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The Opener: Trout, Naylor, Scherzer, Kershaw

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Here are three things to keep an eye on around the baseball world headed into the weekend:

1. Trout approaching milestone:

Angels franchise face Mike Trout is in the midst of his healthiest season in years, even as he’s been relegated to DH-only duties by knee issues. He’s made it into 87 games this year and clobbered his 20th home run of the season in his last game on Wednesday night. Trout’s .240/.364/.471 (126 wRC+) slash line this year isn’t quite on the level of his previous MVP-caliber performances, but that hasn’t stopped him from progressing towards major career milestones.

Trout currently sits at 398 home runs for his career, leaving him just two long balls away from joining the 400 homer club. He’d be the 59th member of the club in MLB history and join Giancarlo Stanton as the second active player to reach the 400-homer plateau. He’ll have his work cut out for him in tonight’s game against the Tigers given that reigning AL Cy Young award winner Tarik Skubal (2.18 ERA) is poised to take the mound for Detroit. Trout and the Angels will face Charlie Morton and Casey Mize on Saturday and Sunday, respectively. He’s had three multi-homer games this season, most recently against the Rangers on July 9, so fans can be on milestone watch for any of the three-time MVPs upcoming games.

2. Naylor day-to-day:

Mariners first baseman Josh Naylor has been everything fans in Seattle hoped he would be in 13 games with the club so far. He’s slashed .261/.320/.478 with three home runs, a double, and a shocking ten-for-ten record on the basepaths since arriving in the Pacific Northwest. Unfortunately, his impressive start may be slowed somewhat going forward. As noted by MLB.com’s Daniel Kramer, Naylor exited yesterday’s game in the top of the fourth inning due to shoulder soreness. Manager Dan Wilson told reporters (including Kramer) yesterday that he believes the injury to be “just a day-to-day kind of thing,” so perhaps the 28-year-old won’t require a trip to the injured list. Losing Naylor would be a particularly significant blow to the Mariners given the fact that the depth options behind him have dwindled substantially recently. Luke Raley is already on the IL himself, while Tyler Locklear was traded to the Diamondbacks as part of the Eugenio Suarez deal.

3. Future Hall of Famers face off in L.A.:

Today’s contest between the Blue Jays and the Dodgers figures to be a very special one, as a pair of future Hall of Famers will be battling it out on the mound. Max Scherzer is taking the ball for Toronto in his eighth start of the 2025 season, while Clayton Kershaw is poised to suit up for the Dodgers in his 13th start of the year. Neither veteran is exactly in top form in 2025. Both have missed significant time due to injuries, and neither’s rate numbers are where they used to be. Scherzer’s 4.39 ERA is the second-highest of his storied career, while Kershaw’s 3.29 is (impressively) the third-highest figure of his own 18 years in the majors. Even though both hurlers are in the twilight of their careers, a duel between a pair of three-time Cy Young winners who’ve combined for 19 All-Star appearances and four World Series rings is sure to be one worth watching.

Poll: Who Had The Best Deadline In The AL West?

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The trade deadline has come and gone. While trade season was slow to get started this year, when all was said and done, there were several dozen trades made in a flurry of movement over the final few days before the deadline arrived. The full impact of these trades won’t be known for years to come, but that doesn’t mean we can’t analyze the deals and decide whose haul looks the best right now. Over the next week-plus, MLBTR will be running a series of polls asking which club in each division had the best deadline. So far, the Phillies, Reds, and Padres have each come out on top in their respective divisions. Today, we’ll be moving on to the American League with the AL West. A look at each of the five clubs, listed from best to worst record in 2025:

Houston Astros

The Astros made one of the most shocking moves of the deadline when they brought Carlos Correa home in a trade with the Twins. Adding Correa back to the mix creates something of a positional logjam on the infield for the club in the long-term, but with third baseman Isaac Paredes unlikely to return this season due to a severe hamstring injury, Correa shores up the infield in a big way and cost the club virtually nothing other than money. Two more players were acquired to help round out the club’s position player mix: infielder Ramon Urias and outfielder Jesus Sanchez.

All three are controlled beyond the 2025 season, and while Sanchez cost the Astros rookie right-hander Ryan Gusto, no upper-level prospects changed hands in the club’s trio of deals. That ability to add long-term talent without surrendering the best prospects in the system was impressive, though the roughly $70MM they’ll be paying Correa over the life of his contract is a significant outlay and they failed to add the starting pitcher they were hoping could fill out the middle of the rotation behind Framber Valdez and Hunter Brown.

Seattle Mariners

The Mariners’ moves at the deadline were arguably even splashier than those in Houston. While the club acquired three rental players without any team control beyond the current campaign, it’s hard to argue against the fact that they’ve significantly upped their chances of winning both the AL West and even the World Series this year. Adding Eugenio Suarez and Josh Naylor to the infield corners in separate deals with the Diamondbacks represents a sizable upgrade over Luke Raley and Ben Williamson.

Meanwhile, the return (Tyler Locklear and a quartet of pitching prospects outside of Top 100 consideration) was lighter than what was required to bring in high-end controllable talents at this deadline. The Caleb Ferguson trade with the Pirates follows a similar path. The swap gives a club in need of left-handed help in the bullpen a steady, capable setup man who throws from the left side and can partner with Gabe Speier. That deal cost only Class-A pitching prospect Jeter Martinez, who has a 6.18 ERA in 16 starts this year. The Mariners opted to maximize short-term impact while doing so on a budget, and if they can overtake Houston in the West down the stretch, it would be hard to argue with them as the winners of the deadline.

Texas Rangers

With one-and-a-half games currently sitting between the Rangers and a postseason berth, it’s understandable that they acted quite aggressively this trade season. The focus of their haul was a trio of veterans: starter Merrill Kelly, setup lefty Danny Coulombe, and relief arm Phil Maton. Kelly stands out as arguably the best starting pitcher traded this summer, and the high cost (by the standards of a rental player) reflects that. The Rangers had to surrender their #5, #9, and #13 prospects according to MLB.com to get the deal done. Coulombe and Maton weren’t quite that expensive, but cost Texas a trio of prospects led by southpaw Garrett Horn, who was recently added to the club’s top 30 prospects list over at Baseball America at #25.

Shelling out significant prospect talent in order to make a serious run at a Wild Card berth is understandable, but what’s worth noting is that the Rangers also blew past the luxury tax in order to make those additions. Texas had worked meticulously throughout the season in order to stay below the first threshold and reset their penalties, but all of that work has now been thrown out in an effort to maximize their odds at making the postseason in 2025. The potential impact is clearly significant, but was that worth it for a team not even in playoff position on deadline day?

Los Angeles Angels

The Angels had a quiet deadline that was somewhat incongruent with their status as fringe (at best) contenders. The Halos are currently six games out of an AL Wild Card spot with a middling 55-60 record, but that didn’t stop them from doing some light buying this summer. Adding former top prospect Oswald Peraza in a minor swap with the Yankees made some sense, given the club’s long-term needs on the infield, Peraza’s many years of remaining team control and a low cost of acquisition.

Acquiring a pair of rental veterans for their bullpen in the form of Andrew Chafin and Luis Garcia was a bit more questionable, but the cost do so was low. Former 13th-round pick Sam Brown and 26-year-old lefty Jake Eder (whom the Angels had picked up off waivers earlier in the year) went back to the Nats in that swap.

The Angels didn’t really damage the farm, but they missed an opportunity to listen on players like Yoan Moncada, Taylor Ward, Luis Rengifo, and maybe even Reid Detmers. Selling even some short-term pieces could have helped restock a farm system that’s been viewed as below-average for quite some time. The urge to push in during a rare, mostly-healthy season for Mike Trout is an understandable one, but it’s hard to say with confidence that doing so was the right move.

The Athletics

Unlike the rest of the division, the Athletics were sellers this summer. They made just two trades. Shipping Miguel Andujar to the Reds wasn’t a major move but netted a 2022 fourth-rounder (right-hander Kenya Huggins) who now sits 25th among their prospects at MLB.com.

The vast majority of their deadline focused on the single biggest blockbuster that happened this July: the deal that sent closer Mason Miller and lefty starter JP Sears to the Padres. Acquiring a consensus top-five prospect in the sport by bringing in Leo De Vries is arguably enough to win the deadline by itself, but he was also joined by well-regarded prospects Braden Nett and Henry Baez, Double-A starters who could be part of the rotation mix in West Sacramento sometime next year.

Rounding out the package is rookie reliever Eduarniel Nunez, who struggled in his first appearances with the A’s but could bolster their bullpen in the future. It was a very strong return, with De Vries in particular standing out as the sort of elite prospect that almost never gets dealt at all, much less in a deadline trade for a reliever. On the other hand, giving up Miller with four-plus years of team control remaining (not to mention the possibility he could be converted into a rotation role in the future to further raise his value) could make this deal a tough pill to swallow, particularly if the 18-year-old De Vries does not blossom into an All-Star caliber player.

A number of different approaches characterized this deadline for the AL West. The Rangers and Mariners were very aggressive on bringing in short-term additions, while the Astros focused on bringing in controllable talent, the A’s brought in a haul for the future and the Angels largely stood pat. Who had the best deadline of that quintet? Have your say in the poll below:

The Opener: Marlins, Reds, Encarnacion

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Here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:

1. Pérez on a hot streak:

The Marlins suffered their first series loss in a month when they dropped two of three against the Astros this week, though they avoided a sweep with yesterday’s victory. They’ll send their best starting pitcher to the mound today in hopes of starting a new streak of series wins. Most think of Sandy Alcantara or Edward Cabrera when thinking of the Miami rotation, but it’s 22-year-old right-hander Eury Pérez who increasingly looks like the staff leader for the Fish. The towering 6’8″ righty was regarded as the top pitching prospect in baseball prior to his 2023 debut, and he’s picked up right where he left off after missing 2024 due to Tommy John surgery. Pérez has roared back with a 2.70 earned run average, 26% strikeout rate and 9.2% walk rate in 50 innings.

That’s impressive in and of itself, but it includes a handful of short and uninspiring performances as he eased back into the league. Over his past six turns, Pérez has been borderline untouchable. He’s pitched 34 innings and held opponents to four runs (1.06 ERA) on just 15 hits and eight walks with 37 strikeouts. Pérez squares off against an underperforming Braves lineup that has lost Austin Riley and Ronald Acuña Jr. to the injured list within the past ten days. A win today would get Miami back to .500, but the Marlins are still six back in the Wild Card chase.

2. Reds push for Wild Card:

The Reds took a step forward in the NL Wild Card this week when they took two of three from the Cubs at Wrigley Field. Chicago is the top Wild Card team, but that series win coincided with a four-game slide in Queens that leaves Cincinnati just three games behind the Mets entering play today. New York is off today, meaning that the Reds have an uncontested opportunity to make up ground as they push towards a potential spot in the postseason. In order to capitalize on that opportunity, however, they’ll need to take down the Pirates during a game started by superstar Paul Skenes. The righty has a 2.02 ERA and 2.41 FIP in 138 innings of work this year.

Despite his status as a frontrunner for the NL Cy Young award, Skenes enters today looking to bounce back from a rough start at Coors Field where he surrendered four runs in five innings of work against the Rockies. The Reds will counter with Brady Singer, who has a 4.36 ERA in 22 starts but is coming off back-to-back gems against Tampa Bay and Atlanta where he struck out 18 batters in 13 1/3 innings of one-run ball.

3. Encarnacion to undergo MRI:

It sounds as though Jerar Encarnacion’s stretch of poor injury luck is continuing. Giants manager Bob Melvin told reporters (including Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle) that the slugging outfielder will miss some time after suffering a hamstring injury in yesterday’s game. He’s scheduled to undergo an MRI today to determine the severity of the issue. Encarnacion has made it into just ten games this year due to a broken hand, an oblique strain and now this hamstring issue. The 27-year-old made an improbable return to the majors in 2024 after demolishing Mexican League pitching, signing with the Giants and going on a similar tear through Triple-A. He’s belted seven homers in 149 plate appearances since reaching the bigs late last year, though a lack of walks (3.4%) and plenty of strikeouts (27.5%) has left him with an overall .231/.255/.420 slash.

Poll: Who Had The Best Deadline In The NL West?

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The trade deadline has come and gone. While trade season was slow to get started this year, when all was said and done, there were several dozen trades made in a flurry of movement over the final few days before the deadline arrived. The full impact of these trades won’t be known for years to come, but that doesn’t mean we can’t analyze the deals and decide whose haul looks the best right now. Over the next week-plus, MLBTR will be running a series of polls asking which club in each division had the best deadline. So far, the Phillies and Reds have each come out on top in their respective divisions. Today, we’ll be rounding out the National League with a review of the NL West. A look at each of the five clubs, listed from best to worst record in 2025:

Los Angeles Dodgers

The Dodgers are, predictably, one of the best teams in the National League this year. They aren’t quite as overwhelming as some expected them to be, however, and that left them with some work to do ahead of the stretch run. Despite the holes in the club’s roster, however, L.A.’s deadline was a surprisingly quiet one where they did as much selling as they did buying. Dustin May was shipped to Boston for a pair of prospects headlined by 2024 first-rounder James Tibbs, and they downgraded from Hunter Feduccia to Ben Rortvedt for the club’s third catcher in order to bring in rookie reliever Paul Gervase and A-ball prospect Adam Serwinowski.

In terms of buy-side moves, they swapped depth outfielder James Outman to the Twins in order to bring Brock Stewart back home to the Dodgers’ pen. They followed that up by replacing Outman on the depth chart with a right-handed complement to Michael Conforto in the form of Alex Call. L.A.’s moves were strong ones on paper. They gave up very little meaningful talent in order to make a couple of legitimate improvements to their bullpen and bench mix, and it’s easy to see them emerging as the clear winners of the two sell-side trades they did make. Still, this summer could wind up feeling like a missed opportunity for the Dodgers given the lack of impact talent acquired—especially if they wind up getting chased down in the NL West by their rival 100 miles to the south.

San Diego Padres

No front office executive in the league operates quite like Padres GM A.J. Preller, and that frenetic aggressiveness was on full display on the day of this year’s trade deadline. San Diego completed five trades in the final seven hours before the deadline. The first one was the biggest, as they swapped a massive package headlined by consensus top-5 prospect Leo De Vries to the Athletics in exchange for superstar closer Mason Miller and lefty starter JP Sears.

They didn’t stop there, however. Outfielder Brandon Lockridge was surrendered to land Nestor Cortes from the Brewers (alongside prospect Jorge Quintana), and Preller immediately replaced Lockridge in the outfield by picking up both Ramon Laureano and Ryan O’Hearn from the Orioles. The acquisitions of Sears and Cortes created enough starting pitching depth that the Friars could move Stephen Kolek and Ryan Bergert to add Freddy Fermin behind the plate, and for good measure San Diego rounded out its deadline by upgrading the infield with a controllable young talent in Will Wagner.

It was a massive flurry of moves that should substantially improve the Padres in the near-term, but the cost was heavy. Prospects of De Vries’ caliber rarely get moved for a reason. Even aside from the risk that they’ve traded the league’s next superstar, they also surrendered some important depth in Kolek and Bergert, not to mention a huge chunk of their 2024 draft class. Preller’s win-now aggression allowed his club to improve its odds of winning the World Series this year more than any other team. But was the cost too great?

San Francisco Giants

Despite a strong start to the season and the aggressive decision to swing a deal with the Red Sox for Rafael Devers back in June, the Giants have mostly fallen out of the postseason race and now have a 58-57 record. That led the club to pivot towards selling at the deadline, and they brought back an impressive haul of talent in doing so. A trade of pending free agent Tyler Rogers to the Mets brought back a trio of well-regarded talents nearing or already in the big leagues: Triple-A outfielder Drew Gilbert, rookie starter Blade Tidwell, and young MLB reliever Jose Butto. They also landed A-ball starter Yunior Marte for rental outfielder Mike Yastrzemski despite his down 2025 campaign.

Impressive as those deals were, the package they received for Camilo Doval was somewhat light. That deal was led by catching/infield prospect Jesus Rodriguez and Double-A starter Trystan Vrieling. The return for Rogers and Yastrzemski was phenomenal, as the Giants acquired their #12, #13, and #25 prospects (per MLB Pipeline) along with Butto for aging veterans on expiring contracts. Parting with Doval for two-plus seasons in exchange for a package headlined by the club’s #16 prospect, according to Pipeline, puts a bit of a damper on the club’s deadline, but it was still a strong infusion of talent to the upper levels of San Francisco’s minor league system and should result in better days for the Giants in the future.

Arizona Diamondbacks

The Diamondbacks teetered on the edge of buying and selling for most of July but kicked off trade season by dealing Josh Naylor to the Mariners and never looked back. The club executed four trades that brought back players in return and a fifth that saw them deal Shelby Miller to the Brewers in exchange for Milwaukee taking on a portion of Jordan Montgomery’s contract. Big league ready talent and pitching prospects were the focus for Arizona this summer, and they mostly accomplished that goal of bolstering those parts of the organization. Eugenio Suarez brought back a potential first baseman of the future in Tyler Locklear as well as rookie reliever Juan Burgos. Randal Grichuk and Naylor also both brought back rookie relief arms in Andrew Hoffmann and Brandyn Garcia, giving the club a number of big league ready relief arms who can help fill out the bullpen next year.

Between the trades of Suarez, Naylor, and Merrill Kelly, the Diamondbacks also picked up five pitching prospects who have yet to make their big league debut. Kohl Drake (#7 in Arizona’s system at MLB Pipeline) leads that group, which also includes Mitch Bratt (#10), David Hagaman (#14), Ashton Izzi (#15), and Hunter Cranton (#23). Locklear (#6) and Garcia (#20) also rank within the top 30, meaning that nearly a quarter of the club’s top 30 prospects were acquired at this deadline. As solid as those moves were, some view the return for Suarez as too light, and there’s reason to question why the team held onto Zac Gallen rather than bringing back additional prospects and salary relief by letting him go. Even without Gallen moving, however, the Diamondbacks breathed new life into their farm system and saved a considerable amount of money that can be repurposed for the 2026 campaign come the offseason.

Colorado Rockies

Perhaps the most notable thing about Colorado’s deadline this year is that they did anything at all, given their years of relative inaction and refusal to part with veteran talents. The club made just three trades this summer, but the deals they did make were notable ones. Ryan McMahon and Jake Bird were traded to the Yankees for lefty Griffin Herring (#5 in the Rockies’ system at MLB Pipeline), second baseman Roc Riggio (#11), righty Josh Grosz (#19), and lefty Ben Shields (#27).

Their third deal was a smaller one, as the club dealt struggling reliever Tyler Kinley to the Braves in exchange for Double-A reliever Austin Smith. It wasn’t the flashiest deadline for Colorado, but the return in exchange for McMahon was strong and the activity should help prop up one of the weakest farm systems in the majors as the Rockies toil through the worst season in franchise history.

With the exception of the Dodgers, the NL West was busier than usual this summer. San Diego did enough buying for the entire division, while the Giants, Diamondbacks, and Rockies each made some savvy sell-side moves. L.A. stands out from the crowd for their quiet approach to the deadline as they did some light buying to address areas of need and also managed to sneak in some light selling to take advantage of areas of depth. Which team did the best of this quintet? Have your say in the poll below:

The Opener: Arrighetti, Cavalli, Red Sox

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Here are three things we’ll be keeping eye on around the baseball world throughout the day:

1. Arrighetti to return:

The Astros have been without Spencer Arrighetti since April due to a thumb fracture, but the right-hander is finally ready to return to action. He’s listed as the club’s probable starter for today’s game against the Marlins, which will pit him against right-hander Janson Junk (3.86 ERA in 13 appearances). Arrighetti made just two starts before getting shelved earlier this year but posted a 4.53 ERA and 4.18 FIP in 145 innings of work during his rookie campaign last year. The 25-year-old’s return should help offer some certainty to a rotation that has largely lacked it this season outside of Framber Valdez and Hunter Brown. Corresponding moves will be necessary to clear both 40-man and active roster space for Arrighetti.

2. Cavalli returns to the majors:

Former Nationals top prospect Cade Cavalli made his MLB debut back in 2022. He surrendered seven runs on six hits, two walks, and three hit batters over 4 1/3 innings of work while striking out six opponents, and he hasn’t pitched in the majors since. That’s not because of his poor performance in his debut, but because he missed the entire 2023 and ’24 seasons while rehabbing from Tommy John surgery. Cavalli has now made 15 starts at Triple-A but has struggled badly in his last six starts, leaving him with a 6.01 ERA despite solid peripheral numbers. Despite those recent struggles, he’ll now get the opportunity to pitch in the majors for the first time in three years. He’ll take the mound in front of the home crowd in D.C. opposite Athletics lefty Jeffrey Springs, who has a 4.00 ERA in 23 appearances this year.

3. Red Sox streaking ahead of May’s team debut:

The Red Sox have been surging in recent days, with wins in each of their last seven games. They’ll now look to keep the good times rolling as deadline addition Dustin May makes his Red Sox debut at Fenway Park this evening in a game against the Royals scheduled for 7:10pm local time. May’s 104 innings of work this year for the Dodgers are already a career high, but he’s posted a middling 4.85 ERA with a 4.72 FIP. He’ll look to put up stronger numbers in Boston, starting tonight against Michael Wacha (3.38 ERA in 22 starts). If May can help lead the Red Sox to a win, the club’s eight-game win streak would be their second streak of that length after they won ten straight earlier this year. Only the Brewers have two win streaks of eight games or longer this season.

Poll: Who Had The Best Deadline In The NL Central?

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The trade deadline has come and gone. While trade season was slow to get started this year, when all was said and done, there were several dozen trades made in a flurry of movement over the final few days before the deadline arrived. The full impact of these trades won’t be known for years to come, but that doesn’t mean we can’t analyze the deals and decide whose haul looks the best right now. Over the next week-plus, MLBTR will be running a series of polls asking which club in each division had the best deadline. Yesterday, the Phillies came out on top in the NL East with about half the vote. Today, we’ll be taking a look at the NL Central. A look at each of the five clubs, listed from best to worst record in 2025:

Milwaukee Brewers

The Brewers have the best record in baseball but had a fairly quiet deadline. Perhaps their most impactful move of the summer came last month, when they traded away Aaron Civale to land former top prospect Andrew Vaughn from the White Sox. Vaughn had struggled in Chicago for years but has caught fire with the Brewers and has proven to be an anchor for a lineup that’s without Rhys Hoskins and Jackson Chourio. Looking at deals made closer to the deadline, Milwaukee swapped out another big league starter to add a hitter when they shipped Nestor Cortes to the Padres alongside infield prospect Jorge Quintana and cash in order to bring in outfielder Brandon Lockridge.

Another unusual trade for Milwaukee was acquiring injured closer Shelby Miller and injured lefty Jordan Montgomery in exchange for a player to be named later or cash. Montgomery won’t pitch this year, so the deal essentially saw the Brewers buy Miller off of the Diamondbacks in exchange for eating some of Montgomery’s salary. Perhaps the only typical buy-side addition was catcher Danny Jansen, who they acquired from the Rays to back up William Contreras. Dealing away Cortes and Civale hasn’t seemed to hurt the team much, but their additions are fairly modest on paper.

Chicago Cubs

The Cubs have fallen behind the Brewers after posting a somewhat pedestrian 29-25 record since the start of June, and entered trade season in clear need of upgrades. Perhaps their most impactful addition was utility man Willi Castro, a switch-hitter who can help take pressure off of rookie Matt Shaw at third base while upgrading the bench to make giving regulars like Dansby Swanson and Ian Happ days off more feasible. Deals with the Orioles and Pirates to acquire veteran setup man Andrew Kittredge and southpaw Taylor Rogers should help bolster a bullpen that had been relying on reclamation projects like Brad Keller and Drew Pomeranz to this point, as well.

Despite those generally solid additions, the Cubs did not substantially address their biggest need this summer: starting pitching. It was no secret that adding rotation help was a top priority for Chicago with Justin Steele done for the year, Jameson Taillon and Javier Assad both on the injured list, and both Cade Horton and Matthew Boyd in uncharted territory in terms of innings. Unfortunately for the Cubs, they were unable to find much help in that regard on the market. Michael Soroka was added in a trade with the Nationals in order to pitch in, but his velocity was down in his last few outings with the Nats and now he’s headed for the injured list with shoulder discomfort. While the club’s bench and bullpen additions were solid, it’s unclear if that will be enough to outweigh the lack of impactful rotation help down the stretch.

Cincinnati Reds

The 59-54 Reds currently sit just three games out of a Wild Card spot in the NL, and that was enough to convince them to go for it this summer. They made three trades to round out their roster. They picked up right-hander Zack Littell from the Rays in a three-team deal that sent righty Brian Van Belle to Tampa and lefty Adam Serwinowski to the Dodgers. They added Miguel Andujar to their bench in a deal with the A’s and, most interestingly, they picked up third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes from the Pirates in exchange for Rogers (who was later traded to the Cubs) and shortstop prospect Sammy Stafura.

Littell should provide some depth for an already-strong rotation that has a history of struggling to stay healthy (as was reinforced by Nick Lodolo’s departure from yesterday’s game after just 1 2/3 innings of work). Andujar provides a lefty-mashing bench bat to a club that has struggled badly against southpaws this year, but Hayes is the most interesting addition of the bunch. A former top prospect and Gold Glove award winner at third base, Hayes is one of the most talented defenders in the sport but hit just .236/.279/.290 (57 wRC+) in 100 games with the Pirates this year and has a career wRC+ of just 84. His relatively pricey contract makes bringing him in a gamble, but if he can float a slash line even close to league average, he should be a 3-win player when healthy.

St. Louis Cardinals

The Cardinals sold at the deadline for the second time in three years, but in doing so they only traded veterans on expiring contracts. Right-hander Erick Fedde was the first domino to fall, as the veteran starter was shipped to the Braves for a player to be named later or cash amid a disappointing season that saw him designated for assignment just before the deal. Veteran setup man Phil Maton netted a pair of prospects from the Rangers, one of whom is now St. Louis’s #26 ranked prospect at MLB Pipeline, and swingman Steven Matz was shipped to the Red Sox in a deal that brought back power-hitting first baseman Blaze Jordan (#18 in the Cardinals’ system, per Pipeline).

The team’s biggest deal this summer, however, was shipping out closer Ryan Helsley to the Mets. Even in the midst of a down season by his standards, Helsley brought back a trio of talented players: infield prospect Jesus Baez (#6 in the Cardinals’ system, per Pipeline), righty pitching prospect Nate Dohm (#15), and right-handed prospect Frank Elissalt (unranked). It’s a solid group of talent to bring in for a handful of rentals on expiring deals and the moves should help set incoming president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom up for success as John Mozeliak departs the club at the end of the season.

Pittsburgh Pirates

The Pirates also sold off pieces this summer, although their deadline was quiet for a club that entered July with Paul Skenes and Andrew McCutchen as their only two untouchable players. Not only did widely-speculated trade candidate Mitch Keller stay put despite a market starved for controllable rotation talent, but a number of rental players for whom the Pirates have little use did not end up getting cashed in for prospects and/or salary relief. Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Tommy Pham, Andrew Heaney, and Tim Mayza all remain in town. And some deals they did make, such as the David Bednar swap with the Yankees, produced underwhelming returns.

That’s not to say everything about the club’s deadline was disappointing, however. The Pirates did manage to get out from under the Hayes contract, and then flipped Rogers to get an additional prospect from the Cubs. Lefty Caleb Ferguson and infielder Adam Frazier both were successfully cashed in for prospect talent and the Bucs received a return led by intriguing MLB-ready reliever Evan Sisk when they looked to sell on back-end starter Bailey Falter. Some of those young players acquired should help the Pirates going forward, and getting Hayes off the books should make adding offense easier for 2026 and beyond. Even so, it’s fair to wonder if this deadline represents a missed opportunity in Pittsburgh.

The NL Central was one of the quieter divisions in baseball this deadline, with only a handful of non-rental players changing hands and no blockbusters. With that being said, three teams did make an effort to get better for 2025, while the Cardinals and Pirates picked up a number of pieces for their futures. Which club did the best of this quintet? Have your say in the poll below:

Pirates To Select Cam Sanders

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The Pirates are selecting right-hander Cam Sanders, according to a report from Tommy Birch of the Des Moines Register. Alex Stumpf of MLB.com confirms that report, adding that right-hander Johan Oviedo is set to be optioned to the minors to make room for Sanders on the active roster. The Pirates have multiple 40-man roster vacancies, so no additional corresponding transaction will be necessary.

Sanders, 28, was a 12th-round pick by the Cubs back in 2018. He’s spent the past four seasons bouncing between the Double- and Triple-A levels with the Cubs and Pirates. He’s typically posted excellent numbers at Double-A and poor numbers at Triple-A and ultimately converted from starting to relief work with the Cubs last year. Now in the Pirates organization after electing minor league free agency over the winter, he’s looked utterly dominant in the upper minors with a 1.90 ERA in 18 appearances at Double-A to go with a nearly identical 1.93 ERA in 15 appearances at the Triple-A level.

Between the two levels, Sanders has punched out 30.5% of his opponents in 42 1/3 innings of work this year. Walks have been a problem for Sanders in the past, as he surrendered free passes at an unplayable 22.4% clip at Triple-A last year. He’s kept them under control this year, however, with a 12.0% walk rate overall that drops to just 9.7% when looking only at Triple-A. Sanders will need to continue throwing strikes if he’s to survive in the majors, but the quality of his stuff gives him possible late-inning upside if he can continue to show even passable command. He’ll now join a relief corps that recently lost closer David Bednar at this year’s trade deadline and will vie for work with the likes of Dauri Moreta, Kyle Nicolas, and Yohan Ramirez.

As for Oviedo, the right-hander made his first big league appearance since 2023 yesterday in a start against the Giants but surrendered two runs in one inning of work after walking three and striking out three. Acquired from the Cardinals in the Jose Quintana trade back in 2022, Oviedo posted a solid 4.31 ERA in 31 starts for the Pirates the following year and looked like a viable #4 starter of the future for the club before being sidelined by Tommy John surgery. He has a 3.12 ERA in six rehab starts in the minor leagues this year, but judging off yesterday’s difficult return he may need some more time to build up before returning to the majors in a more permanent role. The Pirates have Paul Skenes, Mitch Keller, Andrew Heaney, and Mike Burrows holding things down at the big league level in rotation for the time being.

Blue Jays Release Chad Green

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The Blue Jays released Chad Green yesterday after the veteran right-hander cleared waivers, according to a team announcement. Green is now eligible to sign with any of the league’s 30 clubs. He had been designated for assignment by the Jays just prior to the trade deadline.

A veteran of ten MLB seasons, the 34-year-old righty has struggled badly in 45 appearances for the Jays this year with a 5.56 ERA and an eye-popping 6.70 FIP across 43 2/3 innings of work. Green’s 6.8% walk rate remains more or less in line with the best seasons of his career, but his strikeout rate has dipped considerably. After punching out 32.4% of his opponents through the end of the 2023 campaign, he struck out batters at just a 21.9% clip last year. That number has dropped even further this season, down to 18.4%. In addition to the lack of whiffs, Green has allowed 14 home runs this year. That’s the most of any reliever in baseball so far this season, and only two relievers (Enyel De Los Santos and Tyler Alexander) allowed more homers than that over the entirety of the 2024 campaign.

It’s an ugly profile overall, and it seems unlikely that any team would be particularly enthused about offering him an immediate spot in their bullpen between the lack of strikeouts and his 16.4% barrel rate allowed. Certain underlying metrics do offer some room for optimism, however. Green’s 4.26 SIERA is only slightly below average, and his K-BB% is in line with quality relief arms like Caleb Ferguson and Taylor Rogers. Perhaps there’s a team out there that sees enough in Green that they’re willing to take a flier on him in the form of a minor league deal. Even with his poor numbers this year, it would certainly be understandable if a team decided to do so.

That’s because Green has a long track record of success in the majors prior to this year. From 2017 to 2022, Green was a dominant late-inning relief arm for the Yankees with a 2.96 ERA, a 33.4% strikeout rate, and a 3.01 FIP. He picked up ten saves in that time while joining arms like Aroldis Chapman, Dellin Betances, and David Robertson at the back of the Yankees’ bullpen. Perhaps a team sees some sort of adjustments they can help Green make in order to get back to being a viable setup man; his heater is still averaging 95.2 mph this year, and while advanced metrics like Stuff+ have signaled a decline in the quality of Green’s offerings in recent years, he still grades at average to slightly above average.

As for the Blue Jays, they’ll be on the hook for what’s left of his $10.5MM salary for the 2025 campaign. If Green gets added to an MLB roster at some point this year, he’ll be paid a prorated portion of the MLB minimum by his new club and that amount will be deducted from what Toronto owes him. With newly-added relievers Louis Varland and Seranthony Dominguez now in the fold, the Jays figure to do just fine without Green in their late-inning mix even if he does manage to turn things around with a new organization.

Yankees Option Jake Bird

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The Yankees have optioned right-hander Jake Bird to Triple-A, per a team announcement. A corresponding move has not yet been announced, though ESPN’s Jorge Castillo notes that right-hander Mark Leiter Jr. is expected back from the injured list today and could take Bird’s roster spot.

Bird, 29, was one of the Yankees’ trio of potential high-leverage bullpen additions acquired ahead of the trade deadline last week. With a 4.73 ERA and 3.89 FIP to go along with a 26.3% strikeout rate for the Rockies this year, Bird showed himself capable of putting up at least decent numbers even when playing half his games at Coors Field. That was enough to intrigue the Yankees, and they surrendered second base prospect Roc Riggio and pitching prospect Ben Shields in order to acquire him. While Bird lacks the track record of dominance that David Bednar and Camilo Doval both offer, he comes with three years of team control after 2025 and the hope was that he could help deepen a bullpen mix that will lose Devin Williams and Luke Weaver to free agency this winter.

It’s only been a few games, but the early returns have not been great. The Yankees found themselves swept at the hands of the Marlins in the days following the deadline and have yet to win a game in August. That slump has left them with just a 1.5 game lead over the Rangers for the final AL Wild Card spot, and Bird has been in the thick of those troubles. After surrendering four runs to the Marlins while recording just one out in his Yankees debut, the right-hander surrendered three runs (two earned) while recording two outs against Texas last night. Those six runs allowed in a combined two innings of work across three appearances leave him with a 27.00 ERA for his Yankees career, and now he’s headed to the minor leagues as New York waits for him to get right.

While an effective version of Bird would undoubtedly make the Yankees’ bullpen better, it’s hard to argue they’re light on talent at the moment. Williams, Weaver, Bednar, and Doval have all had worrying moments at points throughout the season, but each has a strong track record of success in the late innings. And now it seems they’ll be reinforced later today by the return of Leiter, who has been sidelined for the past month due to a stress fracture in the fibular head of his left leg. Acquired from the Cubs at last year’s deadline, Leiter’s 4.46 ERA in 41 appearances leaves something to be desired but his underlying metrics remain brilliant. He’s struck out 29.1% of his opponents this year while walking a career-low 7.6%, and he’s paired all that with a career-best 49.0% ground ball rate. If Leiter keeps looking that good in his return to action, that elevated ERA should come back down in a hurry as he helps avoid further bullpen meltdowns in the Bronx.

The Opener: Alonso, Keaschall, Soroka

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Here are three things for MLBTR readers to keep an eye on throughout the day today:

1. Alonso chasing down Strawberry:

Mets slugger Pete Alonso bashed the 251st home run of his career in a game against the Guardians yesterday, and his next home run will tie him with former Mets, Dodgers, and Yankees star Darryl Strawberry for the most home runs in Mets history. Strawberry hit 252 homers across 1109 games for the Mets in his career, while Alonso is at just 959 games; Strawberry has one additional season with the club and Alonso is further limited by the 60-game shortened season in 2020. Fans in Queens are surely hoping that Alonso’s latest homer will help their first baseman turn things back around, as he’s been hitting a paltry .188/.280/.426 since the start of July. Alonso will try to tie Strawberry’s record today against Guardians left-hander Logan Allen, who has a 4.06 ERA in 108 2/3 innings of work this year.

2. Keaschall to return from IL:

Multiple reports (including that from Dan Hayes of The Athletic) have indicated that the Twins are poised to activate top prospect Luke Keaschall from the injured list today. The 22-year-old’s return to action has been much anticipated, as he jumped out to a hot start when he went 7-for-19 with three doubles and five walks against just two strikeouts in his first seven games as a big leaguer earlier this year. Keaschall’s heroics were cut short, however, when he suffered a fractured forearm back in April. He’s been sidelined ever since, but now appears to finally be ready to return to the majors. The well-regarded youngster is very versatile, capable of handling first, second, and third base as well as center field. He mostly played second for the Twins earlier this year, however, and could push Edouard Julien out of the lineup for the Twins.

3. Soroka to the IL:

The Cubs are expected to place right-hander Michael Soroka on the 15-day injured list later today after he exited his start against the Reds last night after just two innings of work due to shoulder discomfort. It’s unclear exactly how long the 28-year-old will be on the shelf, but it’s a tough blow to a Cubs team that dealt two prospects to the Nationals for Soroka’s services ahead of the trade deadline in order to fortify a beleaguered rotation. It’s possible right-hander Ben Brown steps back into the rotation with Soroka unavailable, though southpaw Jordan Wicks is another option while right-hander Javier Assad is on a rehab assignment at Triple-A as he works towards his season debut. Regardless of who will eventually take what would have been Soroka’s next start, the Cubs will need to add another pitcher to their bullpen mix today to replace Soroka on the roster.

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