With the trade deadline closing in, the picture around MLB is starting to sharpen. Some clubs are already acting like sellers, others are trying to thread the needle, and a handful are clearly gearing up to buy. Here’s where all 30 teams stand as July gives way to August.
At the bottom, the Rockies and Angels are still stuck in the cellar, with Colorado at No. 30 and Los Angeles right behind them at No. 29.
The Angels already made their first “big move” of the week, sending struggling backstop Logan O’Hoppe and reliever Chase Silseth to the Rangers. Kansas City checks in at No. 28 and should be better next year if the bullpen gets a few tweaks and the health breaks their way.
The Mets land at No. 27, described here as “The worst team money can buy,” and look like they’ll keep dismantling whatever pieces they can. The Giants are No. 26, with Logan Webb apparently untouchable and Luis Arraez likely the name to watch in return.
The Athletics sit at No. 25 as the early fun fades and they drift toward the bottom. Toronto is No. 24, now buried at the bottom of the AL East and staring at a last wild card spot that looks out of reach.
Cincinnati is No. 23, a team with a solid core but trapped in a tough division. Detroit comes in at No. 22, with the big question still hanging there: Will they?
Won’t they? When will it happen?
Stay tuned.
A little higher up, Baltimore is No. 21 and still has a slim shot at a wild card berth, even if the roster has major issues everywhere. Seattle is No. 20 and, according to this ranking, may finally need to admit it just isn’t very good, even if the starting rotation says otherwise.
San Diego sits at No. 19, where Mason Miller is framed as the best trade chip if the Padres decide to reload the farm system or clear out bad contracts. St.
Louis is No. 18 after dropping 7 of its last 10, while Miami is No. 17 after a 12-game losing streak slammed the door on its brief postseason push. Washington rounds out this group at No. 16, sitting at .500 and about 10 games behind the Braves, with a year that can still be built on.
The trade of Curtis Meade for Connolly Early is called brilliant, though the Nationals still need more starting pitching.
The middle of the board is where the buyers with postseason hopes start to show up. Houston is No. 15, still mediocre but hanging around in the AL West with a .500 record.
Minnesota is No. 14, stuck in limbo at three games behind the division lead and one game out of the last wild card spot, though selling is said to make more sense. Pittsburgh is No. 13, one of five teams sitting at 55-55 after 110 games, and while adding to that young group would be appealing, it’s not something to believe until it happens.
Arizona is No. 12 and riding a hot stretch into a wild card spot, with pitching help potentially on the way. Cleveland is No. 11, two games over .500 and two back in the division while holding a wild card position that could make them dangerous in October.
Philadelphia is No. 10 after dropping 8 of its last 10, slipping from chasing the Braves to barely hanging onto the final wild card spot. Boston is No. 9 and surging with 7 wins in its last 10, building a stronger hold on the second AL wild card and pushing any selling talk far into the background.
The top eight is where the real contenders start to separate. Texas checks in at No. 8, leading the West but with Houston only a half-game back, making this a three-team race and setting the Rangers up to add pieces this weekend.
Chicago’s White Sox are No. 7 after salvaging their place atop the AL Central by splitting a four-game set with the Yankees, and they may still have more to add. The Cubs are No. 6 and comfortably the top NL wild card team, with one more starter still looking like the move to make even with their recent pitching success.
The Yankees are No. 5, and as always, they’re expected to make some kind of move before the deadline; the biggest addition may be getting #99 back in the lineup. Atlanta is No. 4 and back to a seven-game lead in the East, giving them time to sort out the rotation for a postseason push.
Tampa Bay is No. 3, still clinging to the top of the AL East and looking more and more like the real thing, with a stellar lineup and a pitching staff that keeps delivering.
At the top, Milwaukee holds No. 2 as the second-best team in the National League and the second-best team in baseball, with hope that they’ll make a move before the deadline. And at No. 1, it’s still the Dodgers, still coasting, still loaded, and still in position to add simply because they can - and because doing so would keep everyone else from getting better.
In Other News...
Astros Just Took A Deadline Swing Fans Have Been Begging For
The Astros are still hunting for rotation help as the trade deadline approaches, and the search has already taken them into the market for one of the more established starters available. Houston has been looking for ways to bolster its pitching staff, and the early conversations suggest the front office is aiming high rather than settling for a short-term patch.
There is a reason the path forward may not be simple. The pitcher Houston checked on is tied to his current club for years to come, which makes prying him loose a difficult ask even before any real bidding begins. If that door stays closed, the Astros will have to keep working through the next tier of controllable arms, with several names already surfacing as possible alternatives. [Read more 🡒]
Astros May Have Finally Found The Left-Handed Bat They Need
The Astros have been linked to St. Louis outfielder Lars Nootbaar as they look to add another bat before the deadline, and the appeal is easy to see. He can handle all three outfield spots, gives a lineup some balance from the left side and has been productive enough this season to keep his name in the conversation, with a 107 OPS+ in 165 plate appearances.
For Houston, the bigger draw may be that Nootbaar is not just a short-term fix. He is under club control through 2027, which gives any deal a longer runway than the usual rental swing, and that matters for a team trying to thread the needle between helping itself now and avoiding a one-year patchwork move. The question is whether the Astros and Cardinals can line up on the kind of return that makes sense for both sides. [Read more 🡒]
Astros Suddenly Linked To A Giants Arm Fans Would Absolutely Want
Dana Brown has made it clear the Astros are still combing the market ahead of the deadline, and the focus has shifted toward starting pitching after earlier talk of adding an outfield bat. That makes sense for a club that keeps finding itself in the mix every summer, and it explains why Houston is at least doing its homework on arms that could change the shape of the rotation down the stretch.
One name that has surfaced is Logan Webb, a pitcher the Giants would love to keep around even as they work through other possible moves. San Francisco is also expected to shop Heliot Ramos, and there is at least some willingness to help with Robbie Rays salary in the right deal, which shows how active the Giants may be in the coming days. For Houston, the bigger question is whether this kind of check-in turns into something real before the deadline clock runs out. [Read more 🡒]