MLB trade season is underway, and ESPN has started its running scorecard on the deadline deals. The network will grade every significant transaction before Monday's cutoff, tracking which teams made smart moves and which ones overpaid or undersold.
This is the annual evaluation moment for front offices. Teams buyers are aggressive right now, chasing playoff rotation help or that final bat to push them over the top. Sellers are weighing contention windows against the haul they can extract. Some deals will look genius by October. Others will look foolish by spring training.
ESPN's grading system gives fans and analysts a concrete framework for the deals that actually matter. This isn't speculation about what teams might do. These are the trades that happened, assessed by experts who watch the league constantly. The grades carry weight because they're written by people who understand context. A B+ for one team might reflect a smart rental acquisition. A B+ for another might signal overpayment for a rental. The specifics matter.
The deadline is Monday. That's when the window closes on this year's wheeling and dealing. Until then, expect chaos. Expect surprises. Expect the grades to update constantly as the final hours create desperation deals and last-minute steals.