Trade Deadline Tracker

Juan Soto is now a Padre, and he's taking Josh Bell west with him.  While it seemed likely Soto would be traded, I'm not sure how many people had San Diego tagged as the destination.  Although, it's not a complete surprise, seeing as the Padres were one of the few teams that would actually be able to put together the package of prospects and established Major Leaguers the Nationals were looking for.

The Soto-Bell deal, coupled with shedding the contracts of Eric Hosmer and Luke Voit, obviously makes the San Diego Padres a much better team today than they were 24 hours ago.  Especially when you consider they also got Josh Hader!  It would be easy to call the Padres the winner of the trade deadline, but have they done enough to catch the Dodgers?  I'm not sure.  It should be enough to get them a wild card berth, though.

Not to be completely outdone, the Dodgers took Joey Gallo off the Yankees' hands.  I actually kinda like this move for them.  It's low-risk, high-reward.  Maybe Gallo finds what was missing in New York.  If he does, that's another weapon for that ridiculous Dodgers offense.  If he doesn't, he's a free agent, so they just don't re-sign him.

Speaking of the Yankees, they were busy, as we all knew they would be.  It started with the trade for Andrew Benintendi, an obvious upgrade in left field.  Then it was Frankie Montas, who slides right into the rotation, and Lou Trivino, a quality veteran reliever.  He's not the only bullpen addition, either.  They also got Scott Effross from the Cubs.  All while keeping their top prospects.

What I wasn't expecting was the Yankees' final trade deadline move, sending Jordan Montgomery to St. Louis for Harrison Bader.  (Fun fact about Harrison Bader, his number is retired by the Eastchester Little League, one of the organizations for which I umpire.)  Bader's on the injured list and won't be ready for a while, but he's under team control next season, too, so I think that move's more about 2023.

One of the reasons the Yankees got Montas is because the starter they really wanted, Luis Castillo, went to Seattle.  I give the Mariners credit.  They're going for it.  Getting arguably the best starter available at the deadline proves that.  They might end up in a similar situation as the Padres.  They probably won't catch Houston, but they've gotta be a favorite for a wild card.

Houston needed to improve in two areas and took care of both of them.  The Astros got Boston's Christian Vazquez, a clear upgrade over Martin Maldonado at catcher, and Orioles first baseman Trey Mancini.  They also addressed their excess of starting pitching by sending Jake Odorizzi to Atlanta for Will Smith, giving them an actual lefty reliever to face Rizzo and Benintendi should they meet the Yankees in the playoffs.

Before the trade deadline, it looked like the Yankees and Astros were on a collision course for the ALCS.  After the trade deadline, that looks even more likely.  They were already the two best teams in the American League, and they both got better.

Washington is a team that obviously did not get better.  The only remnants of the Nationals' championship team from just three years ago are Patrick Corbin and Stephen Strasburg (who hasn't been healthy since).  Of course, I'm not expecting the Nationals to be down long.  They likely stripped it down just so they can build it back up.  But, still, they're a shell of what they were not too long ago.

Another team that's thrown in the towel on 2022 is the Angels.  The fact that they were listening to offers about Shohei Ohtani tells you all you need to know.  And they did trade their two biggest pitching-only pieces, Noah Syndergaard and Raisel Iglesias.

First off, just let me say how weird it is that Noah Syndergaard is on the Phillies.  With him in that rotation alongside Nola and Wheeler now, the Phillies are suddenly in the mix for a playoff spot in the National League.  In fact, the NL East just got a whole lot more interesting.  Are the Phillies as good as either the Mets or the Braves?  Not even close!  Can they make life interesting and challenge for a wild card spot?  They sure can!

Last year, the Braves won the World Series because of the trades they made at the deadline.  I'm not sure this season's additions will be quite as impactful.  I do like bringing Odorizzi into that rotation, and I think Robbie Grossman is a perfect fit for them, but I'm not entirely sold on Iglesias.  Especially since they already have Kenley Jansen, so Iglesias will be a setup guy.  I can't say they're better than the Mets, who only made minor moves, but ones that filled their holes nicely.

There are also a few teams where I'm just flat out confused by what they did.  One is the Cubs, who held on to Willson Contreras, the one guy everybody assumed would be traded.  It's not like they kept him because they think they have a chance at the playoffs, either.  And it's highly doubtful they'll be able to re-sign him, so why not get somebody else's prospects in the deal?

I'm also confused by the Red Sox.  A few days ago, it looked like they were sellers who were shedding salary so that they can pay Rafael Devers in the offseason.  Then today they went and picked up Tommy Pham, who I'm not sure where they intend to play since they have Alex Verdugo in left, and Eric Hosmer, who was originally supposed to go to Washington in the Soto deal, but invoked his no-trade clause and ended up in Boston instead.  At least with Hosmer, he fills a position they actually need and this isn't like last year's Kyle Schwarber-at-first base experiment.

All this to be what figures, at best, a wild card team.  They're not better than the Yankees.  They're not better than the Astros.  They're not better than the Twins.  They might not even be better than the Blue Jays or Mariners.  Which is why I don't get the half-buy/half-sell thing the Red Sox did.

That's the craziest thing about this trade deadline.  Did a lot of teams get better?  Yes.  But, no matter how good other teams got, it didn't really change the pecking order.  The AL's still gonna come down to the Yankees and Astros, and the NL's still a battle between the Dodgers and Mets.  Although, as the Braves proved last year, a good trade deadline can make all the difference in October.