All 30 teams have one goal entering the MLB season: winning
the World Series. But by the end of July, we're able to differentiate the
contenders from the pretenders. Most of the teams with a viable shot at winning
the 2018 World Series were active at the July 31 trade deadline. Here are all
20 remaining viable World Series contenders ranked, as of Aug. 1.
1. HOUSTON ASTROS
The reigning champs made headlines at the trade deadline by
acquiring maligned former Blue Jays closer Roberto Osuna for Ken Giles and two
pitching prospects. Osuna's 75-game suspension for his domestic abuse arrest
will end later this week, but it's clear he makes the dominant Astros bullpen
even better. Aside from injuries to middle infield stars Carlos Correa and Jose
Altuve, Houston doesn't have many holes and leads MLB in run differential
(+180) through 109 games.
2. BOSTON RED SOX
Boston didn't make any huge deadline splashes, but the team
clearly improved by adding Nathan Eovaldi and Ian Kinsler. The team continues
to hold off the Yankees in the AL East and has an impressive +176 run
differential after 109 games, trailing only the Astros. The big concern now is
Chris Sale, who went on the DL with a shoulder injury but isn't expected to
miss significant time.
3. LOS ANGELES DODGERS
The Dodgers are in a dogfight in the AL West, but their
deadline deals will certainly help their cause. During July, they added Manny
Machado, Brian Dozier and John Axford. The team's +91 run differential trails
only the Cubs in the National League, and that's despite the absence of Clayton
Kershaw for part of the first half. The Dodgers are getting healthy at the
right time with the recent return of Yasiel Puig and now have a truly imposing
lineup, adding to Matt Kemp, Cody Bellinger, Max Muncy and hopefully Justin
Turner by the playoffs.
4. NEW YORK YANKEES
Yankees general manager Brian Cashman did a nice job adding
for this year with Zach Britton, J.A. Happ, and Lance Lynn while also keeping
the team's top prospects and even adding to its international spending money.
The question is whether the additions will be enough, as the Yanks looked
primed for the AL wild card one-game playoff trailing the Red Sox by 5.5 games
and without Aaron Judge and Gary Sanchez for at least a few weeks. The Yankees
also have to figure out what to do with Sonny Gray, who continues to struggle
in the rotation.
5. CLEVELAND INDIANS
Cleveland paid dearly when it traded top catching prospect
Francisco Mejia to the Padres for relievers Brad Hand and Adam Cimber, but it
was a deal the Indians had to make to compete in this year's playoffs. They
also added Leonys Martin, who will likely man center field the rest of the way
due to the team's injuries. The Indians have a chance to beat anyone because of
their big three of Corey Kluber, Carlos Carrasco, and Trevor Bauer, but it
remains to be seen if their big lead in the weak AL Central will be a help or a
hindrance.
6. CHICAGO CUBS
Despite a thin farm system, Theo Epstein and Co. were able
to address needs by adding Cole Hamels and Brandon Kintzler to the pitching
staff. The starting rotation has shown signs of chafing with struggles from
Jose Quintana and Mike Montgomery recently, and Hamels shows upside despite
recent struggles due to his high strikeout rate. Now the biggest concern is
Kris Bryant's recurring shoulder injury.
7. MILWAUKEE BREWERS
The Brewers showed that they're going all in, adding
infielders Mike Moustakas and Jonathan Schoop at the deadline. The infield will
have Travis Shaw and Schoop playing out of their natural positions up the
middle, but their powerful bats should make up for the defensive issues.
Milwaukee has been keeping up with the Cubs despite mediocre starting pitching,
and the lineup is arguably the scariest in the NL, adding to Jesus Aguilar,
Lorenzo Cain, Christian Yelich, and Ryan Braun.
8. WASHINGTON NATIONALS
It seems like the sky is falling in Washington, with the
Nats well behind in the NL East. There were trade rumors involving Bryce Harper
and Gio Gonzalez, but the team opted to keep the pair in their walk years.
Washington did trade Brandon Kintzler, weakening the bullpen. Still, it's tough
to overlook the team's star power with Harper, Max Scherzer, Juan Soto, Daniel
Murphy and hopefully the return of Stephen Strasburg from injury. If the Nats
can somehow get into the tournament at the end of the year, the roster will
look extremely dangerous.
9. PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES
One of the surprise teams of 2018, the Phils lead the NL
East and helped their offense by acquiring Asdrubal Cabrera and Wilson Ramos.
The latter is on the DL with a hamstring injury but is certainly an offensive
upgrade for a team that has struggled to score runs at times. With just a +23
run differential through 107 games, it looks like the Phils have overachieved.
But the new additions could be enough to hold off Atlanta and Washington.
10. ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS
Arizona has spent most of the year in first place in the NL
West, but the Diamondbacks have the Dodgers and Rockies right on their tail.
After losing Jake Lamb, Arizona acquired Eduardo Escobar from Minnesota and
also addressed bullpen needs with Matt Andriese, Brad Ziegler and Jake Diekman.
The rotation hasn't performed great this year but still shows upside if Robbie Ray
can get on track, and the lineup has turned around its fortunes since June when
Paul Goldschmidt found his stroke. Unfortunately, LA's talent and mammoth
deadline additions could be too much for Arizona to contend with.
11. ATLANTA BRAVES
The youngsters have broken out in Atlanta earlier than
expected and general manager Alex Anthopoulos supplemented the team's talent
with the additions of Adam Duvall and Kevin Gausman. The lineup looks healthy
and is getting surprising contributions from Nick Markakis and Johan Camargo,
on top of Freddie Freeman and Ozzie Albies. Gausman has historically been much
better in the second half but has an ERA well above 4.00 since the start of
2017, so it remains to be seen if his addition is enough for Atlanta to make
the playoffs.
12. OAKLAND ATHLETICS
Oakland was relatively quiet at the deadline with limited
funds, but the cheap acquisition of Jeurys Familia makes the A's bullpen one of
the most dominant in the game. The A's have already proved their depth, finding
starting pitchers at Triple-A after getting ravaged by injuries, and also
seeing big offensive contributions from Khris Davis, Jed Lowrie, and Matt
Chapman. Oakland has an AL wild card spot well within reach, but it remains to
be seen if this team can stack up with the AL powerhouses.
13. COLORADO ROCKIES
Colorado had a tremendous July, putting itself in the thick
of the NL West race. The lineup has shown plenty of depth, and Jon Gray
recently was able to find himself after returning from Triple-A. The team's
downfall this year has been the bullpen, despite spending big on Wade Davis,
Bryan Shaw and Jake McGee in the offseason. The addition of Seunghwan Oh should
help, but the Rockies still have a negative run differential, showing their
overachievement in the win column.
14. PITTSBURGH PIRATES
Attendance has been lackluster in Pittsburgh this season
after the team traded Andrew McCutchen and Gerrit Cole in the offseason. But
the Pirates became buyers after a surge in July. They added Keone Kela and
Chris Archer to an already capable pitching staff, but they're likely
approaching October with the goal of a wild card spot as they sit seven games
behind the Cubs and six behind the Brewers in the NL Central.
15. SEATTLE MARINERS
The Mariners are just barely holding off Oakland for the
second AL wild card, and they're now doing so with a negative run differential.
Seattle added bullpen depth with the additions of Adam Warren, Zach Duke and
Sam Tuivailala and also improved its outfield defense with Cameron Maybin. The
lineup has slowed down without the suspended Robinson Cano, however, and the
starting rotation has struggled behind James Paxton and Marco Gonzales, ranking
right in the middle of MLB with a 4.08 ERA.
16. ST. LOUIS CARDINALS
The Cardinals have started a youth movement since firing
manager Mike Matheny in mid-July, promoting Triple-A pitchers Daniel
Poncedeleon, Austin Gomber and Dakota Hudson. That youth movement continued
after the team traded outfielder Tommy Pham, allowing rookies Harrison Bader
and Tyler O'Neill to see more playing time. Sitting 4.5 games back in the wild
card race, the Cardinals shot at a playoff run looks dire after losing Carlos
Martinez to another injury.
17. LOS ANGELES ANGELS
Pitching injuries have disrupted what was supposed to be a magical
year for the Angels, now without Matt Shoemaker, Garrett Richards and Shohei
Ohtani's pitching prowess. They waved the white flag at the deadline by trading
Ian Kinsler; they are now 9.5 games out of the wild card. The lineup is
starting to be more fun to watch now that Kole Calhoun has found his stroke,
adding to stars Mike Trout, Justin Upton, Andrelton Simmons and DH Ohtani. But
the Angels have almost no shot at making the playoffs.
18. SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS
The Giants went all in when they added Andrew McCutchen,
along with Evan Longoria's mammoth contract, but their bad luck from 2017 has
carried over into this season. Madison Bumgarner is now healthy, but the team
has lost Jeff Samardzija and Johnny Cueto. The Giants stood pat at the
deadline, and their odds of a playoff spot are remote, now five games back of a
wild card with more than a handful of teams ahead of them.
19. MINNESOTA TWINS
The Twins had high hopes for 2018, but injuries to Ervin
Santana, Byron Buxton and Miguel Sano effectively ended their season. Minnesota
sold Eduardo Escobar, Lance Lynn, Zach Duke and Brian Dozier at the deadline
and would need an epic collapse by Cleveland to have any chance of making the
playoffs.
20. TAMPA BAY RAYS
The Rays have made the most of what they have after trading
most of their offense from last season, with manager Kevin Cash resorting to
bullpen days and the introduction of the relief pitcher "opener" to
start games. The team has to be commended for remaining above .500, but the
Rays are well behind in the playoff race and shipped off Nathan Eovaldi, Wilson
Ramos and Chris Archer at the deadline. The additions of Jalen Beeks, Tommy
Pham, Austin Meadows and Tyler Glasnow do give them more players to build
around for the future.
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