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MLB Trade Deadline Blog: Yankees bolster bullpen with Doval, Bednar
The MLB Trade Deadline has come and gone. TSN.ca keeps you up to date on all deals that went down on Thursday.
TSN.ca Staff
The MLB Trade Deadline has come and gone. TSN.ca keeps you up to date on all deals that went down on Thursday.
You can also follow along with TSN.ca's MLB Trade Tracker.
Yankees add again, get Doval from Giants
Hours after acquiring David Bednar from the Pirates, the Yankees added another closer to their bullpen, acquiring Camilo Doval from the San Francisco Giants, according to ESPN's Jeff Passan.
Doval, 28, was an All-Star closer in 2023, when he racked up 39 saves with a 2.93 ERA. This season, he has a 3.09 ERA and 15 saves with 50 strikeouts in 46.2 innings.
Brewers acquire Miller, Montgomery from D'Backs
The Milwaukee Brewers have acquired pitcher Shelby Miller and Jordan Montgomery from the Arizona Diamondbacks, according to Jon Heyman of the New York Post.
Rangers get Kelly, Maton
The Texas Rangers are acquiring starter Merrill Kelly from the Arizona Diamondbacks, according to ESPN's Jeff Passan.
Kelly, 36, has a 3.22 ERA and 1.06 WHIP this season, with 121 strikeouts over 128.2 innings.
The veteran has a career 3.74 ERA over 162 major league starts, racking up 865 whiffs in 953 innings pitched.
According to The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal, the D'Backs are receiving pitchers Mitch Bratt, Kohl Drake and David Hagaman.
The Rangers also acquired reliever Phil Maton from the St. Louis Cardinals.
Rays deal Bradley to Twins for Jax, also acquire Houser
The Tampa Bay Rays traded starter Taj Bradley to the Minnesota Twins in exchange for reliever Griffin Jax, according to the Athletic's Dan Hayes.
Jax, 30, was one of the more sought after relievers on the market approaching the deadline. He has compiled a 4.50 ERA with 72 strikeouts over 46 innings this season.
Bradley, 24, has posted a 4.61 ERA and 1.28 WHIP with 95 strikeouts in 111.1 innings.
The Rays also acquired starter Adrian Houser from the Chicago White Sox, according to multiple reports.
Houser, 32, has a 2.10 ERA in 10 starts with the White Sox this season.
Red Sox acquire May
The Boston Red Sox are set to acquire starter Dustin may from the Los Angeles Dodgers, according to ESPN's Jeff Passan.
Astros complete blockbuster to bring back Correa, also add OF Sanchez
The Houston Astros have acquired shortstop Carlos Correa in a trade with the Minnesota Twins, per ESPN's Jeff Passan. The Astros are expected to deploy Correa at third base as a replacement for the injured Isaac Paredes.
Correa, 30, is hitting .267 in 93 games with the Twins this year, his fourth in Minnesota. Prior to that, Correa spent his first seven years with the Astros, helping the team win a World Series title in 2017 marred by a sign-stealing scandal.
Correa is a three-time All-Star, and won AL Rookie of the Year honours in 2015 with the Astros, but has dealt with foot injury issues over the last few years.
Houston enters play Wednesday with a five-game lead in the AL West standings at 62-47, but are contending with the loss of third baseman Isaac Paredes to a hamstring injury.
Houston has also acquired left-handed hitting outfielder Jesus Sanchez from the Miami Marlins, giving the Astros' battered lineup two impactful additions.
Sanchez has hit .256 in 86 games this season with 10 home runs and nine stolen bases. In return, Miami is receiving Astros righty Ryan Gusto, infielder Chase Jaworsky (No. 13 prospect, per MLB Pipeline) and outfielder Esmil Valencia.
MLB Network's Jon Heyman indicates that the Astros are still chasing an upgrade for the starting rotation, with the Arizona Diamondbacks' Merrill Kelly, Miami Marlins' Sandy Alcantara and San Diego Padres' Dylan Cease the top options.
Padres add O'Hearn, Laureano in deal with Orioles, Cortes from Brewers
The San Diego Padres continue their busy deadline, adding lefty first baseman Ryan O'Hearn and outfielder Ramon Laureano in a swap with the Baltimore Orioles, as reported by Passan.
Among the return for the Orioles is Padres' No. 4 prospect Boston Bateman per MLB Pipeline, a lefty pitcher. Also heading to Baltimore is infielder Cobb Hightower, Victor Figueora, Tyson Neighbors, and right hander Tanner Smith.
O'Hearn, 31, made his first career All-Star game in his eighth season this year, and has hit .283 in 94 games.
Laureano has had a resurgent season at the plate for Baltimore, hitting .290 with 15 homers.
The Padres already made waves earlier in the day when they shipped four of their top prospects to the Athletics to acquire star reliever Mason Miller and starter J.P. Sears.
San Diego owned the third wild-card slot at the beginning of action on Thursday at 60-49, three games behind the Los Angeles Dodgers for the NL West division lead.
The Padres later added starter Nestor Cortes from the Milwaukee Brewers in exchange for Brandon Lockridge, according to Jon Heyman
Royals get Falter, Yastrzemski
The Kansas City Royals are acquiring starter Bailey Falter form the Pittsburgh Pirates, according to ESPN's Jeff Passan.
Passan added that the Royals acquired outfielder Mike Yastrzemski from the San Francisco Giants.
Cubs land Castro, Rogers
The Chicago Cubs are acquiring utilityman Willi Castro from the Minnesota Twins, according to multiple reports.
The Cubs later added reliever Taylor Rogers from the Pittsburgh Pirates, one day after the veteran was dealt from Cincinnati to Pittsburgh as part of the return for third baseman Ke'Bryan Hayes.
The Cubs sent outfielder Ivan Brethowr to the Pirates, according to Ken Rosenthal.
Yankees deal Peraza to Angels, acquire Caballero
The Los Angeles Angels have acquired infielder Oswald Peraza from the New York Yankees, reports Bob Nightengale.
The Yankees then acquired utility infielder Jose Caballero from the Tampa Bay Rays for Everson Pereira and a player to be named later, Nightengale added.
Rangers adding lefty reliever Coulombe in deal with Twins
The Texas Rangers are acquiring lefty reliever Danny Coulombe in a deal with the Minnesota Twins, per Passan.
Coulombe has produced the best season of his 11-year MLB career this season, pitching to a 1.16 earned-run average over 40 games.
Coulombe has made stops with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Athletics, Twins and Baltimore Orioles in his career, and owns a 3.28 career ERA over 328 games.
Mets add OF Mullins in deal with Orioles
The New York Mets are bolstering their outfield, acquiring outfielder Cedric Mullins in a deal with the Baltimore Orioles, per MLB.com's Anthony DiComo.
Mullins has had an inconsistent season at the plate for the Orioles, hitting .229 through 91 games with 15 home runs.
The eighth-year player has hit .290 in 23 games in July, but was brutal between May and June, hitting .158 over 40 games in that two-month span.
This marks the third impact player the Mets have added in the final days before the trade deadline, joining relievers Tyler Rogers and Ryan Helsley.
Yankees make multiple moves to boost bullpen
The New York Yankees have made a pair of additions to the bullpen, with deals to acquire closer David Bednar from the Pittsburgh Pirates and Jake Bird from the Colorado Rockies, per multiple reports.
Catcher Rafael Flores, the No. 8 prospect in the Yankees' system, per MLB Pipeline, is headed back to the Pirates, along with catcher Edgleen Perez and outfielder Brian Sanchez, per multiple reports.
Bednar, 30, has bounced back nicely after a difficult 2024 campaign, as he owns a 2.37 ERA in 38 innings with 17 saves this year.
A two-time All-Star, Bednar has spent the last five years with the Pirates after two brief stints with the San Diego Padres. Bednar is under team control for another year, eligible to become a free agent after the 2026 season.
Bird, 29, has a 4.73 ERA in 45 games this season. The Rockies are getting second baseman Roc Riggio, the No. 10 prospect in the Yankees system and lefty pitcher Ben Shields from the Yankees in exchange for Bird.
There were questions as to how much the Yankees would commit this season, as they sit five games out of the lead in the AL East and recently lost superstar slugger and MVP favourite Aaron Judge to an elbow injury slated to keep him out for an indeterminate amount of time.
Now the Yankees are firmly in the running to repeat as American League champions. The Bronx Bombers fell in five games to the Los Angeles Dodgers in last year's World Series.
Blue Jays add C Valenzuela in deal with Padres
The Toronto Blue Jays added catcher Brandon Valenzuela in exchange for infielder Will Wagner a deal with the San Diego Padres.
Valenzuela, 24, is the No. 26 prospect in the Padres' system, per MLB Pipeline.
In 87 games at Double-A this season, Valenzuela has hit .229 with 12 home runs.
Wagner appeared in 64 games for the Blue Jays since the team acquired him from the Astros at last year's trade deadline. He hit .265 with two home runs and 18 runs batted in.
Blue Jays still hunting for bullpen help
The Toronto Blue Jays have been searching for back-end bullpen help to go with recently-acquired reliever Seranthony Dominguez, but the list of options continues to dwindle as the trade deadline approaches.
MLB.com's Keegan Matheson notes that the Jays have missed out on four major pieces already in Jhoan Duran (traded from the Minnesota Twins to Philadelphia Phillies), Ryan Helsley (St. Louis Cardinals to New York Mets), Mason Miller (Athletics to San Diego Padres) and Bednar, but the goal is still to make another addition in a potential closer role.
Jeff Hoffman has struggled as the closer for Toronto this year, pitching to a 4.76 ERA.
Padres swing major deal to acquire Miller, Sears from A's
The San Diego Padres have landed two big upgrades to their pitching staff, acquiring closer Mason Miller and starter J.P. Sears from the Athletics, per ESPN's Jeff Passan.
The Athletics are receiving the No. 3 prospect across MLB, shortstop Leodalis De Vries, along with right-handed pitchers Braden Nett (Padres' No. 3 prospect, per MLB Pipeline), Henry Baez (Padres' No. 13) and Eduarniel Nunez (Padres' No. 17), according to Passan.
Miller, 26, was held out of Wednesday's 5-4 win over the Seattle Mariners, with reliever Jack Perkins coming on to pitch the top of the ninth to protect a two-run lead. Athletics manager Mark Kotsay told reporters that Miller was "unavailable" to pitch in the contest, later clarifying that the decision was not injury-related.
The Pittsburgh native owns the fastest average fastball velocity in all of baseball according to Statcast, clocking in at 101.1 MPH, and has recorded the second-highest strikeout rate among relievers this season.
Currently sporting a 3.76 ERA to go along with a 1.02 WHIP and 59 strikeouts across 38.1 innings pitched, Miller would slide into the back-end of a Padres bullpen headlined by Robert Suarez and Adrian Morejon, that owns the lowest earned run average (2.98) and WHIP (1.16) in the Majors.
Sears has had an inconsistent season across 22 starts, with a 4.95 ERA and 97 strikeouts over 111 innings pitched. He fills in as a back-end rotation piece.
De Vries, 18, is expected to reach the majors by 2027. The top signing in the 2024 international market has an impressive knowledge of the strike zone and has a plus grade in all five tools.
Padres add catcher in deal with Royals
The Padres filled their need for a catcher, acquiring Freddy Fermin from the Kansas City Royals, per ESPN's Jeff Passan.
In exchange, the Padres parted with a couple of fill-in starters in Ryan Bergert and Stephen Kolek.
The Padres had received a combined .597 OPS from their catching tandem of Martin Maldonado and Elias Diaz this season, ranked 27th in the majors.
Fermin - who is slashing .255/.309/.339 this year and .270/.317/.386 in three years as Salvador Perez's backup - provides only a modest offensive boost. But, at 30 years old and controllable through 2029, he gives the Padres a younger option behind the plate and, at least in some ways, a defensive upgrade. Fermin boasts one of the best pop times in the sport and grades out above average in pitch framing and blocking.
Bergert, 25, carried a 2.78 ERA in 11 games (seven starts) with the Padres in his debut season this year. Kolek, 28, has posted a 4.56 ERA in 56 games (14 starts) over the last two years.
Phillies acquiring Bader from Twins
The Philadelphia Phillies and Minnesota Twins are reuniting for a second deal, per ESPN's Jeff Passan.
The Twins are receiving Hendry Mendez, an outfield prospect, and right hander Geremy Villoria, a pitching prospect, in return, according to The Athletic's Matt Gelb.
The two sides completed a blockbuster deal on Wednesday, with Minnesota sending closer Jhoan Duran over to Philadelphia, and Minnesota is now sending outfielder Harrison Bader to the Phillies.
Bader, 31, has hit .258 in 96 games with the Twins this season. He has played all three outfield positions this season, and took home a Gold Glove playing centre field with the St. Louis Cardinals in 2021.
The Phillies trail the New York Mets by a half-game in the National League East standings entering play on Thursday.
Tigers grab Finnegan in deal with Nationals, Morton from Orioles
The Detroit Tigers are continuing to build up their bullpen, adding closer Kyle Finnegan in a deal with the Washington Nationals.
Per Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic, the Nationals are receiving pitching prospects Josh Randall and RJ Sales in the deal.
Finnegan, 33, has pitched to a career-worst 4.38 ERA in a down year for the sixth-year veteran. He has 20 saves in 40 games this season.
Detroit swung a deal to acquire Paul Sewald from the Cleveland Guardians earlier in the day, as the team looks to maintain its lead in the AL Central.
The Tigers are tied with the Toronto Blue Jays atop the American League standings at 64-46 entering Thursday's action.
Detroit also acquired veteran starter Charlie Morton from the Baltimore Orioles on Thursday.
Dodgers acquire Stewart from Twins, Call from Nationals
The Twins continued dealing parts of their bullpen, sending reliever Brock Stewart to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The Twins are receiving outfielder James Outman in return for Stewart. Outman has played in parts of four seasons for the Dodgers, and has a .103 average in 22 games this season.
Stewart, 33, holds a 2.38 ERA with 41 strikeouts over 34 innings this season.
Stewart returns to the Dodgers after being drafted by the club in the sixth round of the 2014 MLB Draft. He was waived by Los Angeles and picked up by the Toronto Blue Jays in 2019
The Dodgers also acquired outfielder Alex Call from the Washington Nationals in exchange for Sean Paul Linan and Eriq Swan. The 30-year-old is hitting .274 this season with three home runs, 26 RBI and 30 runs scored.
Red Sox looking for pitching, first base help
The Boston Red Sox are in talks with the Arizona Diamondbacks in search of starting pitching for the stretch run, Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic reports.
Boston is reportedly looking to acquire either Merrill Kelly or Zac Gallen for rotation help from Arizona.
Kelly, a seven-year veteran at age 36, has a 3.22 ERA across 22 starts this season. Gallen has higher upside and a stronger resume - he finished top-10 in Cy Young voting three times in the last five seasons - but is struggling this year to a 5.60 ERA.
The Red Sox were one of the teams in to the end on Diamondbacks third baseman Eugenio Suarez, who was dealt to the Seattle Mariners on Wednesday, and were intent on playing him at first base.
Cease, Suarez the names to watch from San Diego
With the Padres having grabbed two arms for the bullpen and rotation, the expectation is both Dylan Cease and Robert Suarez will be traded by day's end.
San Diego has holes to fill in the lineup - they've received poor production from the catcher, second base and left field spots in the lineup all year.
They enter Thursday ranked 25th in the majors in runs scored and are rumoured to be interested in Boston Red Sox outfielder Jarren Duran and Cleveland Guardians outfielder Steven Kwan, according to ESPN's Buster Olney.
Suarez, an All-Star the last two seasons with a 3.50 earned-run average this year, is expected to decline his player option at the end of this year, and teams are reportedly interested in the righty as a rental.
Cease is in the same situation, a pending free agent at season's end.
Cease has struggled this season to a 4.79 ERA, but the resume is elite otherwise: he has finished in the top five in Cy Young voting twice over the last three seasons, and his overpowering fastball (that regularly exceeds 100mph) has led to him generating the highest strikeout rate in the majors this season (11.6 per nine innings).
Blue Jays looking for another bullpen arm
The Toronto Blue Jays landed former Cy Young award winner Shane Bieber in a deal with the Cleveland Guardians on Thursday, and it appears they continue to look for pitching help.
The Jays have discussed a deal with the St. Louis Cardinals for right-handed reliever Phil Maton, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.
Maton, 32, has been a dependable reliever for the Cardinals this season, posting a 2.35 earned-run average and a 1.122 WHIP in 38.1 innings pitched.
The LSU product is among baseball's elite in limiting hard contact, currently in the 99th percentile for average exit velocity (84.8) and hard-hit rate (28.9).
St. Louis has firmly positioned themselves as sellers this trade deadline, already shipping off Ryan Helsley to the New York Mets and Steven Matz to the Boston Red Sox.
The Blue Jays acquired Seranthony Dominguez from the Baltimore Orioles on Tuesday, and appear committed to continue adding to their bullpen as the deadline nears.
Maton is set for free agency at the end of the 2025 season after inking a one-year, $2 million contract signed with the Cardinals this offseason.
Alcantara market heating up
Miami Marlins starter Sandy Alcantara is generating increased interest around the league, The New York Post's Jon Heyman reports.
Among the teams interested in the 2022 Cy Young winner are the Houston Astros, New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox.
Alcantara has struggled for most of the season in his return from Tommy John surgery a year ago, as evidenced by his 6.36 ERA on the campaign, but the righty has shown signs of a turnaround since the All-Star break.
In his last two starts, Alcantara has thrown 12 shutout innings with eight strikeouts and only 10 baserunners allowed.
Rays, Dodgers complete small deal
The Tampa Bay Rays have traded catcher Ben Rortvedt, righty pitcher Paul Gervase and lefty Adam Serwinowski to the Los Angeles Dodgers for catcher Hunter Feduccia.
Rortvedt, 27, has hit .095 in 26 games for the Rays this year, while Gervase holds a 4.26 ERA over five games. Serwinowski is the No. 13 prospect in the Dodgers' system.
Returns for Duran, Helsley may embolden teams to sell
ESPN's Buster Olney reports that general managers around the league may be moved to sell, given the returns in deals on Wednesday for Jhoan Duran and Ryan Helsley.
Olney joined First Up on TSN1050 to talk about the trade deadline, and said that the general reaction around the league was shock.
The Minnesota Twins received top young pitcher Mick Abel and catching prospect Eduardo Tait - who became the Twins' No. 4 prospect per MLB Pipeline - for Duran, while the St. Louis Cardinals received three prospects - two of which immediately slotted into the top 15 of their farm system, per MLB Pipeline, for Helsley.
"For the Phillies to give up essentially their No. 3 and No. 6 prospect for Duran was an eye opener," Olney said. "To the point that it might embolden some teams who weren't necessarily going to sell to put relievers out there. Mason Miller of the A's, who was thought to be off the table, now he's on the table."
"The best options out there are David Bednar, Mason Miller, a tier down are guys like Raisel Iglesias, who's had a down year and is more of a salary dump, Pete Fairbanks is someone who is going to interest other teams."
Astros casting wide net in search of improvements
The Houston Astros are reportedly in pursuit of some big names in the starting pitching market, according the The New York Post's Jon Heyman.
Heyman reports that the Astros are talking to the Miami Marlins about a potential deal to acquire Alcantara, as well as the Padres regarding a potential deal to acquire 2022 Cy Young runner-up Cease.
The Astros may be under pressure to make a splash before the deadline after the Seattle Mariners acquired the top bat on the market on Wednesday night, Eugenio Suarez.
Heyman also notes that Houston, who leads the Mariners in the AL West by five games, is also looking for a third baseman.
Tigers acquire reliever Sewald from Guardians
The Detroit Tigers have made an addition to their bullpen, adding veteran righty Paul Sewald in a deal with the Cleveland Guardians.
Sewald, 35, has pitched to a 4.70 ERA with Cleveland this year. His last appearance came on July 11, and he is currently on the 15-day Injured List with a shoulder injury.
Detroit is sending a player to be named later or cash back to the Guardians in the deal, per reports.
This marks the second deal of the day for the Guardians, who earlier agreed to trade former Cy Young winner Shane Bieber to the Blue Jays.
Robert Jr. unlikely to be dealt
The market for Chicago White Sox outfielder Luis Robert Jr. appears to be shrinking, according to MLB.com's Mark Feinsand.
The Phillies, Mets and Padres were among teams interested.
Robert is hitting .213 on the season, but has been scorching hot in the month of July, showcasing the upside that made the centrefielder an All-Star and MVP candidate in 2023. He's hit .353 with a .990 on-base plus slugging in 15 games in July.
Blue Jays acquire Bieber from Guardians
The Blue Jays made a splash in the starting pitching market, acquiring righty Shane Bieber from the Guardians.
Righty pitcher Khal Stephen, the No. 5 prospect in the Blue Jays' system, was sent back to Cleveland to complete the deal.
Bieber has yet to pitch in the majors in 2025 after recovering from elbow surgery a year ago, but when active, Bieber has been one of the more dominant arms in the sport.
The 30-year-old took home Cy Young honours in 2020 after pitching to a 1.63 earned-run average with an 8-1 record in 12 games in the pandemic-shortened season.
Bieber struck out seven with no walks in four innings in his latest rehab start and is nearing a return to action.
This marks the second move to upgrade the pitching staff before the deadline for the Blue Jays, who acquired reliever Seranthony Dominguez in a deal with the Baltimore Orioles earlier this week.
In 136 career games (134 starts), Bieber owns a 3.22 ERA with 958 strikeouts in 843 innings.
Pirates not expected to be major sellers
The Pittsburgh Pirates are expected to move closer David Bednar, but may stand pat otherwise, per Jon Heyman of the New York Post.
Bednar is one of the top arms available for bullpen help, with his 2.37 ERA on the season a major return to form for the two-time All-Star after he struggled in last year's campaign.
Heyman reports that other Pirates pieces that have generated interest, including starter Mitch Keller and outfielders Oneil Cruz and Bryan Reynolds are not likely to be dealt by the deadline later today.
The Pirates are the fourth-worst team in the NL entering Thursday's action at 47-62.
Yankees looking for arms
The New York Yankees are "looking hard" at pitching help and are prioritizing relievers, reports Jon Heyman of the New York Post.
Yankees looking hard at pitching: Pen is the priority. One other option would be to move 100-mph-throwing Cam Schlittler to the pen.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) July 31, 2025
Heyman adds that one option would be moving hard-throwing right-hander Cam Schlittler to the bullpen if they bring in a starter.
Schlitter averages nearly 98mph on his fastball but has issued nine walks in 14.2 innings pitched over three starts.
New York comes into play Thursday 21st in bullpen ERA at 4.24.