A wild 2023 MLB trade deadline — which featured so many deals leading up to Tuesday at 6 p.m. ET — has come and gone, and there’s so much to buzz about.
A few contenders — the Angels and Rangers, for two — got stronger. Shohei Ohtani didn’t get dealt. Not as much as the top tier of the MLB’s best. But there was no lack of news and drama … and you never know if these moves will truly pay off with the postseason format that means anyone can make a run.
MORE: Every major MLB trade deadline deal, in one place
So as we do every year, we’ll declare who won big and who lost in the process (note that some things might change after the 6 p.m. ET deadline as the last-minute deals come in).
Shohei Ohtani (winner)
Not only did he get to stay with the Angels through the end of the season, but Anaheim pushed all in and gave him help in the form of Lucas Giolito, Reynaldo Lopez, Randal Grichuk and C.J. Cron.
It’s a win-win for Ohtani: If the Angels contend, great, and in the offseason, he can still take bids in free agency.
Texas Rangers (winner)
They needed pitching help, and they got it in Max Scherzer, Jordan Montgomery, Chris Stratton and — earlier in the year — Aroldis Chapman. An already-strong team got stronger.
New York Mets (winners)
The mistake would have been holding on to Scherzer and Justin Verlander. Instead, the front office pulled the plug in a disappointing season and got something back for the veteran aces who underachieved. Plus, they made other deals, sending away David Robertson and Mark Canha. Smart.
Mets Trade Deadline haul so far:
Out:
Max Scherzer, Justin Verlander, David Robertson, Mark CanhaIn:
Luisangel Acuña, Drew Gilbert, Ryan Clifford, Marco Vargas, Ronald Hernandez, Justin Jarvis— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) August 1, 2023
New York Yankees (losers)
They didn’t do … anything, basically? Getting Aaron Judge back recently helps significantly, but this was a team that needed the help, and they got none.
Aaron Boone on the trade deadline: “You could see everything from nothing to guys leaving to guys coming.”
— Chris Kirschner (@ChrisKirschner) August 1, 2023
At the deadline, the Yankees finally made a trade, acquiring Keynan Middleton from the White Sox. Middleton has a 3.96 ERA in 36.1 innings this season.
The New York Yankees are acquiring right-handed reliever Keynan Middleton from the Chicago White Sox, sources tell ESPN.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) August 1, 2023
Boston Red Sox (losers)
The Red Sox signaled an active deadline when they dealt Kiké Hernandez back to the Dodgers, but since then, Chaim Bloom has been quiet. The Red Sox are waiting on Trevor Story’s return, but for a team that is still in the wild-card hunt, you’d like to see more of an effort to improve the club. Instead, they’re stuck with the poor-hitting Yu Chang in the infield until Story joins the lineup.
Cincinnati Reds (losers)
Few contending teams were more desperately in need of help in the starting rotation than the Reds. They entered the deadline with baseball’s 27th-ranked ERA among starting pitchers, and the expectation was that Nick Krall would look to make some kind of addition around the deadline. That didn’t happen, and now the Reds are going to rely on the likes of Hunter Greene and Nick Lodolo to be in form when they return from injury.
