What day is the 2017 MLB Trade Deadline?

The 2017 MLB Trade Deadline is rapidly approaching. What day is the trade deadline and what does the event mean for your favorite MLB team?

With it now being July in the 2017 MLB season, we are less than a month away from the always anticipated MLB Trade Deadline. It is a time of great wonder and speculation for all 30 big league clubs. Will a contender get the piece it needs to win the World Series? Could parting ways with a solid player on a bad team for a handful of prospects transform a losing organization into a winning one?

So when is the 2017 MLB Trade Deadline? As it is every season, the trade deadline falls on the last day of July: Tuesday, July 31 at 4:00 p.m. ET. This gives teams playing on the East Coast the opportunity to recalibrate their roster to help offset the moving pieces before the night’s game. The deadline also allows teams roughly two months to get familiar with the new players coming in.

What is important to know about the trade deadline is that July 31 is the last day that players can be dealt directly to other clubs without the use of the waiver wire. Players can still be traded a little while longer, but will first have to clear waivers. This prevents star players on bad teams from essentially be traded after the non-waiver period ends.

Nearly all teams will end up making at least one trade deadline deal. Teams that think they have a shot at reaching the postseason will try to bolster their roster. Clubs that have conceded to punting 2017 for the hopes of a better future may inquire about another organization’s top prospects.

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Overall, the trade deadline is a fun time that all teams can inevitably get excited about. Some trade deadlines are more active than others, but we should expect at least a few star players to switch teams before the end of the month.