3 winners and 3 losers at the MLB Trade Deadline

Winner - Detroit Tigers

No team acquired a more valuable asset on Thursday than the Detroit Tigers, who finagled left-hander David Price from the Tampa Bay Rays as part of a three-team deal with the Seattle Mariners.

Though the Tigers remain the putative favorites to win their division, Detroit's once-vaunted rotation has struggled in 2014 to replicate the success it enjoyed as recently as last season. Regression befell the weary right arm of Justin Verlander, who continues to labor through his worst season since 2008, while a marked decrease in Anibal Sanchez's strikeout rate has seen the right-hander's earned run average more closely resemble his career mark.

Consequently, Price immediately becomes the best pitcher on a team replete with good pitchers, as the 28-year-old owns a career-best 8.22 strikeout-to-walk ratio this season and boasts a tidy 2.03 ERA over his last 12 outings.

The acquisition of Price, who remains under contract through 2015, also makes more palatable the eventual departure of Max Scherzer, as the Tigers will almost certainly refuse to offer the impending free agent a contract extension of fair market value at this point.

Finally, Price's presence in Detroit's rotation will allow the Tigers to match up nicely the Oakland Athletics, who fortified their rotation on Thursday, as well.

Winner - Oakland Athletics

The boldness of general manager Billy Beane was on full display Thursday when the executive shipped outfielder Yoenis Cespedes to Boston in exchange for left-hander Jon Lester, effectively fortifying the best rotation in the American League.

It's no secret the Athletics have geared their resources towards winning a World Series championship in 2014, and the acquisition of Lester, a free agent at season's end, only reinforces what many suspected when the Athletics acquired Jeff Samardzija and Jason Hammel from the Cubs earlier this month for top prospect Addison Russell.

Though Lester's tenure in Oakland is almost certain to be brief, Beane managed to acquire one of the game's premier starters - and a capable platoon bat - while dealing from an area of strength, as the Athletics boast the most prolific offense in baseball. 

It should also be noted that Cespedes, though talented, has an undisciplined approach at the plate that has prevented him from becoming a legitimate star, as the 28-year-old's 113 wRC+ this season pales in comparison to even Khris Davis, Christian Yelich, and Yan Gomes.

Winner - Boston Red Sox

The Boston Red Sox overhauled their roster in a decidedly unique way Thursday, swapping a pair of veteran starters for major-league talent while shipping a left-handed reliever to Baltimore for a intriguing prospect.

Unwilling to offer Jon Lester a contract extension approximating fair market value, the Red Sox opted to trade their incumbent ace to Oakland for Yoenis Cespedes, an outfielder with power who can help assuage the club's unbelievable offensive woes. Cespedes remains under contract through 2015, and if the club falters yet again next season, the Red Sox can simply flip the 28-year-old at next year's trade deadline.

Just hours later, the Red Sox traded John Lackey - and his preposterous $500,000 team option for 2015 - to St. Louis for a pair of major leaguers in Allen Craig and Joe Kelly, two players who will help alleviate the pressure on Boston's myriad youngsters next season. Both players remain under club control for at least the next three years, and their arrival in Boston dramatically refutes the notion that the Red Sox are prepared to do a traditional "rebuild."

Loser - Philadelphia Phillies

In the midst of a third successive season in which the Phillies seemed destined to miss the postseason, Ruben Amaro Jr. finally appeared poised to jettison some of his veterans to infuse his club with some much-needed youth.

Cole Hamels became the subject of rampant trade speculation. Pundits pegged Cliff Lee as one of the market's most intriguing trade options. Even Chase Utley's name surfaced intermittently in rumors. 

But the Phillies opted not to broker a deal as Thursday's deadline passed, prompting Amaro to critcize his fellow executives for "not being aggressive enough," according to Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer.

The Phillies squandered an opportunity on Thursday to shed a little payroll and acquire some young talent, an oversight that will surely contribute to Amaro's already unflattering reputation.

Loser - Texas Rangers

The Rangers proved Thursday their intention to simply hope restored health can help the club return to prominence next season, as the team made no moves at the trade deadline, opting not to disturb the immediate future.

It's not entirely surprising the Rangers elected to maintain the status quo, as considerable money was invested this winter to engineer the current iteration of the team, but general manager Jon Daniels still missed the chance to dispose of some of his less valuable veterans for minor-league talent Thursday.

The executive, for instance, proved unable to work out a deal for veteran left-hander Neal Cotts, a free agent at season's end in the midst of a second successive solid campaign as the club's setup man.

Loser - San Francisco Giants

The Giants watched their comfortable lead atop the National League West dissipate in recent weeks amid injuries to several key members of their club, including Brandon Belt, Angel Pagan, and Matt Cain.

Eclipsed by the surging Dodgers, the Giants continue to receive little production from second base and have struggled to generate consistent offense this season, averaging just 3.86 runs per game, the sixth-worst mark in the National League. Since the All-Star break, in fact, the Giants have managed a measly 86 wRC+ while tallying just seven home runs in 13 games.

And yet the the club proved unable to bolster their offense before Thursday's deadline, as rumored talks with the Texas Rangers about outfielder Alex Rios never materialized into a deal.