Nearly a week has passed since the MLB trade deadline, and early results aren't quite what the majority of fans expected. Many thought the Los Angeles Dodgers were runaway winners, and understandably so — but even with Tarik Skubal pitching well in his team debut, they've won a total of one game since that blockbuster deal. They're obviously still World Series favorites, but has their deadline really aged well, given the other holes they ignored?
I'm not so sure, but the Chicago Cubs and the St. Louis Cardinals are among the teams that have seen early dividends from their deadlines. Let's dive in.
Chicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs were seen as big deadline winners, acquiring Kevin Gausman, Clay Holmes, Tyrone Taylor and Ryan Zeferjahn in an effort to win now in exchange for mostly prospects. They've won five of six games since, with a revamped pitching staff already paying dividends.
Gausman was dominant in his Cubs debut, allowing two runs on four hits in seven dazzling innings in Kansas City. Holmes wasn't as sharp in his first start with the team, but he was also coming off a nearly three-month stint on the IL. Taylor has already made an impact defensively, while Zeferjahn has two holds in two appearances and has the stuff of being a late-inning weapon for Chicago.
I wouldn't pick the Cubs to beat the Dodgers in a postseason series, but they might be the second-best team in the National League at this point, and it's thanks largely to their deadline.
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals went the other way, opting to sell despite technically being in the Wild Card race. Despite pulling the plug, though, it feels like they threaded the needle nicely, trading some veteran talent that won't be part of the team's future plans for prospects while holding onto guys like Alec Burleson and Ivan Herrera who could very well be on the next great Cardinals team.
The results have been quite good. The prospects they got for Dustin May and JoJo Romero (Alexander Frias and Josiah Ragsdale) have hit the ground running in St. Louis, and Burleson had a three-homer game at Yankee Stadium. The Cardinals even won a series in the Bronx and have gone 3-2 since the deadline. They probably won't make the playoffs, but they are better positioned to win in the not-too-distant future without bottoming out entirely this season.
Milwaukee Brewers
Did the Milwaukee Brewers give up too much to acquire May and Romero? I believe they did. Did the Brewers make a mistake not doing whatever they could to acquire Skubal? That can be debated. What can't be debated, though, is that the May pickup already looks like a good one.
The right-hander, who has always had tantalizing stuff, delivered six innings of two-run ball against the Pirates in his Brewers debut. That'll play! May certainly has the stuff to start in the postseason for Milwaukee, and if there's a team that can get the most out of him, it's probably this one. You can debate whether they gave up too much for May or if they should've done more elsewhere, but the Brewers, owners of the best record in the sport, got better. That's a good thing.
Detroit Tigers
The Detroit Tigers made the somewhat controversial decision to trade Skubal (and Casey Mize) in a year in which they were still alive in the postseason race. As unfortunate as those decisions were in the eyes of many Tigers fans, it's looking like Scott Harris made the right choice.
First and foremost, the Tigers nailed the return for both of those pitchers, giving them a good chance to compete into the future. Second, Detrot's hopes are still very much alive this season: They've won three of their first five games since the deadline, outscoring the opposition 31-9 in those contests, and sit just 2.0 games back of the third Wild Card spot and 3.5 games back of the AL Central lead. They also have the American League's best run differential overall. Skubal and Mize helped in that regard, obviously, but the rest of this team is pretty good, too.
Making the playoffs while trading your two best starting pitchers sounds like a pipe dream, but it's a very realistic outcome given how well this team has played for a while — and how weak the AL is as a whole.
New York Mets
The same cannot be said about the New York Mets, who sold at the deadline and have virtually no realistic shot at a postseason berth. With that being said, the Mets have won five of their first six games since, their bullpen deals having opened up spots for intriguing options who can potentially help in the future like Nathan Lavender, Daniel Duarte and Jefry Yan. And most importantly, the prospects they received in return have played incredibly well.
The new Mets' No. 1 prospect, Jefferson Rojas (acquired from the Cubs in the deal for Holmes and Taylor trade), just had a three-hit, three-RBI game. Emilien Pitre (acquired for Freddy Peralta) has gone 6-for-15, while another player in that deal, Aidan Smith, has homered in four of his last five games. Even Billy Amick (acquired for A.J. Minter) has five home runs in seven games in the Mets organization. I can go on, too.
Not all of these prospects are going to hit for New York, but there's a lot more promise on the farm now than there was a week ago. That, combined with the big-league team somehow playing better, has the Mets in a pretty darn good spot.
Tampa Bay Rays
The Tampa Bay Rays were unable to land Skubal, but they did make several win-now moves ayway. The one that generated the most headlines, their Freddy Peralta acquisition, doesn't look great after his rough first outing with the team, but the Rays have still won five in a row, and two of their other deals have a lot to do with that.
Liam Hicks gives Tampa a much-needed offensive upgrade behind the plate, and he's gone 3-for-12 with a home run and three walks while reaching base in six of his first 15 plate appearances. Tyler Wells has pitched 3.1 scoreless innings across two appearances out of the bullpen, recording a hold in his team debut and pitching two shutout innings three days later.
The Rays didn't make splashy moves, but they made what might've already been the best team in the American League much better. The results have made that abundantly clear right away.
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