By Grant Brisbee, Stephen J. Nesbitt and Andy McCullough
The trade deadline is behind us.
Barring a team pulling a 2023 Angels and doing a late-August waiver dump and setting off another feeding frenzy, rosters are essentially set for the stretch run. Did your team do enough?
We’re here to help you sort that out with our annual three-tier rating system: winners, losers and snoozers. Winners are buyers or sellers who got better without getting fleeced. Losers overpaid, misfired or misread the market with their moves. Snoozers infuriated fans with inaction or an unwillingness to address needs.
Winners
Baltimore Orioles
This was a bit of a snooze, but we’ll round up. Baltimore got better. The rotation should benefit from the additions of Zach Eflin and Trevor Rogers. Seranthony Dominguez might get back to dominating late in games. Maybe Eloy Jimenez can play like it’s 2022. Yet the team that was best situated to make a blockbuster trade did not do so. Mike Elias dipped into his pool of prospects, particularly in the Rogers trade, but did not empty the farm. That was probably the wise choice. The Orioles are still well-situated for October. — Andy McCullough
The Orioles acquired Eloy Jimenez, and the White Sox got rid of his contract, and both qualify as winners. (Mark J. Rebilas / USA TODAY)
Chicago White Sox
We’ll get a better read on the White Sox’s decision to hold on to Garrett Crochet and Luis Robert Jr. this offseason if they restart trade talks. Given the returns for far more average players at this deadline, you’d have to imagine the White Sox were hearing some impressive offers — even if Crochet’s contract asks complicated matters. Maybe they could have gotten more for Michael Kopech, but the White Sox executed a proper fire sale for the second consecutive deadline. Some evaluators are still bullish on former Dodgers top prospect Miguel Vargas, who certainly will get more playing time in Chicago than he did in Los Angeles. The White Sox added a handful of other prospects and then, to cap it all off, finally found a taker for Eloy Jiménez’s contract. — Stephen J. Nesbitt
Detroit Tigers
While they held on to ace Tarik Skubal, as expected, the Tigers managed to make the last splash of the trade deadline, sending Jack Flaherty to the Dodgers at the 11th hour. The Tigers made a smart bet on Flaherty this offseason, and it won. Catcher Thayron Liranzo was recently ranked the Dodgers’ third-best prospect by Baseball America, and shortstop Trey Sweeney was ranked 28th. The Tigers also moved Carson Kelly, Mark Canha and Andrew Chafin for prospects. The Scott Harris-led club is headed in the right direction and should be better positioned to contend next season. – SN
Kansas City Royals
The Royals had a plan and stuck to it. Lucas Erceg and Hunter Harvey should be assets for a bullpen that needs more of those. Michael Lorenzen can fill multiple roles, whether as a starter or a swingman working multiple innings down the stretch. Paul DeJong can back up a couple positions on the infield and provides a little power, so that’s an easy add at a low cost. With Erceg under club control through the end of the decade, the Royals had to pony up to acquire him; Mason Barnett was ranked the Royals’ No. 6 prospect by The Athletic’s Keith Law, and Will Klein No. 16 by Baseball America. — SN
Los Angeles Angels
They got legitimate prospects for Carlos Estévez. Samuel Aldegheri and George Klassen weren’t ranked as top Phillies prospects before the season started, but they were on the rise and having strong seasons. It’s a package the Angels should have gotten back, considering Estévez was one of the better relievers traded at the deadline, and the Phillies’ need was acute enough to get them to agree to the deal, but it’s still impressive that the Angels did it. Not used to this.
They also traded Luis García, a pending free-agent reliever who’s also having a strong season, and they got four prospects back. Quality is better than quantity, but sometimes you have to respect the quantity.
So they weren’t snoozers. And they definitely weren’t losers. So what does that make the Angels? Feels like there’s another description, but I can’t put my finger on it. — Grant Brisbee
Los Angeles Dodgers
Just made it under the wire. They were going to be losers, just big ol’ dorks, for not making a substantial move. They’re one of the only teams that would be crushed to win a pennant but not the World Series. They have only one goal, and Tommy Edman and Amed Rosario weren’t going to push them over the top.
Jack Flaherty might, though. His command is better than ever, and he’s got his strikeout pitches working. The Dodgers’ rotation has been decimated by injuries, and Flaherty is one more buffer between a postseason rotation they can feel confident with and certain doom.
They gave up a top-five prospect in their system, but it’s a top-ranked farm. They had to do something, and they did. It’s not all gravy, as they probably needed an outfielder more impressive than Rosario or Kevin Kiermaier, but they checked off their primary need. They had to. — GB
Miami Marlins
Peter Bendix learned well from his colleagues in Tampa Bay. The new president of baseball ops made the most of his first trade deadline running the Marlins. He cleaned house. The Marlins did not appear to have much talent on the roster. Bendix made the most of it. Evaluators praised the returns from San Diego for reliever Tanner Scott and from Baltimore for starter Trevor Rogers. Agustin Ramirez headlined the return for sending Jazz Chisholm Jr. to the Yankees. Bendix wanted to infuse his farm system with new faces. He succeeded. Now it’ll be up to his player-development staff to get the most out of them. — AM
GO DEEPER
MLB Trade Grades: With Tanner Scott deal, Padres stock up while Marlins cash in
New York Yankees
The evaluation of this deadline depends on the performance of one man: Jazz Chisholm, Jr. Can he handle third base? Can he handle the spotlight? The Yankees made smaller deals to help their bullpen, but their biggest move involved the deal for Chisholm, a player who never quite lived up to his hype in Miami. The Yankees are betting that Chisholm will flourish under the pressure after a career playing for an after-thought franchise like the Marlins. If anything, his presence reduces the team’s dependence on struggling veteran infielder DJ LeMahieu. — AM
Oakland Athletics
Do I have to put them in the winners column? Technically, I can do what I want. They’re getting prospects, but to what end? So they can have a roster that’s getting paid in company scrip to spend at the company store in a couple years, while their owner saves pennies to leave a minor-league ballpark for a major-league ballpark that doesn’t have a shovel in the ground yet. Hopefully they’ll invest in the development of these prospects instead of assuming they’ll get good enough with a little water and sunlight.
But, fine, they’re strong prospects considering what they gave up, and they get bonus points for trading someone with as much team control as Erceg, which they didn’t have to do. I’m giving them a winners’ tag, but I’m doing so under duress. — GB
Pittsburgh Pirates
That was a close one! After coming down to the last hour without making any substantive changes to their lineup, the Pirates acquired both Bryan De La Cruz and Isiah Kiner-Falefa, after previously adding infield prospect Nick Yorke. If the goal was to upgrade without giving up much, the Pirates achieved that mission. It is only a minor upgrade, however. Kiner-Falefa is having a career year and coming off an injury; he’ll help in center field. De La Cruz has the same on-base issues most of the Pirates lineup has, just with more power than other outfield options. Losing Charles McAdoo, a rising outfield prospect, could come back to haunt the Pirates, but their primary mission is to contend while Paul Skenes, Mitch Keller and Jared Jones are all healthy and under club control. They did enough at the last minute to tip this trade deadline into the “win” column. — SN
Erick Fedde went to the Cardinals at a relatively decent cost. (Kamil Krzaczynski / USA TODAY)
St. Louis Cardinals
The Cardinals could have taken all of Tuesday off and still come away a winner. Their part in the eight-team trade that landed them starter Erick Fedde, outfielder Tommy Pham, a player to be named later (from the Dodgers) and cash was perfectly played to fill two pressing needs at a moderate cost. The Cards lost Tommy Edman and prospect Oliver Gonzalez in the deal. Fedde immediately plugs in as a mid-rotation starter in St. Louis and is under contract — and cheap! — again next season. Adding Pham allowed the Cardinals to flip Dylan Carlson for Rays reliever Shawn Armstrong. — SN
Seattle Mariners
They needed a spark. They got a spark. Randy Arozarena had a miserable start to the season, but he’s been hot lately, and he was one of the few (only?) players traded at the deadline who might actually get his new teammates fired up. When you say, “We got Carson Kelly,” the response is something like, “Oh, cool.” When you get Arozarena, the responses are “WE GOT AROZARENA?” with people coming from all corners of the dugout to make sure that’s what they heard.
In Dipotonian fashion, the Mariners also made a whole mess of other moves, including old friend JT Chargois and the eternally helpful Justin Turner. But none of it would have mattered without a spark and an offensive upgrade. Here you go. — GB
Tampa Bay Rays
Tampa Bay earned raves from rival evaluators for a sell-off that sent Randy Arozarena, Jason Adam, Zach Eflin, Isaac Paredes and others. The Rays recognized this market favored the sellers and tried to take advantage. The deal for Paredes left some folks scratching their heads, but the others brought in intriguing, high-upside players like former Padres first-rounder Dylan Lesko, outfielder Aidan Smith and pitcher Brody Hopkins. In the process, the team restocked its player-development pipeline and likely acquired a cavalcade of players who might thrive on the big-league roster down the road. (And, further down the road, get dealt away for prospects.) This is how Tampa Bay stays relevant and competitive despite a lack of spending. — AM
GO DEEPER
Rosenthal: The Rays are running a clinic on how to sell at the trade deadline
Losers
Atlanta Braves
Overcome by injuries, the Braves have started to run out of steam. A sizable advantage in the wild-card race has shrunk. The once-fearsome offense looks much tamer these days. So the team opted to reunite with Jorge Soler and Luke Jackson, part of the midsummer infusion of talent that buoyed the club to a World Series in 2021. It’s a charming idea. But now Soler is under contract for two more seasons. He has not played the field this season. Neither has the team’s current designated hitter, Marcell Ozuna. Soler’s value tends to diminish when he plays the outfield. The Braves were willing to risk it. We’ll see how it goes. — AM
Lane Thomas wasn’t a bad pickup, but was he enough for an offensively-challenged team with World Series aspirations? (Daniel Kucin Jr. / USA TODAY)
Cleveland Guardians
On the one hand, the Guardians addressed two needs their fans and national media blabbermouths (like this guy) were yelling about: starter and outfielder. And yet, they were in position to swing much bigger. Cleveland has the best record in the AL but didn’t trade like top dogs. Lane Thomas is a good hitter, though his pop has disappeared this season, and will fit nicely in the Guardians outfield this season and next. Landing on Alex Cobb as the answer for a hobbled rotation? Didn’t expect that. Cobb has been a reliable sub-4 ERA starter when healthy, but he hasn’t pitched yet this season after having offseason hip surgery. The price for starting pitching is high. But Cleveland may regret not paying up for Jack Flaherty or Erick Fedde. — SN
Houston Astros
Picture this: It’s Game 1 of the ALCS. The Astros went the distance in the ALDS just to get there, and they had to use Framber Valdez or Ronel Blanco in relief just to get there, so the rotation is a little jumbled. Now starting Game 1, with the pennant on the line, is Yusei Kikuchi.
Does this fit? Are Astros fans feeling OK about this? Honestly, they might in a couple months. Kikuchi has always been a bat-misser, and he’s made every start this year. The Astros have a knack for unlocking effectiveness from their pitching additions.
But we’re not grading these deals based on hypothetical scenarios from the future. They gave up a lot to get a starter who hasn’t prevented runs this year, and they didn’t get a first baseman. Only one place to put ‘em. — GB
Minnesota Twins
It was clear the Twins weren’t planning to make a splash, in large part because adding salary at this stage seems to be out of the question. But that doesn’t make it much easier to stomach a sit-pat deadline while the Royals and Guardians got stronger. Trevor Richards should be useful for the Twins bullpen. Beyond that? For a team that has had awful injury luck, the Twins are counting on a lot of things to go right with this roster for them to make a serious postseason push. They snoozed and lost. — SN
San Diego Padres
I like to picture A.J. Preller under a homemade Cerebro machine during the deadline, concentrating so hard that he’s feeling physical pain. Must … get … more … relievers.
He’s at least saying “Prospects are fake, get them out of my face,” because a thin system just got a lot thinner. Tanner Scott and Jason Adam have been strong relievers for a couple of seasons, and they’re under team control, but this still isn’t the 2015 Royals, where you have to score in the first five innings. It’s a better bullpen, but the rotation was a bigger concern, and Martín Pérez won’t help much.
The Padres were a slightly above-average offensive team (fifth in the NL in OPS+) and an average pitching team (ninth in the NL in ERA+), and now they’re that same team, with a moderately improved bullpen. Seems like a lot of work to get there. — GB
Toronto Blue Jays
Toronto did quite well in their one major trade, turning a couple months of Yusei Kikuchi into three legitimate prospects. If anything, the one-sided nature of the Kikuchi deal underscored why Toronto could have been more aggressive in shopping players besides its pending free agents. This was a seller’s market. The Rays pounced and refurbished their farm system. The Jays opted to bet on the team’s core bouncing back from this season’s disappointment. It might work. But this deadline did little to change this franchise’s long-term outlook. — AM
Snoozers
Arizona Diamondbacks
The Diamondbacks didn’t think they needed a first baseman, but Christian Walker tweaked the ol’ oblique on Monday, and suddenly there was an immediate need. Josh Bell has been the belle of the deadline ball before, and the Diamondbacks didn’t give up much at all, so it’s not a big deal if he doesn’t rediscover his swing.
They also got A.J. Puk, whose talent has never been in question, but whose health and effectiveness often is. They had to give up a 21-year-old who’s raked in the upper minors this season (Deyvison De Los Santos), but they have a strong system and get Puk for two more years.
Still, this is my first team (because of the alphabet), and there’s no other description than “snoozer.” You’ll see a lot of teams in this category. Not trying to be rude. — GB
Boston Red Sox
Boston needed relievers and so they acquired a bunch: Luis Garcia, Lucas Sims and Quinn Priester. They added a backup catcher in Danny Jansen. These moves could stabilize the club as it tries to stay afloat in the American League wild-card picture. The team did little to alter its long-range projections. Perfectly fine decision. Not exciting. So it goes. — AM
The Cubs acquired one of the top hitters available in Isaac Paredes … and still had a strangely underwhelming deadline. (Vincent Carchietta / USA TODAY)
Chicago Cubs
True to Jed Hoyer’s word, the Cubs operated with 2025 in mind. They threaded the needle — Nate Pearson replaces Mark Leiter Jr., Isaac Paredes replaces Christopher Morel — and emerged looking much the same for now and for the future. Jameson Taillon, Cody Bellinger, Ian Happ and Hector Neris are all still Cubbies. The approach makes sense, given that Hoyer needs to start winning sooner rather than later, but it does come as something of a surprise that a last-place team wasn’t more active in a seller’s market. All in all, it’s a snooze for me. — SN
Cincinnati Reds
The Reds jumped the market to trade for Giants outfielder Austin Slater in early July. Then, in one of the last moves before the trade deadlines, they shipped Slater on to Baltimore. How about that! Writers love bookends. I’m going on about this because the Reds didn’t do anything. They traded reliever Lucas Sims, the longest-tenured active Red, and picked up the recently DFA’d Ty France. They remain in the middle of the NL Central pack. They can make a run, but are not on that track. This week didn’t change that. — SN
Colorado Rockies
In order to be a winner or a loser at the deadline, you have to trade players other people might care about. In order to trade players other people might care about, you need to employ players other people might care about. The Rockies do have those, from Ezequiel Tovar to Ryan McMahon, but they did not trade any of them.
They did trade a closer (Jalen Beeks) who doesn’t strike anyone out and a middle reliever who does, but has trouble getting people out (Nick Mears). I’ll guess that either the Brewers and Pirates unlock something from one of those pitchers, but it’s hard to turn your nose up on getting young players for fungible relievers.
Doesn’t mean they aren’t snoozers, though. All of these teams are. None of them are free from snooze. — GB
Milwaukee Brewers
It’s hard to feel great about the Brewers’ collection of moves. Aaron Civale and Frankie Montas have had wonderful stretches in the past, but neither is pitching like an impact addition in 2024. Maybe one of them will get hot. But it feels like the Brewers mostly patched holes in the rotation rather than truly leveling up anywhere on the diamond. Upgrades aren’t always necessary to win the NL Central, though. It doesn’t feel like a win or a loss. I guess it’s just a bit boring. — SN
New York Mets
As he did during his first winter running the Mets, David Stearns avoided big swings. He didn’t trade away Pete Alonso, in part because that possibility was likely foreclosed upon weeks ago. He didn’t flip any of the big-time prospects acquired in last year’s sale. He added a solid outfielder (Jesse Winker), a fifth starter (Paul Blackburn) and a few decent relievers. He didn’t sacrifice much. The Mets got better. It wasn’t riveting. But if the Mets keep bashing home runs into October, one doubts their fans will care. — AM
Philadelphia Phillies
Maybe this is a harsh assessment. The Phillies did not really need to do much. The team has been baseball’s best for a month. Dave Dombrowski used this deadline to improve the bullpen and the outfield. He paid a hefty price for Angels reliever Carlos Estévez and made a nifty swap with Baltimore for outfielder Austin Hays. Good deals. Given the opportunity in front of the Phillies this year, he could have done more. But that might have been unnecessary. The club looks geared up for another deep postseason run despite a recent losing stretch. — AM
San Francisco Giants
The Giants’ biggest acquisition at the deadline? That’s right, financial flexibility and internal improvements. Not a bad thing. They opened their DH spot for Marco Luciano, and they opened up payroll for someone who would fit the roster better than Jorge Soler would have. They have a five-man rotation they’re comfortable with, so they traded a starter (who hadn’t thrown a pitch this season) away for a teenage raffle ticket.
They also traded away a young pitcher to get help, although Mark Canha has crossed over from “pretty good” to “won’t kill you” on the usefulness spectrum. He’ll play first against left-handers, a sign that Wilmer Flores’ knee injury might be worse than expected (or that the Giants will move on).
Still, they had the best starting pitcher available, at least in Theory Land, and there was a chance they were going to get a top-100 prospect. They did not. — GB
Texas Rangers
Carson Kelly is an above-average catcher, offensively speaking. His career 85 OPS+ doesn’t seem like much, but it’s perfectly fine, and he can give you some power. The defense is there. Solid backup.
Andrew Chafin is aesthetically pleasing, as far as late-inning relievers go, and he’s been pretty good for a long time now.
Can’t tell me it was an exciting deadline for anyone involved. Unless they’re flying first class to Dallas on the organization’s dime. I’d get really excited if someone did that for me, so let’s have some perspective here. — GB
Washington Nationals
Washington got ahead of the pack a couple weeks ago by turning reliever Hunter Harvey into the No. 39 pick in this year’s draft. Mike Rizzo benefited from jumping the market with Harvey. At the deadline, he benefited from holding firm in his belief that Lane Thomas was worth a sizable package. Cleveland obliged, in a deal that included, as Keith Law described it, “three high-risk, high-reward prospects.” Good job, good process, good results. Even so: Yawn. — AM
(Top Photo of Flaherty: Chris Coduto / Getty Images)
