are the global currency of the trade deadline.
So for many teams, the deadline will be less about splashing cash and more about cutting coupons and finding those low-cost opportunities, players who might come cheaply because there's one or more red flags which make said pickup a riskier move.
Below are my favorite buy-low candidates, including their current and rest-of-season ZiPS-projected OPS/ERA. I'll try not to cheat and include players such as Josh Donaldson or Manny Machado, who, despite having weaker-than-typical seasons, aren't reasonably available at bargain prices. At least, I'll try not to cheat too much.
Hunter Pence, San Francisco Giants
2017 OPS: .634
Projected rest-of-season OPS: .737