Each team's biggest need at this year's Deadline

The All-Star break is in the rearview mirror, which brings the next big date on the baseball calendar into focus.

The 2026 Trade Deadline looms on Aug. 3, less than three weeks away. Until then, as rumors swirl, all 30 clubs will be scrambling to figure out how they can best position themselves for success.

For buyers, that could mean making a big splash. For sellers, that could mean restocking the farm system or landing quality depth. Regardless of one's place in the standings, each team has a need.

With the help of our MLB.com beat reporters, here's a look at each team's biggest need at this year's Deadline.

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AL EAST

Blue Jays: A rotation upgrade
Going into the break, All-Star Dylan Cease was the only starter routinely winning games for the Blue Jays. Rookie Trey Yesavage has struggled -- allowing seven walks his last time out -- while Shane Bieber is still getting re-established. Waiting on Max Scherzer to return and suddenly recapture his peak form can't be Plan A, so the Jays need to add a starter to this group, just like they did with Bieber a year ago.

Orioles: Bullpen help
If the O's intend on buying and making a legitimate run at the postseason, they need to upgrade their bullpen. Closer Ryan Helsley (right elbow inflammation) is going to miss a bit of time and may not start throwing until August. Their left-handed options have also taken a hit with Keegan Akin sustaining a UCL injury that could sideline him for quite a while. Baltimore can't fully bank on All-Star closer Félix Bautista (right shoulder surgery), but if the 31-year-old righty can return in September, his presence could certainly help.

Rays: Another proven hitter
Don't be surprised if the Rays bring in another starting pitcher, either to ease some workload concerns down the stretch or to increase their odds once they get into the postseason. Fortifying the bullpen would help, too. But their most obvious need is for another bat behind the "Big Three" of Yandy Díaz, Jonathan Aranda and Junior Caminero. They're not getting much offense from their outfield, middle infield or catcher, so they have options. Even if it's not a big-time power threat to bat cleanup, a reliable contact hitter like Luis Arraez would go a long way.

Red Sox: Another right-handed bat
Willson Contreras is having a breakout season, belting 20 home runs before the All-Star break. Ceddanne Rafaela has also been solid, and Caleb Durbin has bounced back nicely from a slow start. But the lineup could also use another right-handed bat with the ability to thrive at Fenway. The Red Sox have played much better on the road (29-21) this season than at home (17-27), and another righty bat could balance things out.

Yankees: A boost behind the plate
Entering the break, Yankees catchers ranked near the bottom of the league with a .176 batting average, .552 OPS and 46 wRC+. While there are concerns about importing a catcher in-season because of potential disruption to the pitching staff, the Yankees have been strongly connected to the Twins' Ryan Jeffers, who could comprise the right-handed-hitting part of a platoon with Austin Wells.

AL CENTRAL

Guardians: Offense, preferably a right-handed hitter
No contender ever has enough bullpen help, and the Guardians are thin on big league-ready rotation depth in the Minors. But the need for help offensively is greater, especially from the right side. Cleveland has just four purely right-handed hitters on the active roster. The Guardians rank 28th in the Majors in OPS against lefties (.659). The returns of switch-hitters José Ramírez and Angel Martínez will help, but adding a right-handed bat would bolster the lineup while balancing the overall mix.

Royals: Young, controllable talent
The Royals need to address parts of their entire roster, but it doesn't have to be a huge overhaul. They need to use the Deadline to begin acquiring young, controllable talent that could help them compete right away next season. This is no small task, as it will require giving up something important -- perhaps a starting pitcher -- but building next year's roster should be on the forefront of their minds.

Tigers: Right-handed bat or pitching prospects
If the Tigers are going to go for it, a veteran right-handed bat is a must for manager A.J. Hinch to leverage matchups with effective pinch-hitters and role players who crush lefties. As a team, their .714 OPS against lefties is a plunge from last year's .774 mark that ranked second best in the Majors. Right now, after Jahmai Jones was DFA'd, rookies Hao-Yu Lee, Ben Malgeri and Eduardo Valencia are being asked to carry the load. On the other hand, if the Tigers decide to sell, they need to add arms to the farm system. Even after drafting Cameron Flukey in the first round, Detroit is short on projectable young MLB starters.

Twins: Relief pitching
It's the bullpen. Even after adding Tommy Nance -- and even as Andrew Morris and Yoendrys Gomez have emerged as a reliable combination at the end of games -- the Twins are still too shallow in the bullpen. They should get Cole Sands back soon, but they need at least another legitimate relief arm or two. Could they use another starter? Probably. Shore up the defense? Sure. But relief help is priorities one, two and three.

White Sox: Pitching
There's help available in their system with right-hander Tanner McDougal out of the bullpen, Opening Day starter Shane Smith as a rotation option and left-handed Hagen Smith in a role somewhere in between. But with some of the young big league hurlers approaching new innings highs, additions that can provide quality depth will be more important than one major arm. Everyone wants pitching, from contenders to pretenders, so the acquisition cost could be steep for general manager Chris Getz.

AL WEST

Angels: Adding young position players
The Angels' farm system is pitching-heavy, so it would make sense to try and acquire position players with multiple years of control if they trade away a valuable piece like José Soriano or Reid Detmers. They can use all the help they can get offensively, especially in the outfield. Finding contact-oriented hitters would also be ideal.

Astros: Left-handed outfield bat
Adding a left-handed-hitting outfielder will be the Astros' top goal. Houston has received poor production from its outfield all season, especially in left field and center field. Lamonte Wade Jr. has filled the void a bit when healthy, but Houston needs an upgrade over the combination of Taylor Trammell, Brice Matthews and Jake Meyers.

Athletics: Pitching
The A's are in major need of pitching, with a 5.21 ERA that is second worst in the Majors, ahead of only the Rockies. As buyers, they would likely target a proven starter and a veteran reliever. As sellers, any moves would be made with an eye on acquiring pitching as well to help them down the road.

Mariners: Right-handed bat, proven reliever
Seattle has an MLB-worst .631 OPS against lefties, exacerbated all the more by the fact that their entire infield is left-handed. Improvement, frankly, also must come in-house -- most obviously via Cal Raleigh, who has a .441 OPS and just one homer against southpaws. The Mariners clearly need at least one reinforcement in the bullpen, too. While they anticipate a mid-August return for Matt Brash, they'd prefer not to exclusively rely on a player returning from a lengthy injury absence.

Rangers: Another high-leverage arm
Sure, you can never have too much starting pitching. But the Rangers hopefully have rotation reinforcements incoming with Jordan Montgomery nearing a return and Cody Bradford not far behind. Jack Leiter will even return before the end of the season, if all goes well. It's a different story in the bullpen. While Jacob Latz has stepped up big in the closer role -- even earning his first All-Star nod -- and Jakob Junis has been just as good in a setup role, another high-leverage arm could take the Rangers far down the stretch. The preference would be for a right-hander.

NL EAST

Braves: Starting pitching
Chris Sale currently stands as the team's only playoff-caliber starting pitcher. You can easily argue that this team needs two starting pitchers, with one being a frontline guy. The Braves gained an extra $15 million to spend when Jurickson Profar was suspended, and the farm system is as strong as its been since 2016. So, look for the Braves to be very active and aggressive as they pursue starting pitchers and possibly a hitter who could strengthen their DH spot.

Marlins: Right-handed bat
The Marlins roll with platoons, which can work against them due to a left-handed-heavy roster. In the first half, Miami went just 10-15 in games started by southpaws (T-7th worst winning percentage in MLB) and averaged just 3.8 runs per game (T-3rd fewest). With Connor Norby and Graham Pauley in Triple-A, Javier Sanoja and Leo Jiménez have been splitting third-base reps, making this the perfect spot to upgrade with a righty bat.

Mets: Young starting pitching
Where there is value to be found, the Mets must unearth it via trades. In particular, New York's farm system needs to begin pumping out Major League-quality starting pitching more consistently. If they can acquire the types of pitching prospects that could make an impact as soon as 2027, that would be ideal. Young starters already in the big leagues would also help their cause.

Nationals: Bullpen reliability
The Nationals enter the All-Star break with a league-high 27 blown saves. Their bullpen holds the highest ERA in the National League (5.07). In the final series before the All-Star break, the Nationals blew three late-game leads while being swept by the Yankees. Ten pitchers have recorded a save while the club pitches to matchups and the bullpen has experienced a flurry of roster moves to keep arms flesh.

Phillies: A late-inning, high-leverage reliever
Phillies fans might think the club's biggest need is a right-handed bat because the team hasn't scored enough runs since Game 2 of the 2023 NLCS. But the bullpen has also faltered in each of the previous three Octobers, and the way it's looking now, they absolutely will need at least one more late-inning, high-leverage reliever to bridge the gap between their rotation and closer Jhoan Duran.

NL CENTRAL

Brewers: Innings
Given the uncertainty surrounding Brandon Woodruff's shoulder and, to a lesser extent, Kyle Harrison's elbow, and the fact that Jacob Misiorowski is already within 31 innings of his total from last year (Minors, Majors and postseason), the Brewers probably need to add starting pitching depth. But with CC Sabathia in 2008 as a notable exception, they have almost never been an all-in type team at the Deadline, instead preferring to build around the kind of young prospects required to land a high-profile rental. Is this the year that they go for it?

Cardinals: An innings-eating starting pitcher
Many have been waiting for the Cardinals' starting pitching to give out, but it continues to hold up, albeit with the third-lowest strikeout rate in baseball. But as we saw in a brutal home series against the Brewers shortly before the break, St. Louis has no margin for error. Another starter would provide a little elbow room, and ease some of the pressure on an increasingly overworked bullpen. And if the Cardinals end up selling, young pitching would be the focus across the board.

Cubs: Pitching on all fronts
The veteran-laden position-player group is fairly rigid and locked in -- whether by roles or contracts -- so adding arms was always going to be the focus. That has only become more clear throughout this '26 campaign. Losing Cade Horton to season-ending elbow surgery in April was the first of many blows to the rotation, and the bullpen has also seen a long list of injury setbacks. The North Siders will be looking for reinforcements on both fronts over the next few weeks.

Pirates: High-leverage reliever
Even after acquiring left-hander Brandon Eisert from the White Sox in a deal involving the No. 34 overall pick in last weekend's Draft, the Pirates could still use bullpen help. Eisert will give Pittsburgh four reliable left-handers, once Evan Sisk returns from the IL. The Pirates desire reliable right-handers to pitch in later innings, especially as Dennis Santana -- who began the year as the club's closer -- struggles to find consistency.

Reds: Hitters under club control
If the Reds do sell -- beyond the players who are in their walk year -- then they need to bring back big leaguers with years of club control remaining, rather than just prospects. Cincinnati could especially use more offense. For instance, when the Reds signed outfielder JJ Bleday as a free agent last offseason, part of the consideration was that he is under club control through 2028.

NL WEST

D-backs: First base
If the Diamondbacks are buyers, the one clear area they need an upgrade in is at first base. After a career month from Ildemaro Vargas in April, the position has become a real weak spot. Pavin Smith battled injuries, struggled when he returned and was designated for assignment. Carlos Santana, signed to a one-year deal in the offseason, played little before being injured and was DFA'd, too. Right now, Vargas and Tim Tawa are splitting reps there as Arizona is desperate for any type of production.

Dodgers: Rotation reinforcements
This could come internally, as the Dodgers have both Blake Snell (surgery to remove loose bodies in left elbow) and Tyler Glasnow (lower back spasms) on the mend. In an ideal world, Snell will be back in the rotation by mid-August, followed by Glasnow around the end of that month. If either starter has some sort of setback, that could create a need to seek external rotation help ahead of the Deadline.

Giants: Controllable pitching
The Giants have struggled to get consistent production from their pitching staff this year, so they could benefit from targeting young arms that would bolster the club in 2026 and beyond. Finding reliable relievers is a more acute need right now, as San Francisco didn't invest heavily in its bullpen over the offseason and has had trouble holding down late-inning leads this year.

Padres: Starting pitching
How much starting pitching will San Diego need? That depends on a few things. First and foremost, the Padres need to figure out what they can expect from Nick Pivetta and Joe Musgrove, who are both expected to return from elbow injuries in August. They also need to size up the rest of their rotation. Michael King is the club's stalwart, something akin to an ace. Beyond that? Just injuries and question marks. One starting pitcher might not be enough.

Rockies: Talent all around, but starting pitching in particular
During the winter, the Rockies collected veteran starters (Michael Lorenzen, Tomoyuki Sugano and Jose Quintana to add to lefty Kyle Freeland), but the need for established starters endures. The Rockies have righties Tanner Gordon and No. 16 prospect Gabriel Hughes in the current rotation, and No. 11 prospect Sean Sullivan has bounced between the big league rotation and Triple-A, but they could add Major League-ready starting arms. Also, to have a truly consistent offense, they need to add hitters who fit in the top and heart of the order -- established players or prospects who are close.