Two weeks out from the MLB trade deadline, and the standings are as muddled as ever. Plenty of teams think they can contend for a World Series this season, and yet they all have weaknesses that could need addressing.
Dodgers starting pitchers are dropping like Spinal Tap drummers, the Cubs are missing several key arms and the Mariners are competing not because of, but despite their biggest superstar. Meanwhile, the Guardians remain one of the most dangerous teams heading down the stretch but also boast MLB’s worst slugging percentage.
From the Brewers’ search for another ace to the Yankees’ black hole of offensive production behind the plate, here’s a look at the most glaring weaknesses facing every contender heading into the trade deadline.
Los Angeles Dodgers: Rotation health
The Dodgers don’t have any real weaknesses across their roster, but the issue is the guys who aren’t currently playing. Starting pitchers Tyler Glasnow, Blake Snell, Bobby Miller and Gavin Stone are all on the 60-day IL, and Shohei Ohtani missed his final turn before the break after dealing with a knee issue. That is a lot of talent not currently in the rotation. Despite that, L.A. has the best record in baseball at 63–37.
It could work out that the Dodgers get Glasnow and Snell back for the stretch run and add them to Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto for a fearsome foursome atop the rotation. But neither of those guys is terribly reliable health-wise, and it’s hard to imagine Roki Sasaki or Emmet Sheehan starting a key postseason game. A deal for, say, Tarik Skubal would cause apocalyptic levels of fury among opposing fan bases but would also be the smart move.
Milwaukee Brewers: Front of the rotation
The Brewers continue to defy the odds by trading some of their best players yet staying competitive. After moving ace Freddy Peralta in the offseason, they’re 62–37, leading the NL Central and have the second-best record in baseball. That said, if they finally want to win a World Series, the roster needs a boost, specifically atop the rotation.
Milwaukee has the second-best ERA in the sport at 3.45, and they’re second among starting rotations (3.38). Despite that, they don’t have an ace with big game experience. Jacob Misiorowski is on his way to winning a Cy Young, and Kyle Harrison has been a great addition, but the rotation needs a legit veteran stopper for the postseason after it was announced over the weekend that Brandon Woodruff needs another shoulder surgery. The recently acquired Lance McCullers Jr., who started Game 7 of the 2017 World Series before crumbling due to injuries over the last few years, is no longer that guy. A big move for someone approaching ace level before the deadline makes a lot of sense.
Hey, is Peralta available?
Atlanta Braves: Starting pitching depth
The Braves still hold first place in the NL East despite a hard and determined charge by the Phillies over the past few months. If Atlanta wants to stay in that spot, it must find some depth for a starting rotation ravaged by injuries. As a group, the team’s starters have a combined ERA of 3.97, which ranks ninth in MLB. That’s not bad, but things are getting thin.
Spencer Strider is on the 60-day IL, as is Spencer Schwellenbach, while AJ Smith-Shawver is working his way back from Tommy John surgery, and it’s unclear how many innings his arm can handle this season. Martín Pérez is also on the 15-day IL. The Braves need bodies to fill out their rotation. Adding a mid-rotation starter or two at the deadline would be ideal.
Tampa Bay Rays: Slugging
The Rays own the best record in the American League and boast a well-rounded roster that can pitch it and hit it, but has one serious weakness: a lack of power.
Tampa ranks 16th in slugging (.399) and 26th in home runs (98). The team only has four regulars with a slugging percentage over .400, and Junior Caminero is the only player on the roster with 15 or more home runs. His 28 dingers rank second in the AL and are carrying the load for the roster. He needs help.
Chicago Cubs: Starting pitching
The Cubs might be the most snakebitten team in baseball when it comes to their starting rotation. In 2025, top starter Justin Steele needed Tommy John surgery and still isn’t back, and this year the same thing happened to Cade Horton. Unfortunately, that’s not where the misery ended for Chicago’s starters.
Edward Cabrera and Jameson Taillon are also currently on the IL, leaving Shota Imanaga and Colin Rea as the only active pitchers with 10 or more starts this season. The rotation as a whole ranks 20th in ERA (4.42). They swung a trade for David Peterson at the end of May, but he’s posted an 8.16 ERA in three starts with the franchise.
Chicago needs at least one starter before the deadline and could use even more help.
New York Yankees: Catcher
The Yankees need to get healthy and could use a bat or two to tide them over until Aaron Judge returns, assuming he returns at all. The team’s biggest area of concern is behind the plate, where Austin Wells has endured a brutal season.
Wells has played in 67 games and slashed .153/.244/.255 with six home runs, 13 RBIs and a woeful wRC+ of 41. Yankees catchers have produced -1.1 WAR this season. That needs to change.
There could be some options out there at the deadline, but catchers who can hit are a rare commodity these days, and it would likely cost a decent chunk of prospect capital to acquire one. Given the lack of options inside the organization, it might be worth the investment.
Philadelphia Phillies: Outfield
Brandon Marsh was an All-Star for the first time this season, but outside of his work, the Phillies have been a mess in the outfield. Adolis Garcia is out for the season, Justin Crawford’s rookie campaign has fallen flat and Gabriel Rincones Jr. has a .489 OPS. To give you an idea of how bleak things are: Marsh has produced 1.7 WAR this season, yet Phillies outfielders as a whole have been worth -3.2 WAR.
If Philadelphia wants to continue its run to the top of the NL East and into the playoffs, it has to stop the bleeding in the outfield. The Phillies need to add a corner bat, and while Crawford is only 22 and will likely be better in time, he isn’t ready to start in center for a contender. If he were an elite fielder, we’d be having a different conversation. Unfortunately, Crawford has produced -1 OAA.
Chicago White Sox: Starting pitching
The White Sox are the surprise of the season and, given where they’re at in their build, they need to exercise patience at the deadline. This isn’t the year to go all-in, but if they want to buy cautiously, the obvious place to add is the starting rotation. Chicago’s starters rank 14th in MLB with a 4.21 ERA and are 13th in WHIP (1.29).
There is no real ace atop Chicago’s rotation, and they shouldn’t go overboard to land one unless the returning player has multiple years of control. Davis Martin and Sean Burke have been solid. 2024 first-round pick Hagen Smith has elite raw stuff, but he’s scuffled in Triple A this year and is dealing with a shoulder injury. He likely won’t be riding to the rescue.
The team has a loaded farm system and shouldn’t surrender long-term growth for a boost in 2026. That said, a small deal to bolster the rotation feels likely.
St. Louis Cardinals: Starting pitching
The Cardinals are another team that didn’t expect to be here and, in what looked like a rebuilding year, they’re contending. Despite solid seasons from Michael McGreevy and Andre Pallante, neither is the ace the team needs. If St. Louis really wants to make a postseason push, it needs a stud at the front of the rotation.
Frankly, Sonny Gray would be a perfect target, which is ironic because the Cardinals traded him to the Red Sox this offseason to dump salary. Gray is 12–1 with a 2.48 ERA for Boston, a team that is rolling and unlikely to sell. St. Louis is actually paying him $20 million this year to not pitch for them.
Like the White Sox, this is not the year for the Cardinals to go all-in. But adding a starter or two could help down the stretch.
Cleveland Guardians: Power
Cleveland is, once again, in a great spot to make a playoff run. The Guardians are tied atop the AL Central and are positioned for a wild-card spot. And they’ve done it all while sporting the worst slugging percentage in baseball at .368. The team’s OPS is also 30th (.678) and they rank 27th in home runs (94). Rookie Chase DeLauter currently leads the team with 11 homers, and he hit four of those in the first three games of the season.
The Guardians need a power boost, particularly in the outfield, where defensive wizard Steven Kwan is slugging .299, center fielder Daniel Schneemann’s OPS is .610, while Khalil Watson’s is .569. Kwan’s name was thrown around in trade rumors last season, and it’s possible Cleveland could look to move him while importing a power bat at a corner.
Seattle Mariners: Cal Raleigh
The Mariners find themselves in contention despite a brutal season from Cal Raleigh. The team’s biggest weakness was once its biggest weapon. The superstar catcher who blasted 60 home runs and nearly won the AL MVP award last season has tanked this year while also missing time with an oblique injury. So what do the Mariners need? Well, they need 2025 Cal Raleigh back. Heck, they’d settle for 2024 Cal Raleigh.
Through 65 games this season, Raleigh is slashing .163/.267/.298 with nine home runs, 29 RBIs and a wRC+ of 70, which is 91 points lower than last season. He’s shown no tangible signs of improvement while posting a .531 OPS this month. While the Big Dumper is struggling, Seattle ranks 29th in slugging (.377) and 27th in OPS (.686). The Mariners need their biggest bat to start thumping the ball again.
Miami Marlins: Closer
The Marlins are a surprise contender for a postseason spot this year, but in an odd twist, it is their biggest offseason addition who’s causing them problems. There are few more entertaining players in baseball than Pete Fairbanks, but he has not lived up to the one-year, $13 million deal Miami handed him this offseason. In 33 games, Fairbanks is 3–4 with a 7.42 ERA, 1.52 WHIP and 41 strikeouts against 14 walks in 30 1/3 innings. He has 13 saves in 16 opportunities and has already allowed a career-high eight home runs.
If they truly want to contend this season, the Marlins need more help at the back end of the bullpen. Fairbanks doesn’t have to be completely removed from closing opportunities, but the team needs someone else who can step in at that spot if he continues to falter.
Pittsburgh Pirates: Bullpen
The Pirates are within striking distance of a playoff spot despite some surprising struggles from ace Paul Skenes. It’s an exciting team with a solid farm system that is coming together sooner than expected. The rotation has been solid despite Skenes’s struggles, and the offense boasts an OPS (.769) that ranks second in MLB. Unfortunately, the bullpen hasn’t been up to snuff.
Pittsburgh’s relievers have combined for an ERA of 4.44, which ranks 23rd in baseball. The team doesn’t really have a true closer, and Gregory Soto’s 12 saves have come with five opportunities blown. He’s not the guy. If the Pirates really want to make a run this year, they need to find a top-level closer and probably a setup guy at the deadline.
Both of those moves will cost prospect capital, but Pittsburgh is dealing from an area of strength.
Boston Red Sox: Catcher
A few weeks ago, the Red Sox were destined to be selling at the deadline; a 13-game win streak (and counting) changed that in a hurry. Now, Boston is looking to improve and carry that momentum down the stretch. If that’s going to happen, the franchise needs to improve its catching situation.
Carlos Narvaez and Connor Wong have shared catching duties this season and have struggled with consistency. Narvaez has badly regressed at the plate after receiving some AL Rookie of the Year votes last year, slashing .200/.266/.294, while Wong is at .276/.375/.371. Wong’s 117 wRC+ is solidly above average, but he only has one home run and isn’t a great defensive backstop. Boston should go outside the organization for a real solution.
