Phillies pitcher Andrew Bellatti gets to apologize 13 years after a shattered family saved him
-
Andrea Adelson, ESPN Senior Writer
CLEARWATER, Fla. — The car ride to meet Lyn and Garrett Reid is quiet, each mile taking Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Andrew Bellatti back 13 years, to the accident, the jail cell and the darkness.
The Reids wait for his arrival. They pace and check their watches. They, too, are transported 13 years back, to the accident and the funeral for their beloved David and their relentless pain and grief.
They all want this meeting to happen, but nobody knows what to expect. Bellatti wonders what he will say. The Reids wonder how they will feel. One tragedy has tethered them together, but this is the first time they will actually speak to one another since the day everything changed, Jan. 22, 2010.
On that day, Bellatti was driving too fast on a wet road and crashed his Ford Mustang head-on into a Dodge Caravan. Garrett Reid was critically injured. His dad, David, was killed. Bellatti, an 18-year-old prospect in the Tampa Bay Rays organization at the time, was arrested and charged with vehicular manslaughter.
As newly widowed Lyn Reid tried to navigate how she and her two kids would live without David, she felt certain about one thing in the months that followed the accident. She did not want Bellatti to go to prison. Some of her friends vehemently disagreed and bluntly asked, “How could you not throw down the gauntlet?”
Lyn could never find the right words to explain how she felt. She just knew she needed to forgive Bellatti so she could move forward and, she says, “not sleep with rage.” So she asked the judge for leniency in sentencing. He granted it. Bellatti spent less than a year in jail, and resumed his baseball career.
Now here they are on a hot day during spring training, a new season dawning. Bellatti pulls into the driveway of a house ESPN has arranged as a meeting place for both parties. He’s with his wife, Kylee, 3-year-old daughter and brother-in-law. His face, already flushed.
He opens the front door.
“Hello,” Lyn says in a sing-song voice as they enter. Garrett stands next to her.
She stretches out her arms. Bellatti walks toward her, his head bowed. This is the woman who saved him, who gave him his life back and allowed him to live out his dream as a baseball player when few others thought she should. This is their story: One about tragedy, yes, but also about forgiveness, second chances and the healing power of both.
They embrace.
Bellatti tries not to cry.
BOTH THE REID and Bellatti families made their homes in San Diego. Lyn and David Reid met in the Navy, had two kids and were married for 23 years. David volunteered in the drama department at Steele Canyon High School, where his kids, Garrett and Katy, attended. He was known as the “Drama Papa,” and Garrett was active in the Steele Canyon Players drama club. Lyn and David would run the concessions stand together for performances.
Both Lyn and Garrett describe David as “the life of the party,” with a keen sense of humor and fiercely devoted to his family. “I never had to ask my dad to be involved,” Garrett says. “He was just ubiquitous.”
“He was fiercely devoted to my sister and I, and unwaveringly supportive of whatever endeavor we wanted to do. We went for a cruise, and I was like, ‘I think I want to do scuba diving.’ And next day, we were scuba diving. We got home to San Diego and we were taking courses within the month. Then I had all the scuba gear I could ever possibly want.”
Andrew Bellatti attended Steele Canyon as well, and graduated a year before Garrett Reid (they did not share the same social circles). Bellatti, the youngest of three children, was a star on the baseball team. He was known as the “Strikeout Machine” and dreamed of making it to the majors and playing for the hometown Padres.
After the Rays drafted him out of high school in 2009, Bellatti made his first big purchase: a brand-new, red Mustang. He loved the color, the speed, the sound system. “I felt really proud of that because I was getting hand-me-downs, being the youngest,” he said. “My mom had a car that she gave to my sister. My sister had a car she gave to my brother. And then I was left with it at the very end. So getting my own car was something that was really special.”
Bellatti was back home for the offseason the day of the accident. He was running late to take his then-girlfriend to her basketball game. As he approached Steele Canyon High, a car pulled out in front of him. Rather than slam on his brakes, Bellatti decided to try and pass. But he did so illegally, crossing a double yellow line — and right into oncoming traffic.
David and Garrett Reid were traveling home from the movies in the opposite direction.
“I’m looking out the window, not paying attention and I hear tires screeching,” Garrett Reid says. “I look to my left and see just a blur of red. My dad pulls to the right hard. And the last words I hear are, “Oh s—.”
“I know for a fact, I was going fast. I didn’t really judge how fast,” Bellatti said. “I don’t know if I should have hit my brakes. But I know I was in a hurry to get to where I was going. Then after that, I just blacked out.”
David Reid died in the accident. He was 50. Garrett Reid sustained fractures to his skull, cheekbone and wrist.
Bellatti does not remember much about the accident, nor the days immediately afterward. He was able to play rookie ball with the Princeton Rays before returning to San Diego to face criminal charges.
In October 2010, Bellatti pleaded guilty to vehicular manslaughter. He faced between five and seven years in prison.
Thoughts about his own future mixed with thoughts about the Reid family. As Bellatti sat in his jail cell awaiting sentencing, he had an overwhelming desire to reach out to the Reids. He had to somehow tell them how sorry he was for what he had done. What he really wanted was the chance to sit down and talk to them. But it was too hard, too painful, too awkward and uncomfortable. So he wrote a letter instead.
Bellatti stared at the blank page in front of him for hours before picking up the pencil.
“I was holding a lot of stuff on the inside,” he says. “Just saying that I felt bad is such an understatement. Saying that I was sorry couldn’t even come close to how I actually felt. I wanted to get something to her, some sort of ‘I’m sorry,’ even though I know it wouldn’t even matter.”
Dear Mrs. Reid, Garrett Reid and Katy Reid,
I’m writing you to tell you how very deeply sorry I am that you are going through all this pain due to my actions. My intentions that day and every other day of my life was not to cause pain to anyone.
I made a horrible mistake, and I’ve learned from this more than anything else in my life. Not a day goes by that I don’t recall that night and cry alone. I can’t stop. I cry myself to sleep. This horrible situation will live with me for the rest of my life.
I’m sorry to Garrett and Katy, because I couldn’t imagine what they are going through, losing their father. I am so very sorry, Garrett and Katy. I’m very sorry to you, Mrs. Reid. You do not deserve this at all, and I can’t imagine how my mom would feel if my dad was gone. It’s so hard to write this letter, but I just thought that you should know how I felt and to say how sorry I truly am.
With the upmost sincerity,
Andrew Bellatti
Lyn Reid received the letter, but says she has no recollection of reading it at the time. Though prosecutors wanted a prison sentence, Lyn Reid had already determined she wanted leniency.
During the sentencing hearing, prosecutor Curtis Ross laid it out simply: “The conduct and the level of recklessness that Mr. Bellatti displayed that day would normally warrant a prison case but for him victimizing an extremely kind and compassionate family,” Ross told the judge he would abide by her wish and recommend that Bellatti avoid prison time.
Bellatti was sentenced to eight months in jail and five years’ probation.
“It wasn’t forced,” Lyn Reid says. “It didn’t hit me like a bolt of lightning or anything like that. It was just how I felt. I knew we couldn’t have Dave back. How much carnage do you want from one event? There’d been enough.”
Lyn Reid laughs when asked whether she has always been a forgiving person.
“I took a personality test, and I’m to the left of Gandhi or something like that,” she says. “That’s kind of who I am. I’m not religious, but I was raised with religion, and I do believe that a lot of the prophets give us the best advice. Forgiveness is usually No. 1 on those lists.”
But there is one more point Lyn wants to make. Her forgiveness came with her husband in mind.
“Dave would have forgiven him before I even did,” she says through tears.
“Dave had a very generous spirit. Even when I couldn’t explain what I wanted to do to anyone else, it’s what Dave would have wanted. He would have wanted us to move on. He would have wanted us not to throw the book at a dumb kid. He understood that everyone makes mistakes, and everyone deserves a second chance.”
FOR GARRETT, FINDING forgiveness took more time as he grappled with the accident and loss of his father. What did forgiveness mean? Did it mean absolution? Did it mean trying to push anger aside to repair what is left of a life? Did it mean being selfless when everything else says be selfish?
On the first day back at school after the accident, Garrett, then 17, remembers reaching a breaking point. He had a cast on his foot and a cane to help him walk. He slipped on a set of stairs and fell backward. Two girls started giggling as he stood up, and that reaction triggered something inside him.
“I howled,” Garrett says. “I realized what I was living with, and the pain. It was primal. I was filled with malice. Rage. I lived with that rage and nightmares and fantasies for quite some time, for several months. It wasn’t until I realized that hate at such a severe caliber was consuming me: waking moments, days, nights, dreams. It was all consuming.”
Garrett had vivid nightmares, in which he exacted revenge for what Bellatti did to his father.
“Evening the score,” he says. “Truly at the heart of it, in the darkest moments, it was ending his life. It was costing me myself. I remember reaching this first part of having to forgive Andrew. But it wasn’t absolution for him. I think most of us associate forgiveness with this benevolent, godly thing. In this moment, forgiveness was for me.”
Garrett says after he made the decision to let go of his rage, he understood he had to work on what he calls “the emotional gauntlet that was thrown down in my life.” He also supported his mom and her decision to ask for leniency. But going through all of that made him reconsider what it means to forgive.
“I think we all like to think of it as: I’m sorry, I forgive you,” Garrett said. “But you can forgive someone and still hold them accountable for their actions. You can forgive someone and still be angry at them. Forgiving Andrew doesn’t simply fix things. Forgiving Andrew let me sleep at night. Forgiving Andrew let me acknowledge his humanity, and the mistakes that he made.”
It has taken years for Garrett to reach this point, where he can talk about both his grief and his father with clarity and perspective. He describes his grief “like the waves.”
“With time, the tide got lower,” he says. “I still have to live with the loss of my father for the rest of my life, and that will be my own journey. But even when I had processed that rage and gotten rid of it, if I’d have a meltdown around a success, like, ‘I wish I could call my dad and tell him,’ it was never a slim thought of, ‘Screw [Andrew]. He took that from me.’ There’s still the pain. But it’s softened. The edges are rounded out versus sharp.”
LYN KEPT THE letter Bellatti wrote to her from jail, putting it in a box with everything from the accident. She cannot explain why, but at some point last summer, she went to clean out her garage and found it in a “needs to be filed” pile. Her first reaction was to put it in the shredder. She had not thought about Bellatti or the letter in years.
Now remarried and living in South Dakota, Lyn asked her husband, John, to read the letter first and to then research what had happened to Bellatti.
After he was released from jail in early 2011 after serving three months, Bellatti resumed his baseball career. The Rays left a roster spot for him, and he played short season A ball in Hudson Valley. In an interview with the Tampa Bay Times in 2015, Rays farm director Mitch Lukevics said Bellatti was “an outstanding young man who was involved in a sad and unfortunate accident.”
That same season, Bellatti made his major league debut with the Rays. But shoulder, arm and elbow injuries derailed his career for the next five years. At one point, he found himself out of baseball altogether. But in 2021, he decided to give it one more shot — signing with the Miami Marlins before moving on to the Phillies in 2022.
Finding out that Bellatti was pitching for the Phillies shocked Lyn. It just so happened on the day she found the letter, he was pitching in San Diego. Intrigued, she followed the Phillies through their World Series run, one that saw Bellatti make eight playoff appearances out of the bullpen. His 2022 postseason included nine strikeouts and a 1.29 ERA. Watching Bellatti pitch brought her back to dates at the ballpark with David. The two used to go to Padres games together, sitting behind home plate. They both loved baseball.
Thinking about David and baseball triggered her grief all over again, but in different ways.
“It’s amazing what you can’t process when it’s too close, that you think you’ve dealt with, and you haven’t,” she says. “You go through the whole grieving process all over again. [I] did a lot of talking about Dave. But it was easier. It was easier to talk. Easier to remember the funny stuff and the good things.”
Around the time the Phillies made the World Series, Lyn got a call from The Philadelphia Inquirer. During her conversation with the Inquirer reporter, Lyn learned Bellatti had mentioned he never heard back after he wrote the letter. She thought, “I have to reach out.”
The article that published last December, allowed both Reid and Bellatti to connect in a new way — Lyn learned about his 12-year journey to get to the major leagues, one filled with multiple injuries, various setbacks, stints with multiple organizations and time away from the game. Bellatti learned the Reids had a happy life, and Lyn still had that letter.
The story facilitated their first face-to-face meeting.
Going back in time, thinking about where he is now — married, a father, finally a major leaguer — forces Bellatti to confront both powerful emotions and powerful questions. One month before his meeting with the Reids, Bellatti is reliving it all again, 18 years old, driving a red Mustang. He wants to talk about what happened, because he feels sharing his story means shining a light on Lyn, and what it means to forgive. “I just want this to be something that can inspire people,” he says.
Bellatti had thought about meeting Lyn Reid for years.
“That by far would be the most emotional day of my life,” he says, blinking back tears.
What would he say? How would he say it?
“What I want to say and what comes out, I have …,” he pauses to collect himself.
“I don’t know,” he says. “But I know I want to say I’m sorry.”
THE MOMENT IS here. After he hugs Lyn, Andrew turns to Garrett and hugs him, too. For Garrett, the hug allows him to breathe again. Because, in all honesty, Garrett remained skeptical about why Bellatti wanted to meet with them.
Garrett wants to support his mom, but he needs to see Andrew for himself, to judge his true sincerity. The hug begins to ease his doubts.
They exchange pleasantries to fill the awkward silence. But everybody knows Bellatti came here to do one thing. He steels himself and says what he has wanted to say for 13 years, looking Lyn and Garrett in the eye.
“No. 1, I want to say I’m sorry,” Bellatti says, his eyes welling with tears. “I know I wrote you a letter, but writing is … you can read words, but I want to tell you face to face. I just want you to know I’m sorry. Somehow you didn’t want me to rot in the ground for the rest of my life. You honestly had a hand in where this life is.
“And you had a hand in her,” Bellatti says, motioning to his daughter, Brylyn, who is playing with toys near the couch. “So I also want to say thank you.”
Lyn nods her head. As she begins to speak, her voice starts cracking.
“I’m so proud of you because it’s really easy to just lay down and play dead, and it’s really hard to come back around and create a life,” she says. “You did it. Accidents happen, and the one who would’ve been the most forgiving is Dave. It was just a bad time, and a bad day in the wrong place.”
Garrett allows his skepticism to subside as he listens to Bellatti and watches how he still grapples with both the pain and fallout from what happened that day.
“I have to say it does matter what you say,” Garrett tells Bellatti. “It’s peculiar. I had never read the letter. By choice, by purposeful decision, I can’t really say. But I never read your letter. And the night before I left [for the meeting], I read it, and it made me just reflect on this dynamic that we’ve ended up in together.
“When I sit and think about our two positions, I’d rather be on my side,” Garrett continues. “To have to live with what you’ve been living with and to tackle those demons, I empathize. I share those sentiments, just not wanting to go through life hurting someone to that level.”
Lyn and Garrett repeat what they have both told themselves, their friends and the public since: There was no malice. Just a terrible accident.
Then Lyn acknowledges what has been hanging over them for a decade.
“I don’t think we could have done this 10 years ago,” Lyn says. “It would have been too hard then. Don’t you think? I mean, I feel like there’s parts of it I can just deal with now, you know?
“It’s God’s timing in all this,” Bellatti says.
They talk more about their lives. The Bellattis reveal they are expecting their second child; Lyn talks about her infant granddaughter.
Lyn turns to Bellatti.
“Do you feel better?” she asks. “I’m sorry I didn’t reach out to you sooner.”
Bellatti shakes his head. “No, no …”
“I didn’t want to put more pressure on you,” Lyn says. “I just never felt like there was anything to gain from it. But now I really think we’ll all be able to move on a little lighter.”
The Reids and Bellattis spend about 30 minutes together. As it turns out, the Reids do most of the talking — perhaps to put Bellatti at ease, perhaps to fill some of the uncomfortable moments, perhaps so Bellatti understands what is left to do: forgive himself.
The two families say goodbye and go their separate ways. When the Bellattis get in their car, Kylee notices that Andrew is emotionally exhausted. But a weight has been lifted, and the quiet in the car feels different this time. Less tense. More reflective.
As the Reids head back to their hotel, their route takes them over a bridge toward Clearwater Beach. Their view is breathtaking: Directly ahead, the sun is setting over the ocean. Their car ride is quiet, too, as Garrett and Lyn see the beauty in front of them.
They feel peace.
We have a new team atop our power rankings after the first week of the second half. Make way for Milwaukee!
The Brewers were the biggest riser in Week 17, going from No. 9 in our final rankings before the All-Star break to No. 1 as we approach the end of July. The No. 2 team this week? A familiar foe of the Brewers: the division-rival Cubs, who are now one game behind Milwaukee for second place in the National League Central.
Meanwhile, in the American League, the Tigers have been overtaken by the Astros and Blue Jays for best record in the league. The Yankees are now four games behind Toronto in the East and sit at No. 9 on our list, their lowest ranking of the season. New York will look to add ahead of next week’s trade deadline (July 31) to make a push down the stretch run.
Where does every team stand in our first power rankings since the All-Star break?
Our expert panel has ranked every team based on a combination of what we’ve seen so far and what we already knew going into the 162-game marathon that is a full baseball season. We also asked ESPN MLB experts Buster Olney, Alden Gonzalez and Jorge Castillo to weigh in with analysis on the biggest priority of the second half for all 30 teams.
Second-half preview | Week 15 | Preseason rankings
Record: 61-41
Previous ranking: 9
The Brewers’ biggest strength is self-awareness. They know what they do best and never stray from it. What they do now is pitch well (3.34 starters’ ERA, second lowest in the majors), play great defense (23 outs above average, second most in baseball), run the bases better than any other team (12 base running outs above average) and do the little things right offensively (take walks, put the ball in play, advance runners). The Brewers have won 30 of 43 games since the start of June, and that is no accident. If there’s one thing they would love, though, it’s for William Contreras to revert back to his prior offensive form. — Gonzalez
Record: 60-42
Previous ranking: 3
There might not be a bigger need among contenders than the Cubs’ desire to add a starting pitcher. Chicago’s offense has performed like one of the best in the sport, and the Cubs bullpen was good enough throughout May and June to ease concerns about its struggles in July. But if the Cubs want to hold off Milwaukee in the NL Central and make a deep run in October, they’ll need to add another arm alongside Shota Imanaga and Matthew Boyd. Jameson Taillon should return from a calf strain around the middle of August, but Chicago is going to need another impact arm for its rotation. — Gonzalez
Record: 60-43
Previous ranking: 1
In some respects, Detroit’s recent swoon is a blessing in disguise. The Tigers’ lead in the AL Central is still double-digit sturdy — according to Fangraphs, the chances of them winning the division stand at 93.3% — and soon, they’ll get Kerry Carpenter back for their lineup. But the recent losses have fully highlighted the team’s need for one or even two power arms at the back end of their bullpen since the Tigers seem to have a real opportunity to reach the World Series. If the Cardinals decide to trade Ryan Helsley, the Tigers will almost certainly be among the bidders. — Olney
Record: 60-43
Previous ranking: 2
Four Dodgers relievers who were far from expected to pitch high leverage when the season began — Ben Casparius, Alexis Diaz, Will Klein and Edgardo Henriquez — allowed six runs in a span of two innings against the Twins on Tuesday night, turning a tight game into a rout. The Dodgers eventually lost for the 11th time in a stretch of 14 games, by which point their bullpen ranked 24th in the majors in ERA, WHIP and opponents’ OPS. They have been playing all-around bad baseball of late — offensively, defensively, on the mound — but the bullpen is the focus with the trade deadline approaching. — Gonzalez
Record: 60-42
Previous ranking: 6
It’s nearly August and the Blue Jays are in first place, atop the only division in the majors with four teams over .500 despite a run differential that suggests they’re six games worse. It’s beyond time to take them seriously. To continue surpassing expectations, they’ll need to continue their brand of ball, which centers around not striking out. Toronto’s 17.4% strikeout rate is the lowest in the majors by more than a percentage point and would be the lowest by a team for a season since the 2017 Astros. The Jays put pressure on teams by putting the ball in play, and it’s working. — Castillo
Record: 58-44
Previous ranking: 5
The Phillies have the starting pitching for a World Series run. They could use an upgrade to their outfield at the trade deadline, but the lineup is battle-tested with star power. The bullpen, however, is another matter. Left-hander Jose Alvarado is eligible to return from his PED suspension in mid-August. While he should bolster the bullpen for the stretch run, he isn’t eligible to pitch in the postseason, so solidifying the relief corps for October — should the Phillies reach the playoffs — is the top priority.
They began addressing the concern this week by signing 40-year-old David Robertson for a third stint with the organization. Expect president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski to scour the trade market for more knowing that starters left out of the rotation in October could instead become contributors out of the bullpen. — Castillo
Record: 60-42
Previous ranking: 4
Some team executives don’t place a high value on club culture and chemistry, not trusting something that can’t really be quantified. But those front office-types should at least consider what’s happened in Houston this season: In a year after Alex Bregman and Kyle Tucker moved on, the Astros have continued to win even while seeing their biggest stars (Yordan Alvarez, Jeremy Pena and now Isaac Paredes) go down with injuries. Moving forward, the 2025 Astros just need to keep surviving — and winning — while they wait for their stars to return. — Olney
Record: 59-44
Previous ranking: 7
Oh, look, another contender with pitching concerns. While there are questions about the Mets’ rotation — from the lack of a true No. 1 starter to Clay Holmes‘ drastically increased workload to whether Kodai Senga and Sean Manaea can rediscover their previous form upon recent reinstatement from the injured list — David Stearns told reporters this week that his top objective before the trade deadline is acquiring help for a bullpen that is operating on fumes. If that doesn’t happen, the president of baseball operations said he will explore calling up top starting pitching prospects to serve as relievers in the majors for the balance of this season. However it’s done, upgrading the bullpen is atop the list of priorities. — Castillo
Record: 56-46
Previous ranking: 8
As general manager Brian Cashman has plainly outlined, the Yankees have holes in their pitching staff that he wants to fill before the trade deadline. But the best pitcher the Yankees add in the coming weeks may already be on their payroll. Luis Gil is slated to come off the IL to make his season debut by early August. If all goes right, the reigning AL Rookie of the Year should provide a boost to the Yankees’ starting rotation for their playoff push. They also could use him out of the bullpen in October should they decide he’s a better fit there. Whatever the role, he’s an important piece for their championship hopes. — Castillo
Record: 54-48
Previous ranking: 12
If you’re looking for the sleeper team in the AL, there are a lot of signs that Seattle could emerge into a dangerous team by September. The talented rotation, hammered by injuries this season, could finally be intact when Bryce Miller returns sometime in early August. Since June 29, the Mariners have had one of the most productive offenses, hitting more homers than every team except the Yankees and averaging about five runs per game. And Seattle’s not done yet — president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto is expected to add corner infield production before the deadline. — Olney
Record: 55-47
Previous ranking: 13
The Padres have practically labeled themselves a second-half team, a nod to the 2024 group that won 34 of 52 games in August and September. To accomplish that this year, though, general manager A.J. Preller will have to give them a boost offensively. The Padres have scored the sixth-fewest runs in baseball this season. The Nos. 7, 8 and 9 hitters of their lineup have combined for a .580 OPS, lowest in the majors. Yu Darvish remaining healthy and Michael King rejoining the rotation are paramount to a team that has seen a lot of its depth get traded away in recent years. Most of all, though, they need a bat — or two. — Gonzalez
Record: 55-49
Previous ranking: 14
Walker Buehler‘s 5.72 ERA is the sixth highest in the majors among the 105 pitchers with at least 80 innings thrown this season, and his strikeout-to-walk rate ranks 95th. He has the fourth-highest home run rate. It’s been a frustrating year for the right-hander. But Buehler posted one of his best starts of the season Monday when he held the Phillies to two runs (one earned) across seven innings. It’s still not quite the high-octane vintage Buehler — his fastball is average 94 mph, nearly three mph slower than his peak years in Los Angeles, in his first full season after his second Tommy John surgery — but his getting on track could make a substantial impact on Boston’s postseason hopes. — Castillo
Record: 53-50
Previous ranking: 10
Major League Baseball has decided that Tampa Bay will play postseason home games at Steinbrenner Field if it qualifies. Now, it’s all about the Rays not letting their road-heavy second-half schedule — created to avoid the miserable heat and relentless rain without a roof in Tampa — hijack their chances. Beginning Friday in Cincinnati, they will play 37 of their remaining 59 games away from Steinbrenner Field. That split includes a two-week, four-city, 12-game West Coast road trip in August. That trek could very well decide their season. — Castillo
Record: 54-49
Previous ranking: 11
The Rafael Devers trade was widely hailed as the type of move that could put the Giants over the top, but the opposite has occurred. Since the shocking move to acquire Devers (and the entirety of his contract) on June 15, the Giants are just 13-18 and their offense sports the sixth-lowest OPS in the sport at .685. Willy Adames has turned his season around, but practically everybody else — Mike Yastrzemski, Heliot Ramos, Jung Hoo Lee, Matt Chapman and, notably, Devers — has slumped. The Giants might be able to make additional lineup additions on the margins, but their big move has been made. They just need their hitters to step up. — Gonzalez
Record: 53-50
Previous ranking: 18
Manager Bruce Bochy said over the weekend that he sensed a turnaround for the club’s sluggish offense shortly before the All-Star break, with the team doing a better job of putting the ball in play. The Rangers have played better of late, making the question of whether to trade for or away talent easier for president of baseball operations Chris Young. With Jake Burger and Joc Pederson on the IL, executives with other teams speculate that Texas will add a first baseman before the deadline, whether it’s someone like the D-Backs’ Josh Naylor or maybe the Nationals’ Nathaniel Lowe. — Olney
Record: 53-50
Previous ranking: 16
The Reds have the makings of a really good team, with a standout group of starters, a dynamic offense and a Hall of Fame manager in Terry Francona. But they have yet to find their footing, and at this point, it’s fair to wonder if they ever will. One thing they can do to help that cause, perhaps, is add an outfielder. Reds outfielders have combined to slash only .242/.326/.376 this season. Bringing in someone like Luis Robert Jr., Jarren Duran or Adolis Garcia is the type of move that might finally get this team going, especially with Hunter Greene (groin injury) nearing a rehab assignment. But adding an impact bat seems unlikely. — Gonzalez
Record: 52-51
Previous ranking: 15
The Cardinals finished the month of May eight games over .500 and tied with the Padres for the final wild-card spot. They then split 28 games in June and followed it with 12 losses through their first 17 games in July. With the trade deadline a week away, they find themselves among a bevy of teams occupying an uncomfortable middle space — open to trading away rental players but not willing to fully give up on 2025 just yet, especially with John Mozeliak, their longtime president of baseball operations, stepping away at season’s end. St. Louis will part with some of its best relievers, but its focus should be on doing what it can to find some controllable starting pitching help. — Gonzalez
Record: 50-53
Previous ranking: 17
The D-backs’ biggest priority over this next week is clarity, though it won’t be fully realized. The playoff field is still too muddled. The trade deadline, thus, is too early. And they only convoluted matters with a weekend sweep of the Cardinals. Still, though, the D-backs find themselves far enough out of the race — not to mention injured enough throughout their pitching staff — to make punting on 2025 the prudent choice. A bevy of their pending free agents are expected to be available. General manager Mike Hazen will be tasked with making long-term moves at the trade deadline without compromising the current team. — Gonzalez
Record: 51-50
Previous ranking: 22
With the Guardians in a very different place in the standings this year compared to last season, they are expected to weigh opportunities to maximize the possible trade return for some of their veterans. The player drawing the most inquiries is Steven Kwan, whose skill set would fit a number of contenders, with his high rate of contact, good speed and strong defense. But Kwan will be arbitration eligible for a couple of more winters, which gives the Guardians time to wait — probably into 2026 — for a team to meet their asking price. — Olney
Record: 50-53
Previous ranking: 19
This is the specific time of year when a small sample size matters — when one good outing can make all the difference — and that’s why a small cadre of rival evaluators closely watched Seth Lugo‘s start against the Cubs on Wednesday. But whether Lugo is traded before the deadline or not, the Royals’ primary focus seems to be — not surprisingly — on upgrading their brutal outfield production. That means continuing to give Jac Caglianone the reps he needs as he adjusts to major league pitching. That means looking for opportunities, as the Marlins did with Kyle Stowers, to land hitters under team control through 2026 and beyond. — Olney
Record: 49-53
Previous ranking: 20
Other teams expect Minnesota will deal before the deadline. But no matter who goes — some rival execs are skeptical that the team would seriously consider dealing Joe Ryan — the Twins need to get major league ready players or prospects who help set them up for the future. The front office is stuck in something of a waiting game, with the franchise’s sale still being shaped. President of baseball operations Derek Falvey and his staff presumably can’t grow the payroll and take on debt in this period. Resolution of the ownership situation needs to happen before Minnesota can fully build a roster. — Olney
Record: 49-53
Previous ranking: 21
The Angels are among the teams sitting on the fence as the deadline approaches, but they’ve dropped four of six games coming out of the All-Star break at a time when a small sample size matters. No matter what happens between now and July 31, however, what remains paramount for the Angels is the development of their young players. First baseman Nolan Schanuel — still only 23 years old — is having a good season, and Zach Neto has accumulated a more than respectable 3.4 WAR. Jo Adell has 21 homers. But more is needed. — Olney
Record: 44-57
Previous ranking: 24
It’s been another nightmare season for the Braves, riddled with terrible injury luck and unexpected poor performances from key players. Michael Harris II‘s struggles are perhaps the most alarming. The center fielder is batting .214. His .559 OPS and 50 wRC+ rank 159th out of baseball’s 159 qualified hitters, while his 2.8% walk rate is tied for 159th.
It’s been a stunning downturn for a player in his age-24 season who’s only three years removed from posting 4.8 fWAR with a .853 OPS as a rookie — a first year so encouraging that the Braves signed him to an eight-year, $72 million extension that August. Harris’ glove and speed are still valuable — maybe valuable enough to absorb his offensive regression — but a turnaround at the plate in the second half will ease Atlanta’s concerns. — Castillo
Record: 48-53
Previous ranking: 23
The Marlins have turned a corner this season. Since June 10, they’re 23-13 — good for the second-best record in the NL. Zoom out further and they’ve been 35-35 since May 1. Outfielder Kyle Stowers is a legitimate All-Star and franchise player. Eury Perez has looked sharp in his return from Tommy John surgery. Otto Lopez has compiled 3 bWAR. The franchise is trending in the right direction. The final two-plus months is about continuing development, unearthing other future contributors and finishing the year with positive momentum. — Castillo
Record: 44-57
Previous ranking: 25
Besides unloading impending free agents for young talent at the deadline, the Orioles’ other significant second-half move with an eye toward 2026 could be promoting top prospect Samuel Basallo to the majors. The towering catcher (6-foot-4) will likely primarily play first base and DH in the majors with Adley Rutschman expected to return from injury soon, but Basallo’s bat is the priority. He has gigantic power that has clicked this season at Triple-A Norfolk, where he’s hitting .264 with 19 home runs and a .974 OPS in 62 games at just 20 years old. It shouldn’t be long before he’s in Baltimore. — Castillo
Record: 42-61
Previous ranking: 26
Paul Skenes boasts a 1.91 ERA, the lowest among qualified starters. His record: 5-8. Any hopes of building around the game’s best young pitcher will hinge around the Pirates’ ability to add offense, a painstaking process that will continue with this year’s trade deadline. The front office will be fielding a lot of calls about Mitch Keller, David Bednar, Dennis Santana and potentially Bryan Reynolds, among others, over the next week. It is crucial that they leverage them for the types of hitters they’ve struggled to find. — Gonzalez
Record: 42-62
Previous ranking: 27
The A’s have established a formidable group of position players in Brent Rooker, Jacob Wilson, Lawrence Butler, Nick Kurtz and Tyler Soderstrom. But if the franchise is going to take a serious step forward before the move to Las Vegas, it will need to build a pitching staff, and it’s unclear whether the A’s will do that over the next couple of years. Their investment in Luis Severino has been a bust. Other teams say 32-year-old Jeffrey Springs might be available for the right offer. And let’s be real, the ballpark in Sacramento doesn’t foster pitching. The A’s have the second-worst home ERA in the majors at 5.36. — Olney
Record: 41-61
Previous ranking: 28
The Nationals have an exciting core of young position players, led by 22-year-old All-Star James Wood. Now it’s about figuring out which pitchers are part of the future. All-Star left-hander MacKenzie Gore figures to continue as the staff ace with two years of team control remaining after this season, though a trade for a substantial haul isn’t out of the realm of possibility. Relievers Brad Lord and Cole Henry, both 25, have posted strong campaigns. Cade Cavalli, a 2020 first-round draft pick, is nearing a return from a Tommy John surgery that sidelined him for all of the 2023 season and most of 2024.
However, Gore is the only Nationals starter with an ERA under 4.80 this season, and the bullpen ranks last in the majors in ERA. Discovering and developing the next wave of pitching talent is paramount. — Castillo
Record: 37-66
Previous ranking: 29
Sometime in the next couple of weeks, the White Sox will likely surpass their 2024 win total of 41. While another 100-loss season seems likely, there is clear growth happening with the roster, and this will continue to be the focus for the team. Pitchers such as Sean Burke and Shane Smith and position players such as Kyle Teel are gaining experience. There are teams interested in acquiring the talented Luis Robert Jr. (hello, Padres), and for the right return, the White Sox will trade him before the deadline. — Olney
Record: 26-76
Previous ranking: 30
The Rockies have quietly played better baseball of late, going from winning an abysmal 16% of their games in March, April and May to a more respectable — though obviously still not good — 39% of their games in June and July. The record for most losses in modern baseball history is still within reach, and here’s the thing: The Rockies should not care. They need to approach this trade deadline with a mindset that they haven’t carried into enough of them — of unloading accomplished veterans to acquire as much young talent as possible. Early indications are that they’re wide-open to that, regardless of what it might mean for the final two months of this season. That’s a good thing. — Gonzalez
-
Sports3 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports1 year agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports2 years agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports4 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Sports2 years agoButton battles heat exhaustion in NASCAR debut
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment2 years agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike