The 2025 Major League Baseball trade deadline is over. As expected, we saw a frenzy of activity with plenty of notable names heading from sellers to buyers. So which teams properly handled their business leading up to Thursday, whether it was bringing in win-now pieces for the stretch drive or landing prospects that improve the long-term outlook? All of that will be determined in time, but we're here to pass out some first-impression grades on how each team fared during the run-up to the deadline. Let's do that now.
The D-backs in the wake of what's been a highly disappointing 2025 season thus far were looking to deal their walk-year contributors. For the most part they did that. Most notably, they fetched a solid if unspectacular return for slugging third baseman Eugenio Suárez in a trade with the Mariners, and they also sent starting pitcher Merrill Kelly to Texas. They were, however, unable to find a taker for Zac Gallen.
Erick Fedde after he was DFA'd by the Cardinals? Thirty-four-year-old Tyler Kinley to serve in a setup role? Those aren't exactly inspiring additions. As well, the non-contending Braves were unable to trade away any of their pending free agents like Marcell Ozuna (who had no-trade protections through his 10-and-5 rights) and Raisel Iglesias.
The Cubs, locked in a heated struggle with the Brewers for first place in the NL Central and perhaps a first-round bye in the playoffs, were expected to swing big at the deadline. That, however, didn't happen. Their moves improve them at the margins -- utility man Willi Castro upgrades the bench and Michael Soroka gives them needed rotation depth -- but it's all a little lacking given what was anticipated. In particular, the Cubs could've used a front-of-the-rotation type to replace Justin Steele.
Ke'Bryan Hayes is a slick fielder at third base, and Zack Littell aids what was already an impressive rotation. However, the Reds really needed to upgrade the offensive attack, and Hayes doesn't really do that.
The Rockies shipped off Ryan McMahon and a pair of relievers for reasonable returns. It's nothing that drastically improves the core of young talent in place, but, well, teams on pace to lose 120 games tend not to have alluring deadline pieces on the roster.
It certainly wasn't a headline-grabbing deadline for the reigning champs, but given their roster depth it didn't really have to be. Alex Call is a strong targeted strike for their troubled outfield, and they got an excellent return from the Dustin May swap with Boston.
On the one hand, the Marlins as expected undertook some "seller's churn," with the most notable departure probably being outfielder Jesús Sánchez. However, ace and 2022 NL Cy Young winner Sandy Alcantara remains in the fold despite heavy rumors leading up to the deadline. He could still be shopped this offseason, and waiting will look smart if Alcantara thrives down the stretch. However, there's risk in that approach.
The Padres tapped into their rotation depth to send Nestor Cortes to the Padres for a quad-A outfield type. They then fortified the bullpen with Shelby Miller, and before all that happened they improved catcher depth by acquiring Danny Jansen from the Rays. It's solid, if not exactly needle-moving work.
Maybe the Mets missed an opportunity to address the rotation, but they otherwise checked the necessary boxes. In particular, the bullpen has been drastically upgraded with the additions of Ryan Helsley, Gregory Soto, and Tyler Rogers. As well, the addition of Cedric Mullins improves the center field situation in Queens.
The NL East should be good fun down the stretch, no? The Phillies did their part to keep the race against the Mets in the headlines. The big move was the addition of lockdown closer Jhoan Duran from the torn-down Twins. As well, the Phillies addressed their own center field issues by adding Harrison Bader in a deal with those very same Twins.
The Pirates did some things but not enough. Closer David Bednar and third baseman Ke'Bryan Hayes are noteworthy departures, but consider what GM Ben Cherington didn't do. He didn't sell high on starting pitcher Mitch Keller. He also failed to move three veterans who are pending free agents (Tommy Pham, Isiah Kiner-Falefa, and Andrew Heaney). This remains a rudderless organization, which is mostly the fault of pointless owner Bob Nutting.
No operator was as bold as AJ Preller during this deadline season. As the Padres attempt to hang on to wild card position in the NL and perhaps even chase down the Dodgers in the NL West, they have plenty of new reinforcements to help the cause. Flame-throwing closer Mason Miller is on board, as is All-Star first baseman/DH Ryan O'Hearn, outfielder Ramón Laureano, and catcher Freddy Fermin. And not only did they not trade Dylan Cease despite heavy rumoring to the contrary, the Pads also added to the rotation by getting Nestor Cortes from Milwaukee. A+ indeed.
The Giants have struggled since trading for Rafael Devers in June, and that put them in "soft sell" mode. They got a respectable return from the Mets for Tyler Rogers, and they sent closer Camilo Doval to the Yankees for four prospects. Then in a bit of a surprise they flipped outfielder Mike Yastrzemski to the Royals.
The Cardinals came in aiming to move their three-walk year relievers, and that's exactly what they did. Ryan Helsey was shipped off to the Mets for a solid return, Steven Matz fetched an interesting hitting prospect from Boston, and Phil Maton returned a pair of minor-league arms in a deal with Texas. They still have a lineup logjam in place, and that probably should've been addressed. The winter, though, may bring clarity on that front after Chaim Bloom takes over as lead decision-maker.
The Nats wisely resisted the urge to trade MacKenzie Gore, which was the most important thing they did this deadline. Otherwise, they dealt away Kyle Finnegan, Michael Soroka, and Alex Call in exchange for organizational depth.
We can't give them an A yet, because we can't be 100% sure what Leo De Vries is going to turn into, but dealing a stud reliever and marginal starter during a rebuild for a potential superstar shortstop could well end up being a master stroke from the A's front office. The potential is an A+ here.
This isn't a grade in the here and now but rather one earned over the long haul. The Orioles put their fans through a radical rebuild from 2018-21 and were sellers in 2022. They went to the playoffs two years and won zero playoff games and now they are sellers again. That just can't happen.
Dustin May is a below-average starting pitcher (84 ERA+ and -0.4 WAR in 104 innings this season) and Steven Matz is a long reliever. That was it. No frontline starter, no big bat, no needle-mover in the late innings. It sounds like they were trying to make a bigger splash, but they didn't.
I don't know, man. Dealing Austin Slater and Adrian Houser for quality returns were perfectly fine maneuvers, but the White Sox are in the midst of what should be a major rebuild and can't turn a player as talented as Luis Robert Jr. with just two club options left on his contract into anything?
The Guardians traded two players who are currently injured and otherwise didn't do anything. They are only 2 ½ games out of a playoff spot, so why were they trading Shane Bieber when they have a lackluster back-end of the rotation? Ah, to save money. That's right. Again: 2 ½ games out. Pathetic.
It was all depth additions -- starting pitchers Charlie Morton and Chris Paddack along with relievers Kyle Finnegan and Rafael Montero -- and maybe that's all they'll need. It just felt a little bit light given their circumstances.
The trade deadline was another reminder that just being in the playoff race is no longer good enough in Houston, as the Astros got back Carlos Correa in a blockbuster move in addition to grabbing infielder Ramón Urías and outfielder Jesús Sánchez. They didn't get a starting pitcher, but they have four coming back from injury in August.
They are only three games out of a playoff spot, so kudos to the Royals for trying to win instead of giving up and trying to sell like so many out there wanted them to. They added needed outfield and pitching depth in the process. The moves were unfortunately just of the hole-filling variety.
In a vacuum, we have to give them credit for trying instead of bailing when within striking range of a playoff spot. And, yes, only being four games out of a playoff spot is absolutely alive and a team should be giving its fan base -- and players! -- hope in a situation like this. If you're gonna buy, though, maybe do better than relievers Luis García and Andrew Chafin along with infielder Oswaldo Peraza?
At 5 ½ game out of a playoff berth, the Twins decided to rip off the Band-Aid, except they left a little bit of adhesive hanging onto their skin by keeping arguably the biggest trade chip they have in Joe Ryan. If you're going to gut the team, why keep Ryan around? So many teams wanted starting pitching and left empty-handed.
They made a lot of solid moves, getting position players Austin Slater, Amed Rosario, Jose Caballero and Ryan McMahon in addition to relievers David Bednar, Jake Bird and Camilo Doval. The bullpen moves were outstanding and good depth was added to the position-player core while getting a starter at third base. They needed starting pitching, though.
The Mariners added two big offensive weapons in Eugenio Suárez and Josh Naylor. This is the kind of urgency needed from a team squarely in contention that has never been to the World Series. You'd maybe like to see a little more bullpen depth outside of adding Caleb Ferguson, but they added two middle-of-the-order All-Stars.
Look, they didn't go all out or anything, but the Rays at four games out of the playoffs usually means they are ready to bail on the season and that's why there were rumors about them trading several big-league players. Instead, they added Adrian Houser to the rotation -- and his stuff looks great this year -- along with potential bullpen ace Griffin Jax. Sneaky late deadline winner here.
Adding Merrill Kelly to the rotation to sit behind Jacob deGrom and Nathan Eovaldi was a great move and the bullpen depth added with Phil Maton and Danny Coulombe was also great. They really needed to shore up their DH spot, though.
There's a potential home run here in ace starter Shane Bieber, though there is certainly risk with him working his way back from Tommy John surgery. Otherwise it was a bunch of depth moves, but it was all stuff that could work out really well and I love the upside gamble with Bieber.
There were a lot of deals on Thursday. A LOT. (Find them all in our trade tracker.) But there were also deals that didn't happen. Some stars who were expected to move stayed put as 6 p.m. ET passed. That list includes:
The starting pitching market developed late. Merrill Kelly moved, but a lot of the other names who could slot in near the front of a contender's rotation stayed put.
The Brewers added reliever Shelby Miller to their bullpen, per FanSided. Miller, currently on the injured list, had compiled a 217 ERA+ in 36 innings with the Diamondbacks.
The Royals badly need more offense from their outfield and have acquired Mike Yastrzemski from the Giants, reports MLB.com. He is a rental. The full trade details are unknown.
The AL East leading Blue Jays have acquired righty reliever Louie Varland and first baseman Ty France, reports The Athletic. Varland is a late-inning guy who throws very hard. Outfielder Alan Roden and lefty Kendrys Rojas are going to Minnesota in the trade, per Sportsnet.
The Tampa Bay Rays at the last second acquired reliever Griffin Jax from the Minnesota Twins, per ESPN.
Jax has a 4.50 ERA and 1.28 WHIP with 72 strikeouts in 46 innings this season. His rate stats were ruined by a few terrible outings and last season his ERA was 2.03.
The return to the Twins is young starting pitcher Taj Bradley, according to The Athletic. Bradley is 6-6 with a 4.61 ERA this season.
The Tigers have beefed up their starting rotation by adding veteran right-hander Charlie Morton from the Orioles, according to ESPN. Morton successfully recovered after a rough start to the season, making him a viable mid-rotation option as Detroit looks to lock down the American League Central. Baltimore gets LHP Micah Ashman in the deal, according to MLB.com.
The Yankees were not done adding to their bullpen after getting David Bednar and Jake Bird. New York also acquired Camilo Doval from the Giants just minutes before the 6 p.m. ET deadline passed. Brian Cashman has remade his 'pen with three more relievers with ninth-inning experience to join Devin Williams and Luke Weaver.
We'll see what moves got finished at the last minute soon.
The Cubs have agreed to a deal for left-handed reliever Taylor Rogers, per The Athletic. This is the second time Rogers has been traded this week, as he was sent to the Pirates from the Reds in the Ke'Bryan Hayes deal. Rogers has a 2.45 ERA and 1.46 WHIP with 34 strikeouts in 33 innings this season.
The return for the Pirates is High-A outfielder Ivan Brethowr, per The Athletic.
The Tampa Bay Rays are trading for Chicago White Sox righty Adrian Houser, reports ESPN. Houser has been one of the biggest surprises of the season, amassing a 198 ERA+ and a 2.14 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 11 starts. The Rays had created space in their rotation last night by trading Zack Littell to the Reds.
In exchange, the White Sox will land first baseman Curtis Mead, per the New York Post. Mead is a former top prospect who hasn't established himself in the majors. Pitching prospects Duncan Davitt and Benjamin Peoples are also headed to Chicago, according to ESPN.
The Rangers have again bolstered their pitching staff, acquiring veteran reliever Phil Maton from the Cardinals in exchange for lefty Mason Molina and righty Skyler Hales per The Athletic.
Maton, an impending free agent, has a 178 ERA+ and a 3.20 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 38 innings this season.
The Red Sox have made a move for starting pitcher Dustin May, reports ESPN. May is 6-7 with a 4.85 ERA this season. The Dodgers have a ton of starting pitching, but a lot of it is on the injured list. The Red Sox add May to their rotation along with Garrett Crochet, Brayan Bello, Lucas Giolito and Walker Buehler.
The Reds have acquired utility player Miguel Andujar from the Athletics for minor-league right-hander Kenya Huggins, the teams announced.
Andujar, 30, has posted a 110 OPS+ in 60 games. He has experience on the infield and in the outfield.
Although he has not appeared in a game since early April, the Padres are acquiring lefty Nestor Cortes Jr. from the Brewers, reports The Athletic. Extra outfielder Brandon Lockridge is going to Milwaukee in the trade. Cortes has been sidelined with a flexor strain and is currently on a minor-league rehab assignment. He is expected to return within a week or so. The trade gives San Diego more rotation depth and also allows the pitching rich Brewers to replenish their organizational depth a bit.
The Marlins are going to hold onto 2022 Cy Young winner Sandy Alcantara instead of trading him, reports Marlins insider Craig Mish.
Prediction: Late flurry coming. There are too many teams needing starting pitchers along with starting pitchers on the block.
The Royals are obtaining Bailey Falter from the Pirates in exchange for minor-league first baseman Callan Moss and lefty Evan Sisk, the teams announced.
Falter is a lefty starter with a 115 ERA+ and a 1.79 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 22 starts this season. He's under team control until the winter of 2028.
The Red Sox are discussing a deal with the Twins that could land them All-Star starting pitcher Joe Ryan, reports MLB Network. The Twins have reportedly been reluctant to part with Ryan, but they also appear to be in a full teardown.
The Cubs have added Willi Castro, a utility player previously with the Twins, according to Jon Heyman of the New York Post. The return is Double-A pitchers Ryan Gallagher and Sam Armstrong, per a report from ESPN's Jesse Rogers.
Castro, an impending free agent, gives the Cubs another option to play third base or, really, anywhere over the diamond. He's put up a 103 OPS+ this season.
The Angels have acquired slick fielding infielder Oswald Peraza from the Yankees, reports the YES Network. The Yankee will receive minor-league outfielder Wilberson De Pena and international bonus pool money in the trade, according to the New York Post. Peraza got some run as New York's third baseman this season, though he didn't hit, and the Yankees brought in Ryan McMahon and utility man Amed Rosario in recent days. He should get more playing time with the Halos.
A few years after facing them in the World Series, Merrill Kelly is headed to the Rangers, per ESPN. Kelly is 9-6 with a 3.22 ERA this season, his last before hitting free agency.
The Rangers' rotation is now headed up by Jacob deGrom, Nathan Eovaldi and Merrill Kelly and that's a great start for a playoff rotation, should they make it.
Reminder: That's the deadline for teams to submit trades to the league office. It doesn't necessarily mean we have to hear about every trade by 6:00. Some deals keep leaking out after the deadline, even sometimes up to a half hour later.
Veteran D-backs right-handed starter is a strong bet to be moved before the 6 pm EST deadline, and the Red Sox and Rangers are in hot pursuit at this late juncture, USA Today reports. Even at age 36, Kelly remains a steady and quality presence in a big-league rotation. This season, he's put up an ERA of 3.22 (133 ERA+) and an FIP of 3.54 in 22 starts and 128 ⅔ innings. He's in his walk year.
Closer Devin Williams has come up in trade discussions, according to the New York Post. The Yankees added two-time All-Star David Bednar earlier in the day Thursday and could slot him into the closer's role should they trade Williams. That said, lots of players come up in trade talks this time of year, and only a relatively small percentage actually get traded.
The Dodgers and Nationals have agreed on a trade that sends outfielder Alex Call to L.A., reports ESPN. Call, 30, is hitting .274/.371/.386 with 1.1 WAR in 237 plate appearances this season. He can play all three outfield positions and has shown the ability to thrive either off the bench or as a starter.
The return for the Nationals is right-handed pitchers Eriq Swan and Sean Paul Liñan, via the Washington Post.
Hello Tigers? Hello Cubs? Will the Brewers do something big? Will the Yankees get a badly needed starting pitcher? Are the Red Sox going to do anything?
Will Wagner, specifically. San Diego has sent catching prospect Brandon Valenzuela to the Blue Jays for Wagner, an infielder and the son of new Hall of Famer Billy Wagner. The trade is official. Wagner will give the Padres some additional bench depth, an area they have been lacking this year. This is San Diego's third trade of the day, joining the Mason Miller/JP Sears blockbuster with the Athletics and the Ryan O'Hearn/Ramón Laureano trade with the Orioles.
The Astros and Padres have both been incredibly active, so why not match up with one another? A deal that would send starting pitcher Dylan Cease to Houston is "progressing," per the New York Post. The Astros' rotation is decimated with injuries behind frontline starters Framber Valdez and Hunter Brown. They should be getting back the likes of Spencer Arrighetti, Cristian Javier, Luis Garcia and J.P. France at some point this season, but injury returns can be tricky.
