Regrading each MLB contender's trade deadline

The MLB trade deadline is the last chance for contending teams to patch remaining holes on their rosters. Trading away prospect capital for a small short-term gain is never fun, but if the deadline moves result in a World Series win, who cares?

Just last season, we saw the Los Angeles Dodgers acquire Tommy Edman, Michael Kopech and Jack Flaherty. All three of these individuals played instrumental roles in their run to the World Series. Edman even won the NLCS MVP award. They gave up some intriguing talent, but not a single Dodgers fan cares at the end of the day, knowing they won the World Series because of it.

The goal of each contender is the same this time of year, but some teams wind up doing a better job than others. By using the benefit of hindsight, let's regrade each MLB contender's trade deadline.

MLB contender trade deadline regrades

1. Regrading each MLB contender's trade deadline

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Regrading each MLB contender's trade deadline

Toronto Blue Jays

The Toronto Blue Jays exceeded expectations and entered the trade deadline sitting in first place in the AL East. Fans wanted Ross Atkins and Co. to go all-in, and that's exactly what ended up happening.

The blockbuster trade made by Atkins landed Toronto Shane Bieber from the Cleveland Guardians. I thought it was incredibly risky to trade for a starter coming off Tommy John Surgery, but also saw the immense upside that Bieber, one of the best pitchers in the American League when healthy, brought. Giving up a prospect like Khal Stephen for a rental hurt, but that's what you do when you're all-in. Bieber has looked rock-solid in four of his five starts and should form an electric starting pitcher duo alongside Kevin Gausman in October.

Where the Jays appear to have gone wrong in hindsight, though, is in their bullpen. Seranthony Dominguez has been pretty much as advertised, but the same cannot be said about the biggest bullpen addition made, Louis Varland, who has a 6.05 ERA in 20 appearances with the Jays. The bullpen has been the team's biggest Achilles heel since the All-Star break, and Varland is a huge reason why.

I will say he hasn't allowed a run in three of his last four outings, so perhaps he's turned a corner. Blue Jays fans can only hope that's the case. I thought Toronto was a deadline winner in the immediate aftermath, but hindsight suggests that isn't exactly the case, thanks largely to Varland.

Blue Jays deadline regrade: B-

Detroit Tigers

The Detroit Tigers have been one of the best teams in the majors all season long, so fans were hoping Scott Harris would be aggressive at the trade deadline to improve the team as much as he possibly could. It's safe to say that did not happen.

The Tigers went pitcher-heavy, and understandably so, but how many of these pitchers have really made an impact? Chris Paddack made six starts with the Tigers before being moved to the bullpen. Paul Sewald has been on the IL since Detroit acquired him, and was actually just added to the roster as of this writing. Charlie Morton has a 5.92 ERA in eight starts with Detroit. Codi Heuer was sent down to Triple-A after just three appearances.

The only two winners here are Rafael Montero and Kyle Finnegan, two relievers that I, admittedly, was low on. Montero has pitched pretty well in middle relief, although his 4.35 FIP is nearly a full run higher than his 3.44 ERA with Detroit. Finnegan had been arguably the best reliever picked up at the deadline, not allowing a single run in 14.1 innings with the Tigers before suffering a groin strain. He had recorded four saves and three wins prior to the injury. Hopefully, he's fine for the playoffs, because the Tigers desperately need him late in games.

Other than those two relievers, though, things are pretty bleak. The bullpen is better, but the rotation really isn't. The Tigers desperately needed a starter to place behind Tarik Skubal in their postseason rotation, and Morton just isn't that guy at age 41. Finnegan has been a huge win, but the rest of the deadline leaves a lot to be desired.

Tigers deadline regrade: C-

Houston Astros

The Houston Astros are hoping to do whatever they can to extend their dynasty and wound up making perhaps the most surprising move at the trade deadline to bolster their World Series odds.

He did, in fact, return home. The Astros re-acquired Carlos Correa from the rebuilding Minnesota Twins essentially for nothing. All they had to do was agree to take on most of his contract. Touching homecoming aside, I was not a huge fan of this move because I thought Correa had made it clear in Minnesota this season that his career was on the downswing. Well, he's hitting .295 with a .794 OPS since the trade, proving to be a perfect fit as the third baseman with Isaac Paredes out for the year.

In addition to Correa, the Astros bolstered their infield depth by acquiring Ramon Urias and filled two gaping holes by trading for Jesus Sanchez, a left-handed-hitting outfielder. Neither Urias nor Sanchez has done much in Houston, but I wouldn't be surprised to see either one of these guys come up with a big hit in the postseason.

Where I believe Houston really went wrong was not addressing their pitching staff at all. They couldn't have predicted the Josh Hader injury, but I felt they could've used a bullpen arm even before he went down, and considering the rotation injuries they've had, I thought they could've used another arm there, too.

The Correa addition has proven to be a really good one, but the rest of the deadline has left a good amount to be desired.

Astros deadline regrade: C+

New York Yankees

We knew Brian Cashman would be active in an effort to save the New York Yankees' season, but he made more moves to address the bench and bullpen than anyone could've anticipated. Some of these moves have worked; others have not.

Again, some of these pickups have worked, others have not. Ryan McMahon's glove has been awesome, but his bat has been far from it. Amed Rosario has excelled in his role as a dominant hitter against left-handed pitching, but Austin Slater has not. Jose Caballero has taken over as the starting shortstop, but Jake Bird struggled to the point where he was sent down after just three appearances. David Bednar has taken over as the undisputed closer, but Camilo Doval has been tough to trust late in games (although he's been better lately).

Overall, I'd say Cashman did a good job at the trade deadline. There are a couple of clear misses here, but the Yankees' defense, bench, and bullpen are clearly better than they were before the trade deadline. The Yankees as a whole are better than they were pre-deadline, and that's shown in their recent play.

Yankees deadline regrade: B+

Boston Red Sox

The Boston Red Sox were playing extremely well before the trade deadline and were sitting solidly in a playoff spot even without Rafael Devers. Because of this, Red Sox fans wanted Craig Breslow to go all-in. It's safe to say he didn't come close to doing that.

Yup, this was it. Dustin May has a 5.40 ERA in six appearances (five starts) with Boston and is now on the IL. The Red Sox gave up James Tibbs III, a key prospect from the Devers trade, in order to acquire May, a rental who has not pitched well. Yikes. One move that has paid off handsomely, though, was the one that sent Steven Matz to Beantown. Matz has been outstanding in relief, adding to perhaps MLB's most underrated bullpen.

The Matz deal was good, but the May deal was tough to defend at the time, and while there were rumors that the deal was done, the Red Sox, in fact, did not end up acquiring Joe Ryan, or any other No. 2 starter for that matter. They also did not acquire a single bat, which has come back to bite them down the stretch.

Red Sox deadline regrade: C-

Seattle Mariners

When the opportunity to make trades comes to light, nobody acts with more aggression than Seattle Mariners president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto. This was proven once again at this year's trade deadline.

The Mariners landed what were widely considered the two best bats available on the market in Josh Naylor and Eugenio Suarez, but have gotten inconsistent returns. Naylor has been an outstanding addition both at the plate and especially on the base paths (somehow). Suarez, on the other hand, has struggled mightily. He's produced in the power department with 10 home runs in 43 games with Seattle, but he's hitting just .185 with a .257 OBP since the trade.

Suarez has had his ups and downs, but that's also who he is as a player. He's more than capable of getting hot down the stretch and into October, which would be huge for an already outstanding Mariners offense. The team improving the offense by adding Naylor and Suarez has been notable, and the bullpen is a bit better with Caleb Ferguson, too. It would've been nice for Seattle to have acquired a Jhoan Duran type, but overall, Mariners fans don't have much to complain about.

Mariners deadline regrade: A-

Milwaukee Brewers

The Milwaukee Brewers were MLB's best team at the trade deadline, and they remain the class of the league in mid-September. The trade deadline doesn't have much to do with that, though.

The Brewers, somewhat predictably, refrained from making big splashes. While that approach was fair, Milwaukee's choosing to do virtually nothing of note was certainly frustrating. Danny Jansen is a fine backup catcher, but he only has a .650 OPS with the Brewers. Brandon Lockridge is in Triple-A. The only somewhat major addition the Brewers made was Shelby Miller, and he suffered a season-ending injury after just 11 appearances with Milwaukee.

The Brewers still have the best record in the majors, so I can't get on Matt Arnold too much, but they could've gotten even better at the deadline and just didn't. The best addition for a contender being a backup catcher, even if the Brewers didn't have a ton of holes, is just not ideal. They can still win it all, but it'll be tougher for them to do so without having added meaningfully to their roster.

Brewers deadline regrade: D+

Philadelphia Phillies

The Philadelphia Phillies had two clear roster needs, and Dave Dombrowski addressed them. I thought he did well, but in hindsight, he's done better than anyone could've realistically expected.

Jhoan Duran has a 1.53 ERA in 20 appearances with the Phillies and has converted 15 of 17 save opportunities while having one of the most electric closer's entrances in the league. Harrison Bader has hit .331 with an .889 OPS while providing his usual elite outfield defense and a strong clubhouse presence. These have been two of the most impactful deadline additions, and the Phillies got both of them. Home run.

Phillies deadline regrade: A+

Los Angeles Dodgers

The Los Angeles Dodgers were linked to just about every big name at the deadline, as has become customary, but this time around, they didn't do much. That could be costly.

Alex Call has been a decent bat at the short side of a platoon in the outfield, but he's far from a game-changer. Brock Stewart was the big get, but he landed on the IL after just four appearances. Stewart should be back in a matter of days, but who knows how he'll do in the postseason coming off an injury? I felt the Dodgers should've done more at the time, and they've done nothing to change that opinion down the stretch.

Dodgers deadline regrade: C

Chicago Cubs

The Chicago Cubs went all-out in the offseason, acquiring Kyle Tucker, a superstar in the final year of club control. Given that, Cubs fans hoped Jed Hoyer would do whatever possible to give the Cubs the best chance to win. That simply didn't happen.

The Cubs went for the quantity over quality approach, and they've gotten mixed results. Andrew Kittredge has been a key late-inning arm for them, but Taylor Rogers has struggled, Michael Soroka has made just two appearances, and Willi Castro has been a non-factor offensively.

The Cubs needed a big-time rotation arm and just didn't get that, especially with Soroka being moved to the bullpen for the stretch run. They got a pretty good late-game reliever in Kittredge, but there were better options available, and they probably could've used a better bat than Castro, even with taking his versatility into account. This haul wasn't atrocious thanks mostly to Kittredge, but a team in win-now mode should've done more.

Cubs deadline regrade: C+

San Diego Padres

The San Diego Padres looked like the biggest winners of this year's trade deadline on August 1. While I can't quite give them that title right now, they're certainly up there.

The Padres made the biggest trade of the deadline, and it's paid immediate dividends. Mason Miller has somehow been even better since the trade, serving as the primary setup man for Robert Suarez. As good as Miller has been, the under-the-radar additions are what make this deadline such a win. Freddy Fermin has been an upgrade behind the plate, and Ramon Laureano has been one of the best hitters dealt. San Diego hasn't gotten much value out of Nestor Cortes or JP Sears, and Ryan O'Hearn has struggled lately, but the good certainly outweighs the bad by a wide margin.

The only reason the Padres don't quite get an A+ is that they did not meaningfully address their starting rotation. Cortes and Sears haven't quite panned out, and I'm not sure I trust anyone other than Michael King (who has injury concerns) in October. Having the league's best bullpen will help, but if the Padres get into trouble in the first couple of innings, what can the bullpen realistically do?

Padres deadline regrade: A-

New York Mets

I couldn't have been more wrong about what the New York Mets did at the trade deadline. I thought they did as good a job as they realistically could have to go all-in on 2025, but it just hasn't worked at all.

Tyler Rogers has a solid ERA, but he's allowed more hits (22) than innings pitched (21). That raises the question of how good he actually is. The same can honestly be said about Gregory Soto (24 hits in 19 IP), but on a worse scale. Those relievers have made this Mets bullpen better, but I wouldn't exactly say they've met expectations.

When comparing them to Ryan Helsley, though, they might as well be Mariano Rivera. Helsley has a 9.60 ERA as a Met and has pitched his way out of high-leverage spots completely. I'd be shocked if he threw a meaningful inning in the postseason, which is shocking. I thought he was the perfect eighth-inning man to Edwin Diaz and couldn't have been more wrong.

As for Cedric Mullins, I think he's hit into a bit of bad luck, but his .593 OPS speaks volumes and his lack of a throwing arm has been exposed on numerous occasions. There wasn't really a good center field option out there, but Mullins hasn't made the team better at all.

I thought the Mets crushed it, but in hindsight, they had the worst deadline out of every contender. If they miss the playoffs, which remains a very real possibility, the trade deadline will be a huge reason why. Rogers and Soto have been good enough to keep the grade from being an F, but not by much.

Mets deadline regrade: D-