The most popular reaction among MLB fans once the trade deadline passed was that the Los Angeles Dodgers are unbeatable. While sure, the Dodgers did get even better after acquiring Tarik Skubal, it feels like that's completely out of touch with reality right now.
The Dodgers should be seen as clear favorites to win a third straight World Series title without question, but how often do the favorites actually win it all? In fact, L.A. was on the brink of elimination in both 2024 and 2025, and they could've easily been sent home had one or two things broken differently. The idea of the Dodgers being unbeatable is ridiculous, but these overreactions below have a grain of truth in them.
The Cubs are the Dodgers' biggest threat in the NL playoffs
For much of the season, it's felt like the Dodgers have been heavily favored to represent the National League in the World Series, with the Milwaukee Brewers and the Atlanta Braves representing their biggest threats. Obviously, after acquiring Skubal, nothing has changed in regard to who's on top ± but what if I told you the Chicago Cubs are Los Angeles' biggest threats?
The timing of this take is convenient after Chicago just swept Los Angeles, but I'd have said this anyway. The Cubs are already one of MLB's best defensive teams and just added Kevin Gausman and Clay Holmes, two rock-solid starters, to a rotation that suddenly is deep and effective even with pitchers still out with injuries. They also added reliever Ryan Zeferjahn, giving them a legitimate swing-and-miss arm to plug into the back end of their bullpen. They even added Tyrone Taylor, who makes their position player group deeper and punishes left-handed pitching.
If Alex Bregman can play like Alex Bregman (we're seeing some signs lately) and if Pete Crow-Armstrong continues to perform like an MVP, why can't the Cubs be scary good? Would I pick them to beat the Dodgers in October? No, but I'd probably choose them to beat any other team in the NL.
Luis Arraez isn't good enough to single-handedly get the Phillies over the hump
The Philadelphia Phillies made an aggressive trade to acquire Luis Arraez from the San Francisco Giants in a move that's already paid dividends. It's easy to see how plugging a contact machine like Arraez into the lineup behind the likes of Trea Turner, Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper can work in October. With that being said, this addition only made the team worse defensively and did not fill the other clear holes on this roster.
The Phillies, for whatever reason, did not add a single starting pitcher despite woes at the back of the rotation that have been prevalent all year. They did add to their bullpen, but it's not like Caleb Kilian and Brooks Raley are proven high-leverage arms in October.
Arraez makes them better, but their lineup is still top-heavy, their bullpen has its share of question marks and their rotation feels as shallow as ever. This is a clear playoff team, but it'd be tough to pick the Phillies to win a series against the NL's elite.
A.J. Preller's deadline moves make the Padres a true sleeper in the NL
A.J. Preller did what A.J. Preller always does: aggressively buy. The packages he gave up to acquire Robbie Ray and Casey Mize might hurt down the road, especially since the San Diego Padres' farm system was already lackluster, but who cares? The window for the Padres to win is right now, and Preller's deadline additions should help a ton.
If there's one thing this team needed, it was starting pitching. Preller landed two of the best rentals available in Casey Mize and Robbie Ray. Mize's San Diego debut was far from stellar, but he was in the midst of an All-Star-caliber campaign in Detroit prior to the deal, and Ray is a battle-tested mid-rotation arm. A rotation featuring Mize, Ray, Michael King and one of Joe Musgrove or Nick Pivetta isn't that bad, and when considering how good San Diego's bullpen is, suddenly their pitching stacks up against almost everybody's.
There are some offensive questions with this team for sure, but guys like Manny Machado, Jackson Merrill and Fernando Tatis Jr. have been performing as expected for a while now after poor starts to their seasons. Again, I wouldn't pick this team to beat the Dodgers, but making the playoffs shouldn't be an issue, and I wouldn't be surprised to see them make things interesting in October.
The Tigers should not be discounted in the AL playoff race, even without Tarik Skubal
Trading Tarik Skubal was seen as a death blow to the Detroit Tigers' postseason chances in 2026, and understandably so, but was it actually? The Tigers have gone 34-21 since falling to a season-worst 16 games under .500 on May 31, pulling to within three games of the .500 mark as of this writing. Skubal helped, obviously, but he only pitches every fifth day.
The Tigers are now only 1.0 game back of a Wild Card spot, and 3.5 games back of the AL Central lead after an impressive series win in Seattle. Even with the team's struggles without Skubal, their +80 run differential is just one run shy of the Yankees for the best in the American League. They kept Gleyber Torres and Kenley Jansen, players on expiring contracts, expecting them to help push for a playoff spot.
It's fair to wonder whether the Tigers have the talent necessary to do much of anything once the playoffs begin, but the idea of them getting there shouldn't be discounted. We've seen Detroit make an unlikely run to the playoffs before.
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