MLB trade deadline in limbo? Plus: Latest on the shooting at NFL headquarters

New York Times

21 hours ago

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Good morning! Be decisive about what you want today.
The Twins, Red Sox and Diamondbacks hold the keys to Major League Baseball's trade deadline, which falls at 6 p.m. ET tomorrow. Their players make up seven of the top 10 on The Athletic's deadline big board. (Really, they're seven of the top nine, with the Guardians' Emmanuel Clase in limbo and untradeable.)
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If this week features many blockbusters, it'll be because those teams decided to sell. Arizona (51-57) and Minnesota (51-56) have been disappointing, but neither is all the way out of the wild-card hunt. Of the top five trade chips, only Arizona third baseman Eugenio Suárez will be a free agent a few months from now. Then again, the Diamondbacks are selling, but to an extent that's been hard to figure out, as Ken Rosenthal reported last week.
So will there be a frenzy of big deals in the next day and a half? We don't know. Bookmark our tracker of deals (featuring grades) and strap in for the ride.
The deadline is a story of buyers, sellers and stand-patters. As the postseason has grown, it's gotten a lot harder to delineate who's who. In 1975, four teams made the postseason, and a grand total of five clubs out of 24 were within five games of the playoffs after play on July 28. After the same date this year, which fell on Monday, 21 of 30 teams were within a five-game radius of the postseason. The number has been similar every year since the league added a third wild-card team per league in 2022.
Hard to sell when you're in the hunt — but hard to justify aggressively buying when you're one of 20. This year, Jim Bowden classifies 14 clubs as buyers, eight as sellers and eight as on the fence. A general manager might believe themselves to be out of the race, but be wrong. Last July 30, the Tigers were 6 1/2 games out of the wild card, with five teams between them and a spot, when they traded pitcher Jack Flaherty to the Dodgers. It turned out that Flaherty would've been useful to Detroit in the playoffs. (Clearly feeling reminded, the Tigers re-signed him over the offseason.)
The pennant math does not explain all of this uncertainty. Even the hopeless Pirates have been going back and forth with themselves about their plans, Stephen Nesbitt reported last week. But the league just doesn't have that many teams that are truly out of the race anymore, and those that are out of it don't tend to have many exciting trade chips. Ex-Rockie Ryan McMahon is a good fit in pinstripes, though.
Buckle up! Let's keep moving:
New York gunman 'focused' on NFL
We've learned more about the man authorities say killed four people Monday at a Midtown Manhattan office building that houses the NFL's headquarters. The man, Shane Tamura, was 'focused' on the league, New York mayor Eric Adams said. He carried a note that indicated he believed he had CTE, the brain disease associated with contact sports like football (which can only be diagnosed after death).
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The gunman shot four people, killing three, on the building's ground floor. Adams said the shooter then went to 'the wrong floor,' rather than one of the NFL's, and killed another person, then himself. The league has temporarily closed its headquarters. More details here.
Dončić's fitness gains under spotlight
When the Mavericks decided to trade Luka Dončić to the Lakers in February, Dallas was reportedly worried about its star's long-term fitness. It is now clear how the 26-year-old has spent his offseason: getting shredded. Dončić appears on a new cover of Men's Health magazine, looking trim. Paying a visit to a Yankees game Monday, he also stood for a photo op with Aaron Judge and managed not to look out of shape by comparison, an improbable feat for most civilians. More here on Dončić's last few months.
More news
📺 MLB: Rays at Yankees
7:05 p.m. ET on MLB Network
The Rays were 11 games over .500 just over a month ago. They have since slipped back to .500 and need to string together some series wins to threaten again in the wild-card race.
📺 WNBA: Liberty at Lynx
8 p.m. ET on ESPN
A rematch of last year's finals, featuring the defending champ Liberty (and the recently returned Jonquel Jones) against MVP favorite Napheesa Collier and Minnesota.
Get tickets to games like these here.
There's been a lot of great writing about the late Ryne Sandberg, who died Monday. Make time for Jon Greenberg's story about Sandberg and his abiding relationship with Cubs fans.
Dom Luszczyszyn ranks the 10 team-friendliest contracts in the NHL. The Devils' Jack Hughes at $8 million a year for the next five years leads the way.
A ridiculous tale (complimentary) about Patriots linebacker Robert Spillane, by Chad Graff. Make sure you read to the part about a backward, blindfolded hike.
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Service journalism as you get ready for college football: Manny Navarro picked the most important transfer for every team in the power conferences.
Most-clicked in the newsletter yesterday: Our obituary for Sandberg, written by Patrick Mooney.
Most-read on the website yesterday: Sean Gentille's piece on the 'real-life Happy Gilmore.'
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