Winners & Losers Of MLB Trade Deadline

In a 60-game season in which 16 teams make the MLB playoffs, nobody knew what to expect at the trade deadline Monday afternoon.

Many thought that it would be quieter than usual, with teams afraid to pull the trigger on deals due to the uncertainty of how the rest of the season will play out.

Quite the contrary, actually.

The trade deadline was action-packed, with myriad moves being made all over the league, including by unlikely buyers looking to capitalize on either ending postseason droughts or being a legitimate threat once they're there.

After a busy day, let's break down the winners and losers as the trade deadline came and went.

Winners

San Diego Padres

The Padres were perhaps the most active team at the deadline, swinging a flurry of moves as general manager A.J. Preller seems determined to take advantage of the 16-team playoff. They also landed perhaps the most prized possession on the trade market, acquiring right-hander Mike Clevinger from the Indians to bolster their rotation.

In addition to Clevinger, the Padres also replaced Kirby Yates with Trevor Rosenthal in the bullpen, traded for a lefty power bat in Mitch Moreland and upgraded at catcher in Aaron Nola. The Dodgers may be the kings of the NL West, but the Padres are determined to compete with them.

The Mariners have some bright upcoming talent heading their way in the future, and they added to that at the trade deadline. Seattle scored San Diego's fifth-ranked prospect in 22-year-old Taylor Trammell, giving them eight of MLB Pipeline’s top 100 prospects, which also includes fellow outfielders Jarred Kelenic and Josh Rodriguez. That doesn’t even include Kyle Lewis, who could win AL Rookie of the Year this season.

If Justus Sheffield and Justin Dunn can develop into frontline starters, the Mariners have a solid foundation to build a future contender.

Neither the Yankees nor Rays made any deadline moves, but the team chasing those two made a whole bunch.

The Blue Jays made one of the early moves of the deadline in dealing for starter Taijuan Walker from the Mariners and added to that by trading for starters Robbie Ray and Ross Stripling on Monday as well as infielder Jonathan Villar.

Ray has been a disaster with a 7.84 ERA in seven starts this season, but Toronto’s rotation has been decimated by injuries and the club is taking a chance on the southpaw returning to form. The Blue Jays are also taking a chance on Stripling, who has struggled a bit as well this year but who has been pretty consistent throughout his career. If he returns to form, that would give Toronto the necessary rotation depth to compete with the others in the AL East.

Villar gives the Blue Jays some infield depth, which should help fill the gap while they wait for Bo Bichette to return from the injured list. The Blue Jays head into the final month of the season feeling much better about their chances than they did before.

The Red Sox were clear sellers ahead of the deadline and while they didn't make any blockbuster moves, they did what they were supposed to do and shipped off veterans such as Brandon Workman, Heath Hembree, Moreland and Kevin Pillar to help with their rebuild. The Moreland trade netted two prospects from the Padres who now rank as top-20 prospects in the Red Sox's farm system.

Losers

For the second consecutive trade deadline, general manager Brian Cashman and the Yankees stood pat and watched several players they were linked to dealt elsewhere. Cashman has been conservative about parting ways with talented players such as Clint Frazier and Deivi Garcia, and he could very well be justified if he felt that price was just too high.

But the Yankees have been reeling of late. The lineup is depleted, and the bullpen is underperforming. An extra arm or even a depth piece would've been a big boost to the team. Instead, the Yankees are rolling the dice with what they have and praying they'll be healthy by October. They used the same approach last year and they were ousted by the Astros in the AL CS – after Houston made a deadline move for right-hander Zack Greinke. We’ll see if it's any different this year.

Injuries to Cole Hamels and Mike Soroka – who's out for the rest of the season – have made pitching a priority for the Braves. They traded for Tommy Milone, who got shelled in his Braves debut to the tune of seven runs in 2 1/3 innings, and did nothing else.

The Braves may have a three-game lead in the NL East, but it's far from safe. And with the moves made by the Padres plus the other NL competition with the Cubs and Dodgers, the Braves are looking like a weak link among the division leaders.

The Indians certainly got quantity in their return on dealing Clevinger, but it didn't come without plenty of risk. Clevinger was undoubtedly the team’s No. 2 pitcher behind Shane Bieber, but Cleveland was unable to get any of San Diego’s top four prospects out of the deal.

The Indians did, however, manage to get the Padres’ No. 7, 9 and 11 prospects, so there's some upside there. Cal Quantrill could be a nice addition to the Indians’ bullpen, and Josh Naylor is a young outfielder who's playing well and fills an urgent need for the club. Still, it feels like the Indians came up a bit short in dealing a frontline starter as a contender in this deal.

The White Sox are one of the biggest surprises as they're tied for the AL Central lead with the Indians, but they didn’t make any moves. Whether their pitching is enough to get them through the final month of the season is still up for debate. Not adding an arm to the rotation or bullpen could prove costly for the White Sox.

Jury’s out

The Cubs’ biggest question mark was their bullpen, and they added two left-handed arms in trades for Josh Osich from the Red Sox and Andrew Chafin from the Diamondbacks. While both have struggled this season, Chafin has only pitched 6 2/3 innings. So it's a small sample size, and his career numbers against lefties have been strong – holding them to a .230 batting average and .616 OPS.

Chicago also added outfielder Cameron Maybin in a trade with the Tigers. Maybin has proved to be an excellent depth piece on contenders the last few seasons with the Yankees and Astros.

The Oakland A’s couldn't stand pat at this deadline and particularly needed to do something with their starting rotation. Mike Minor isn't a game-changing addition by any means. He's struggling this season and certainly comes with some risk, but the A’s at least took a chance on him and snagged him at a cost-efficient price.

The A’s also dealt for Tommy La Stella a who could give them an offensive boost at second base, but dealing 24-year-old infield prospect Franklin Barreto for one month of La Stella may be worth second-guessing.

The Mets made a few last-minute deals that netted them infielder Todd Frazier and catcher Robinson Chirinos from the Texas Rangers and relief pitcher Miguel Castro from the Orioles. The Mets bullpen is a disaster with a struggling Edwin Diaz – who the team refused to trade – and Castro could fit into a reliable late-inning guy for them.

Frazier is back in Queens and figures to fill in for an injured J.D. Davis. Chirinos has struggled mightily with an anemic .119/.224/.143 slash line and figures to be a backup to Wilson Ramos. These were rather quiet moves for a team that's on the outside looking in at a playoff spot.

The Phillies made an early trade with the Red Sox for Hembree and Workman and added some more depth to the bullpen in a deal for David Phelps from the Milwaukee Brewers on Monday. The question is whether that's enough and if they made the right decision to buy, especially with star catcher J.T. Realmuto’s free agency hanging over them.

The Marlins made one of the more shocking deals of the day by trading for outfielder Starling Marte from the Arizona Diamondbacks and sending them pitchers Caleb Smith and Humberto Mejia. What made that even more peculiar is that they traded away Villar to the Blue Jays. The Marlins are certainly going for it with the Marte deal, but the Villar trade sends mix signals and led to a hard read on what they accomplished.

The Twins stood pat at the trade deadline, a somewhat questionable decision considering they're in third place in the AL Central. The team could have certainly added some pitching, and injuries have dented their lineup, but if Mitch Garver and Josh Donaldson can return healthy, the lineup shouldn’t be too much of a concern.

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