Tony DeMarco

If the Atlanta Braves and Boston Red Sox end up in the 2007 World Series, they could be looking back on their non-waiver trade deadline activity as a big reason why.

In a market that wasn’t particularly strong in any area, those two teams made significant improvements while other contenders did little or nothing.

A look at the activity (or lack thereof) of all the contenders, as well as the busiest pre-deadline dealers, the Texas Rangers:

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By adding Mark Teixeira to the middle of their lineup and Octavio Dotel and Ron Mahay to the back of their bullpen, the Braves — at least on paper — have put legitimate pressure on the Mets, who along with the Phillies, did more hole-plugging than anything else.

BRAVES: This is hardly the first time general manager John Schuerholz has struck to dramatically upgrade his team before the deadline. But it could turn out to be the one with the most impact short-term and long if they can sign Teixeira to an extension.

We’ll sort out what the addition of Teixeira potentially means for Andruw Jones’ future in Atlanta beyond this season. But for now, there is less pressure on both Andruw and Chipper Jones to produce, and the Braves no longer will be held down by the worst first-base production in the league. Dotel bolsters the other area of concern in front of closer Bob Wickman, and Mahay could be vital given the key left-handed hitters of the Mets and Phillies.

However, the price paid was steep, as some see Jarrod Saltalamacchia developing into a Teixeira-type producer, and shortstop Elvis Andrus and pitcher Neftali Perez also were among the top handful of prospects in the Braves’ system. On the other hand, the Braves saw enough to think it isn’t ever going to click in for Kyle Davies.

METS: Luis Castillo isn’t the player he used to be — his speed is in decline, and his range is limited — and he loses the advantage of being a slap-hitter on turf. So it remains to be seen how much he will contribute at second base in place of Ruben Gotay, who replaced injured Jose Valentin.

The Mets also chose not to deal for Matt Morris or any other available starter — apparently a signal that they expect Pedro Martinez to contribute soon. But they were in on the Gagne talks before losing out to Boston — a sign they will try to make a waiver deal to help the bullpen.

PHILLIES: Partially by design and partially out of necessity, GM Pat Gillick was very active leading up to the deadline. He didn’t add anything of major significance, but given the circumstances, did well in plugging holes.

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Given what little else was out there in the starting pitcher market, taking a flyer on Kyle Lohse makes sense, especially considering he is 3-2 with a 3.27 ERA in his last five starts. Even though Brett Myers and Tom ‘Flash’ Gordon have returned from the DL, Ryan Madson’s shoulder woes prompted a deal for Julio Mateo, who was in Triple-A with the Mariners.

Tadahito Iguchi is a solid replacement for the injured Chase Utley, and they may not be finished, as the deadline passed only hours after Shane Victorino and Michael Bourn went down in Monday’s game.

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It should tell you something when the second-place team feels it didn’t need to do anything major, while the current division leaders were scrambling around, looking for more pitching help prior to the deadline (and likely will continue to do so).

BREWERS: It doesn’t appear as if Scott Linebrink is going to be enough to cure the staff’s deepening problems, and that prompted late interest in Gagne. Ben Sheets’ injury has taxed the rotation, and too many short and ineffective starts have resulted in an overworked bullpen that is getting shredded.

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Linebrink also was heavily used in San Diego, and his addition gives the Brewers six relievers who already have at least 42 appearances. You could see a waiver deal here, as Derrick Turnbow, Carlos Villanueva and Francisco Cordero are struggling since the All-Star break.

CUBS: They feel they did what they needed to do with the recent catcher shuffle — Michael Barrett out, Jason Kendall and Rob Bowen in — plus the increased roles for young players Ryan Theriot, Mike Fontenot and Carlos Marmol. They also have Ryan Dempster back from the disabled list and Kerry Wood on the way, so they are happy with the late-inning bullpen configuration.

They still could use a veteran 1B/OF type (Jeff Conine?) to replace injured Daryle Ward, and a left-handed reliever (Steve Kline?), but they still can get those pieces through waiver deals.

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DODGERS: For all the reported possible deals — Teixeira in a package including James Loney, Jermaine Dye, Dotel, Joe Blanton — all they ended up with was Scott Proctor for Wilson Betemit.

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Proctor has been used heavily by Joe Torre, but should provide quality depth for a staff that has been thinned to the danger point by injuries to Jason Schmidt, Randy Wolf and Takashi Saito. Still, more help is needed here.

PADRES: Going back to the Barrett, Milton Bradley and Scott Hairston moves, GM Kevin Towers has upgraded the catching and remade the bench over the last month. The question is, would they have been better off just dealing for a Dye or Adam Dunn to fill the power void after adding Barrett?

Morgan Ensberg desperately needed a change of scene, but you have to wonder what he can contribute here with Kevin Kouzmanoff improving of late. Rob Mackowiak gives them another multiple-position guy along with Geoff Blum, but could end up playing a lot of left field or second base, leaving Bradley and struggling Marcus Giles vulnerable.

It will be interesting to see if the losses of Linebrink and Royce Ring hurt bullpen depth and effectiveness.

DIAMONDBACKS/ROCKIES: Neither did anything in an effort to make a run at a division title or wild card spot. In the D-Backs’ case, their broadcasters keep goading viewers to boost the club’s mediocre home attendance, but this lack of action isn’t going to help any, especially when they need help in their starting rotation. They reportedly tried to put together a package for Teixeira, however.

The Rockies really aren’t as close as they appear to be — with three teams ahead of them in the division and six in the wild card — so they get off the hook a bit here. Still, they could have used another reliever with Brian Fuentes lingering on the disabled list.

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