STAR HITTERS STILL ON MARKET WITH DEADLINE APPROACHING

MLB stars will be on move as trading deadline nears.

Mookie Betts CHICAGO — andthemajor league-leading Red Sox are on pace for 100plus wins. Same for Aaron Judge and the Yankees, and the World Series champion Astros, too.

The Orioles, White Sox and Royals are on track to lose more than 100.

It’s the haves andthe havenots as baseball returns after the All-Star break.

“There’s a few good teams out there that they’re going to make it interesting in the second half,” Red Soxmanager Alex Cora said. “That’s whyyougot toshowupevery dayandkeepplaying. Wehad a great fifirst part of the season, but that doesn’t guarantee us anything in October, going to October.”

The Dodgers know all aboutOctober, andtheyarea WorldSeries contenderonce again. Especially with the addition ofMannyMachado.

The NL West leaders got a head start on the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline by sending fifififififive prospects to Baltimore onWednesday for Machado, an All-Star shortstop capable of powering Los Angeles to its fifirst title in 30 years.

“Any time you have a chance to add an impact player in a tight division race that’s something you have to look at closely,” Dodgers general manager Farhan Zaidi said.

TheIndiansbolsteredtheir bullpen by acquiring All-Star closer Brad Hand and rookie AdamCimber ina tradewith SanDiegoonThursday, sending catching prospect Francisco Mejia to the rebuilding Padres.

Machado might be the biggest star to switch teams this month, but there will be plenty of players on the move.

If the last-place Mets decide to rebuild, aces Jacob deGrom and Noah Syndergaard could shake up the playoff race. Rangers lefthander Cole Hamels and Reds pitchers Raisel Iglesias andMattHarvey—remember him?— also could be headed for newhomes. Royals third baseman Mike Moustakas and Twins second baseman Brian Dozier could provide hitting help for a contender.

“Startingpitching is always bigduringthetradedeadline, whether it’smeor somebody else who’s having a good year,” deGrom said.

The Padres also could ship out relievers Kirby Yates and Craig Stammen. They are the only team out of the conversation in the NL West, where theDodgers’ lead over fourth-place San Francisco is just four games. The Cubs have the best record in the National League after chasing Milwaukee for much of the fifirst half, and theNLEast looks like a three-teamrace.

Washingtonwas supposed to be one of the haves this year, but it hasn’t worked out so far. The Nationals hit thebreakwitha .500record, looking up at the surprising Phillies and Braves.

But ace right-hander Stephen Strasburg, fifirst baseman Ryan Zimmerman and closer Sean Doolittle are set to return frominjuries, and it looked as if Bryce Harper regained some of his swagger with his win in the AllStarHome Run Derby in his home ballpark.

“We’ve got to battle,” Harper said. “I think the Braves are really good, the Phillies are good and those are two teams that are probably going to make some moves as well. Looking forward to the second half. Looking forward to dowhat we need to do.”

While the NL features three tight division races, there is nothing like the duel in the AL East, or the crowded AL West for that matter.

The Red Sox and Yankees have baseball’s best two records, and one of them very well could be headed for the wild-card game. The Astros are in prime position to become the first repeat WorldSerieswinner since the Yankees from1998-2000, but anystumbleandtheMariners or surging Athletics could push Jose Altuve and Co. into amore precarious spot.

“We need to win games andneed to continue topush andputpressure onour division, put pressureonthe rest of the American League,” Astros manager A.J. Hinch said. “We have to do what we’re capable of.”

There is a lot to love about Boston, too. Betts is making a case for the AL MVP award, and Chris Sale leads the strikeout-crazy majors with awhopping 188 Ks. The Red Sox also have received surprising contributions from All-Star fifirst baseman Mitch Moreland and lefthander Eduardo Rodriguez.

Of course, the Yankees don’t look like they are going anywhere either, not with Judge anchoring a deep lineup and Luis Severino at the front of their rotation. Expect the AL East rivals to be on thehunt forhelpat the non-waiverdeadline, desperately hoping to avoid that dicey wild-card matchup.

“One of the signs of a potentially great team is you’re not satisfifiedwith anything you’ve done to this point,” Yankees manager AaronBoonesaid.“Ahandful of guys have had really great years. There’smore guys in that roomwho certainly feel like they can be even better. That’s our expectationmoving forward.”