What Did Other NL Wild Card Contenders Do at Deadline?
· Yahoo Sports
The Pirates were aggressive leading up to the trade deadline. They addressed a lowly bullpen that will now consist of 50% new players as they look to punch a ticket to the postseason for the first time since 2015.
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The Pirates acquired Camilo Doval from the Yankees, Luke Weaver from the Mets, Kirby Yates from the Angels and Lake Bachar from the Marlins. All four present upgrades, and Weaver was the best reliever moved in the league.
Was it a perfect deadline for the Pirates? No, but they got better by overhauling their biggest weakness.
At 57-57, the Pirates are 3.5 games out of a wild card spot in a crowded National League. The Cubs have a big leg-up on the rest of the pack, but there are as many as seven teams vying for the final two spots in the race.
What did each of those teams do at the deadline?
Diamondbacks (60-53, T-2nd)
The Diamondbacks are in possession of one of two spots behind the Cubs, but it was a quiet deadline in the desert. The only move Arizona made was to acquire outfielder Lars Nootbaar from the Cardinals. Nootbaar has played 48 games this season and is batting .234/.333/.354 with three home runs and 16 RBI.
Phillies (60-53, T-2nd)
The Phillies are in possession of the other wild card spot but were much more active than the team they’re tied with in the standings.
Philadelphia swung a trade for potential batting champion Luis Arraez from the Giants in a deal that also netted them reliever Caleb Kilian. The Phillies made another bullpen addition in Brooks Raley from the Mets, and added outfield depth in Colby Thomas from the Athletics.
Padres (58-55, 2 GB)
The Padres didn’t have a deep farm, but they made a couple impactful additions to their roster. They desperately needed starting pitching and landed Robbie Ray from the Giants and Casey Mize from the Tigers. The also got infielder Gage Workman in the Mize deal and acquired Hunter Stratton from the Pirates.
Most notably, San Diego held on to All-Star closer Mason Miller and left-handed reliever Adrian Morejon. There was speculation one or both could be moved.
Marlins (58-55, 2 GB)
Despite being in a good position in the standings, the Marlins largely waved the white flag. They traded catcher Liam Hicks to the Rays, left-handed starter Braxton Garrett to the Cubs and Bachar to the Pirates. Miami did acquire right-handed reliever Victor Vodnik from the Rockies.
But overall, the Marlins opted to punt on the current season and build a more promising future. The players in the clubhouse are surely disappointed in the direction that was chosen.
Cardinals (56-57, 4 GB)
The Cardinals followed a very similar path as the Marlins. They traded Nootbaar to Arizona and packaged pitchers Dustin May and JoJo Romero to the Brewers. They made one addition in lefty reliever Caleb Ferguson from the Reds.
Nobody really expected the Cardinals to compete after retooling in the offseason, but they’ve surprised. Still, they mostly stuck to their rebuilding efforts.
Nationals (55-59, 5.5 GB)
The Nationals picked the worst time to have a six-game losing streak, prompting a switch to sell-mode. Washington traded All-Star starter Foster Griffin to the Guardians and sent first baseman Luis García Jr. to the Yankees. Maybe they shouldn’t even be on the list of contenders at this point.
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