The summer brings separation to baseball. MLB's contenders separate themselves from the rest of the pack, and the great players separate themselves from the good ones as the heat of the division races mimic the heat outside.
Summer also means the trade deadline. It's more than just a deadline to move players. As the date gets closer, teams have to decide whether they have enough firepower to justify loading up for a title run or determine whether it's best to address their deficiencies now or later, and the best route to addressing to do so.
The 2021 MLB trade deadline is July 30, so teams have already had more than a month to establish themselves and will have a couple more.