The Philadelphia Phillies have completed another MLB trade deadline, and this one may have been the best of any Dave Dombrowski deadline in Philadelphia. He was aggressive and added to the roster to give them the best chance to win. Was it perfect? No, but it was certainly better than sitting around and doing nothing. Let’s grade each trade that was made on Monday.
Luis Arraez and Caleb Kilian were acquired in a trade with the San Francisco Giants. The return wasn’t cheap, costing the Phillies Ramon Marquez and Marty Gair.
Marquez is someone who will likely jump into the MLB top 100 prospects soon. An expensive price to pay for a rental. Gair has a strong arm (102.2 MPH FB) but has not shown much potential in regard to reaching the big leagues.
Arraez gives the Phillies an entirely new look on offense (and defense). They now have a true contact hitter, and the best in the sport, to hit around Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper.
Kilian is a very intriguing piece to add to the bullpen. He has great underlying numbers and could have some real value to the Phillies. He is very reminiscent of Jonathan Bowlan, who was acquired this offseason.
For full thoughts on the Arraez trade and what it means for the Phillies, click here.
Grade: B+
Brooks Raley was acquired shortly after the Arraez trade was reported. The New York Mets received OF John Spikerman and RHP Luke Gabrysh.
Spikerman was right on the edge of the Phillies’ top-30 prospects list; Gabrysh has not been listed. Not much given up from Philadelphia’s side
Raley is one of the most underrated lefty relievers in the MLB. He will be a great high-leverage reliever to bridge the gap to Jhoan Duran. He will be much more valuable with the inconsistencies of Jose Alvarado and the Phillies bullpen.
There are no negatives to this trade for Philadelphia. They gave up essentially nothing for a talented bullpen arm who can make a major impact in the postseason.
Grade: A+
This trade wont receive much hype due to the trade not having the big name, but Colby Thomas is an awesome get for the Phillies. I mentioned him as a potential trade target earlier in June, and now he’s officially in Philadelphia.
Seth Johnson has been up and down in between the majors and the minors all season, and really hasn’t done much when given plenty of chances. No real loss there.
Thomas is a former top prospect who has legit pop. He crushes left-handed pitching and could be a really good bench bat this season and in the future. He hit 31 home runs in the minors in 2024.
Grade: A
The Phillies come out of the 2026 MLB trade deadline a better team with improved chances of making a deep run. That’s all you could ask from Dombrowski; now it’s up to the players to put it together. Let’s see if they can put it together.
The starting rotation not being addressed is a pretty big disappointment. The moves made by Dombrowski were really good moves, they just need to hope Andrew Painter can build on his last start. If not, they will be in some real trouble.
Overall grade: B-
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