Whatever happened Tuesday, the legacy of the 2022 MLB trade deadline was almost certain to be Juan Soto, the Washington Nationals and whoever pushed to acquire the best young star to hit the trading block since Miguel Cabrera. That the Nationals ended up trading him to the San Diego Padres in one of the biggest deals in major league history will have repercussions far beyond this pennant race.
MLB’s trade deadline has come and gone. These teams changed their fates.
But as the Nationals unloaded the last homegrown star of their first golden era, and as the Padres bolstered their roster for an October push they always expected to make, other teams made moves to alter their fates. The deadline has passed. Who made the most of it?
San Diego Padres
If the Soto deal were the only one the Padres made, they still would have had the most dramatic trade deadline in recent memory. But it wasn’t. On Monday, they traded away closer Taylor Rogers and starter Dinelson Lamet to acquire closer Josh Hader from the Brewers. Hader has been one of the game’s dominant relievers for years, and though he has been reluctant to throw more than one inning at times this season, he is under team control through the end of the 2024 season, meaning the Padres will have him for at least two playoff runs.
And not long after they made the Soto deal official Tuesday, the Padres dealt for Cincinnati Reds utility man Brandon Drury, who was one of the more coveted and versatile bench pieces available at the deadline. He’ll join a team that just added Soto to a lineup that already includes Manny Machado and contact specialist Jake Cronenworth and probably will have Fernando Tatis Jr. back soon from injury.
Seattle Mariners
The Mariners, in the midst of the longest postseason drought in baseball, haven’t made the playoffs since the year after their newest superstar, Julio Rodríguez, was born. So after playing themselves into a tenuous hold on a wild-card spot with a stunning 14-game winning streak before the all-star break, the Mariners and General Manager Jerry Dipoto went for it.
They traded a package of four prospects, including prized shortstop Noelvi Marte, to the Reds for Luis Castillo, a right-hander many viewed as the best starting pitcher on the market.
The Mariners also added infielder Jake Lamb from the Los Angeles Dodgers and beloved clubhouse presence Curt Casali, a backup catcher, from the San Francisco Giants.
New York Yankees
The Yankees have not looked like a team in need of much this year, but they entered the weeks before the deadline with a few clear areas to improve: a contact-first outfielder to help recover production lost to Joey Gallo’s struggles and pitching depth. And this week they addressed both.
Last week, they traded for contact-heavy outfielder Andrew Benintendi. On Monday, they acquired Oakland Athletics ace Frankie Montas and closer Lou Trivino to add the pitching depth they needed.
Also Monday, they traded for Chicago Cubs rookie reliever Scott Effross. On Tuesday, they offloaded Gallo — a big-swing slugger who never found much rhythm during his Yankees tenure — to the Dodgers. Minutes before the deadline, they traded left-hander Jordan Montgomery to the St. Louis Cardinals for defensive whiz Harrison Bader, who will supplement their outfield defense when he returns from injury.
St. Louis Cardinals
The Cardinals, who are just out of the National League’s third wild-card spot, needed to bolster their much-injured starting pitching corps entering the deadline. As it happened, they also were reportedly one of the last teams standing in the Soto sweepstakes.
Ultimately, they missed on Soto but landed a pair of starters in Pittsburgh Pirates left-hander Jose Quintana and Yankees lefty Montgomery, who cost them Bader, a staple of their most recent outfields but a player made expendable by the crop of young outfielders coming up.
Minnesota Twins
The Twins, who hold a one-game lead over the Cleveland Guardians in the American League Central, added starter Tyler Mahle from Cincinnati, all-star closer Jorge Lopez from the Baltimore Orioles and reliever Michael Fulmer from the Detroit Tigers. They also sent backup catcher Sandy León to the Guardians for pitcher Ian Hamilton.
New York Mets
Despite the usual flurry of rumors about their involvement with top targets such as Boston Red Sox slugger J.D. Martinez and Cubs catcher Willson Contreras — neither of whom was traded — the Mets came out of this year’s deadline with a group of lower-profile acquisitions. They added Tyler Naquin, Darin Ruf and Daniel Vogelbach for offensive depth and acquired Phillip Diehl and Mychal Givens for bullpen help. But they did not bolster their starting pitching, despite lingering injury concerns for starters — including Jacob deGrom, who made his first start of the season Tuesday against the Nationals.
Atlanta Braves
The Mets led the reigning World Series champions by 3½ games in the NL East as deadline day began, but Atlanta made a bigger splash Tuesday by acquiring Los Angeles Angels closer Rasiel Iglesias just before the 6 p.m. witching hour. Iglesias helps ease the loss of reliever Will Smith, whom the Braves traded to the Houston Astros for starter Jake Odorizzi a day earlier. As they did last season, to great effect, the Braves also added outfield depth. This time, that depth took the form of Tigers switch hitter Robbie Grossman.
Philadelphia Phillies
While the Nationals sold and the Marlins held serve, the other team chasing the Mets and Braves made substantial moves to bolster an underperforming roster. The Phillies traded former top draft pick Mickey Moniak to the Angels for starter Noah Syndergaard. They brought back reliable reliever David Robertson in a deal with the Cubs. And they added Angels outfielder Brandon Marsh, who will start in center field and provide a much-needed defensive upgrade.
Houston Astros
The Astros made several additions to a lineup that has charged into a commanding lead in the AL West and looks well-equipped for another run at the pennant. They added first baseman Trey Mancini from Baltimore and took advantage of Boston’s disappointing season by acquiring its longest-tenured player, catcher Christian Vázquez. And they acquired playoff-tested reliever Smith from Atlanta for Odorizzi, a starter they could afford to lose.
Other surprises
The Orioles, who entered the deadline closer to contention than they have been in years, offloaded Mancini and Lopez in a minor sell-off that may not reduce the team’s already paltry playoff chances by much but does indicate the front office’s belief that a long shot this year did not outweigh the value of making acquisitions for the future.
The Cubs did not trade catcher Contreras or outfielder Ian Happ, both of whom are free agents after next season. They are likely to be trade candidates this offseason, though conventional wisdom suggests their value will have diminished by then.
The Red Sox sort of sold by trading Vázquez but also acquired Eric Hosmer from the San Diego Padres after Hosmer rejected a trade to the Nationals in the Soto deal.
The Blue Jays traded for Royals infielder Whit Merrifield. Canada requires vaccination to enter. As of late last month, Merrifield was not vaccinated and could not accompany the Royals on their trip to Toronto.
Source: WP
