The Toronto Blue Jays made significant upgrades to their pitching staff with the additions of Shane Bieber, Seranthony Domínguez, Louis Varland, and Ty France in recent days, but they weren’t the only team making moves.
While the Blue Jays undoubtedly improved, they remain in a tight race atop the American League and the AL East. Understanding how much better equipped they are for those battles requires knowledge of how the teams most competitively relevant to them fared at the deadline.
So, let’s take a look at how much better the teams around the Blue Jays got, to give Toronto’s deadline a little more context.
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Why are they relevant?: Despite Toronto’s dominance over New York in head-to-head play recently, the Yankees remain the Blue Jays’ top competition for the AL East title.
Who did they add?: RP David Bednar, RP Camillo Dorval, RP Jake Bird, 3B Ryan McMahon, INF Amed Rosario, OF Austin Slater, 2B/SS José Caballero
Who did they subtract?: SP Griffing Herring (A+), SP Josh Grosz (AA), SP Gage Ziehl (AA), RP Clayton Beeter (AAA), OF Browm Martinez (DSL), C Rafael Flores (AAA), C Edgleen Perez (A), OF Brian Sanchez (A), 2B Roc Riggio (AA), SP Ben Shield (AA), OF Everson Pereira (AAA), SP Trystan Vrieling (AA), C/3B Jesus Rodriguez (AAA), 1B/3B Parks Harber (A+), SP Carlos De La Rosa (DSL), INF Oswald Peraza, PTBNL or cash
Did they lose anyone who would’ve helped this season?: Beeter had pitched 3.2 innings for the Yankees this season and could’ve conceivably been a late-season callup, but he wasn’t a notable near-term subtraction as a reliever struggling with his control at Triple-A. Peraza spent plenty of time on the big-league roster in 2025, but didn’t provide positive value.
What was the impact?: New York replaced three-quarters of its bench and 37.5 percent of its bullpen while adding a much-needed starting third baseman.
The relief additions are the most dramatic as Bednar and Dorval are fireballers with extensive closing resumes. Bird is less well-known, but he’s an ascending arm who combines bat-missing ability with a sinker that keeps the ball on the ground. That trio has combined to produce more fWAR this season (2.5) than 15 entire MLB bullpens this season — including New York’s (1.4).
With a trio of moves, the Yankees went from having an underwhelming group of relievers to providing opponents with a late-game gauntlet. The transformation will be even more impactful if Devin Williams can find his footing in pinstripes.
Before McMahon’s arrival, the Yankee third basemen hit .222/.301/.359 and produced just 0.8 fWAR. While it’s unclear how the veteran will fare after escaping the Rockies and Coors Field’s eccentricities, he’s a credible glove-first option at the hot corner.
None of the other position players projects to have a full-time role, but both Rosario and Slater have a wRC+ over 130 against southpaws this season. Caballero is a top-notch infield defender who provides some insurance in case Anthony Volpe’s recent defensive wobbles become a persistent issue.
The Yankees turned over a large portion of their roster, addressing some of their most notable holes in the process. They didn’t become a juggernaut overnight, but the bullpen remake, in particular, has changed the shape of the team and made it significantly more formidable.
Why are they relevant?: Boston may have traded Rafael Devers in a move that weakened them for 2025 back in June, but they sit just 1.5 games behind the Yankees in the standings.
Who did they add?: SP Dustin May, RP Steven Matz
Who did they subtract?: 1B/3B Blaze Jordan (AAA), OF James Tibbs III (AA), OF Zach Ehrhard (AA)
Did they lose anyone who would’ve helped this season?: Boston’s difficulties at first base are well documented, and Jordan was one phone call away from the majors, but if the Red Sox perceived him as a near-term solution, it’s unlikely they would’ve moved him for a rental reliever like Matz.
What was the impact?: May will fortify the back of Boston’s rotation, but he’s carrying a 4.85 ERA backed by a 4.88 xERA, and his velocity has gone from elite to merely above-average.
It’s possible the Red Sox can rejuvenate him, but he’s a floor raiser rather than an impact arm at this point.
Matz is having a stellar season out of the bullpen, but he’s a low-strikeout (7.69 K/9) southpaw who’s more suited to give the team length than help it navigate high-leverage situations.
The Red Sox got better in a literal sense, but they improved less than the teams around them — including the Blue Jays.
While this probably wasn’t the right moment for the Red Sox to go all-in, they certainly disappointed some of their fanbase, which Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow acknowledged on Thursday evening.
Why are they relevant?: The Rays could conceivably make a late push for an AL East title, but the wild card is a more realistic goal as they sit two games below .500.
Who did they add?: SP Adrian Houser, RP Griffin Jax, C Nick Fortes, C Hunter Feduccia (AAA), SP Brian Van Belle (AAA)
Who did they subtract?: SP Zach Littell, SP Taj Bradley, C, Danny Jansen, C Ben Rortvedt (AAA), RP Paul Gervase (AAA), OF Matthew Etzel (AA), 2B/SS José Caballero, INF Curtis Mead (AAA), SP Duncan Davitt (AAA), RP Ben Peoples (AAA)
Did they lose anyone who would’ve helped this season?: Littell was an impactful contributor to the rotation with 3.58 ERA over 133.1 innings — the seventh-highest total in the majors. Bradley had recently been sent to Triple-A, but not before pitching 111.1 innings for the Rays and producing 1.5 fWAR.
Meanwhile, Jansen produced a respectable 97 wRC+ as a backstop with surprisingly suspect defensive metrics, bringing down his total value. Mead logged some time in the majors this season, but struggled offensively.
What was the impact?: Tampa had a characteristic deadline that saw the franchise mix buying and selling in its everlasting quest for surplus value.
Littell was having a strong season, but so is Houser. Losing Bradley hurts the Rays’ rotation depth, but adding Jax strengthens its bullpen. Tampa Bay’s catching situation may have worsened in the short term, but Feduccia might just factor in and raise the team’s ceiling at the position.
If history is any indication, the Rays will come out on top somehow, but it probably won’t be by a massive margin in 2025.
Why are they relevant?: The Tigers are tied with the Blue Jays atop the American League.
Who did they add?: SP Chris Paddack, SP Charlie Morton, RP Kyle Finnegan, RP Paul Sewald, RP Rafeal Montero, RP Randy Dobnak (AAA), RP Codi Heuer (AAA)
Who did they subtract?: C Enrique Jimenez (A), SP Josh Randall (A+), SP R.J. Sales (A), INF Jim Jarvis (AA), PTBNL or cash, cash.
Did they lose anyone who would’ve helped this season?: No
The Tigers added two pitchers to a rotation that was hurting after losing Reese Olson to a season-ending injury, but the duo of Paddack and Morton has combined for a 5.07 ERA in 2025, and it’s possible neither would crack a postseason rotation.
Detroit also added three brand-name veteran relievers in Finnegan, Sewald, and Montero. If this were 2022, that would be a stellar haul as the trio had a collective 2.85 ERA, all working in high leverage.
Fast forward to the present, and Sewald’s health is a question mark; Montero hasn’t had an ERA under 4.70 in three seasons, and Finnegan lost a full 1 mph on his fastball this season while posting a scary-low strikeout rate (7.38 K/9).
Detroit bought in bulk, and while its slight upgrades to the bottom of the roster might help it in the race for playoff positions, the team didn’t become a more formidable postseason foe despite the certainty that it’ll be playing in October.
Why are they relevant?: The Astros sit 1.5 games behind the Blue Jays in the battle for the top of the American League.
Who did they add?: SS Carlos Correa, OF Jesús Sánchez, 3B Ramón Urías,
Who did they subtract?: SP/RP Ryan Gusto,SP/RP Twine Palmer (A), RP Matt Mikulski (A+)
Did they lose anyone who would’ve helped this season?: Gusto had been giving the team some manageable innings as a swingman, but was a role player unlikely to move the needle.
What was the impact?: In a trade market where far more pitchers than position players were changing addresses, Houston got some notable bats.
Correa’s homecoming and a move to third base might help his bat come alive, but he’s no sure thing to provide middle-of-the-order impact in the midst of a 97 wRC+ season. His career .282/.352/.508 line in 358 postseason plate appearances may have Houston believing he’ll deliver when it matters the most, though.
Sánchez is an underrated asset as long as he’s deployed carefully. He mashes right-handed pitching (125 wRC+) while displaying comical ineptitude against southpaws (7 wRC+). Urías is more of a bench player, but he’s an interesting buy-low hitter who has traditionally provided above league-average production.
The Astros entered the deadline with the AL’s most productive pitching staff by fWAR (15.4), and the jolt of offence could help them become the most dangerous team in the Junior Circuit.
Why are they relevant?: They are unlikely to threaten the Blue Jays’ playoff position directly, but they are a possible post-season under a few different scenarios — and just had an eye-opening deadline.
Who did they add?: 3B Eugenio Suárez, 1B Josh Naylor, RP Caleb Ferguson
Who did they subtract?: RP Juan Burgos, RP Brandyn Garcia, 1B Tyler Locklear (AAA), RP Hunter Cranton (A+), SP Ashton Izzi (A+), SP Jeter Martinez (A)
Did they lose anyone who would’ve helped this season?: No
What was the impact?: In a market low on above-average bats, the Mariners scooped up two of them in Suárez and Naylor.
Both slot into the middle of the lineup for a team that entered deadline day as MLB’s 12th-best run-scoring offence. Seattle finished July ranking fifth in home runs, and projects to become one of the majors’ best quick-strike lineups with the addition of Suárez, who has 36 homers already.
Seattle probably should’ve done more to help its bullpen, but the Mariners’ lineup looks potent, and its rotation is playoff-ready with four above-average options in Luis Castillo, Logan Gilbert, Brian Woo, and George Kirby.
The Mariners are five games back in the AL West, but they are positioned to make a run, and the combination of a powerful lineup and deep rotation is a good foundation to work from.
