The MLB trade deadline has come and gone, and the Yankees 25-man roster -- something many believed would see a significant addition that would help the team in October -- stayed the exact same.

So GM Brian Cashman, what say you?

"Wasn't for the lack of effort," he told the media following the Yankees' 7-5 win over the Diamondbacks on Wednesday. "We engaged all teams. Some players we didn't match up for. Other circumstances those players weren't really available, although they're widely talked about. ...Just in terms of this circumstance, we didn't get close to anything. We certainly knocked on all doors.

"This was a unique deadline. It felt different. What the reasons for that is hard to explain. I would say most everything was out of reach."

But other teams found a way to bolster their lineups. The first domino to fall was Marcus Stroman, who the Mets jumped the market on to get early. Then, it was Trevor Bauer going to the Reds in a three-team deal Tuesday night.

When Wednesday morning came and there were just hours left, the Yankees were said to be engaged in talks involving Diamondbacks' Robbie Ray and Giants' Madison Bumgarner. Cashman even admitted "I talked to Brodie quite a lot" when asked about the Mets' Zack Wheeler.

However, the asking price for Ray was way too high (Clint Frazier plus three prospects was the reported ask), and Bumgarner as well as Wheeler seem to be those players out of reach that Cashman was talking about. They stayed with their respective clubs, along with Ray.

Cashman also didn't pluck a player from the reliever market, either. Shane Greene was on their radar, but he eventually found his way to the Braves. Ken Giles was another name in the mix, but he stayed with the Blue Jays.

Oh, and if that wasn't enough, the late news following the trade deadline had the Astros -- expected to be the Yanks' main competitor for the American League pennant in October -- landing Zack Greinke. The Yankees had just faced Greinke at Yankee Stadium, where he did a solid job keeping their lineup in check with the exception of a Mike Tauchman two-run homer. Still, he goes to Houston to join Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole, creating a nice trifecta for the postseason.

All of this was a big shot in the gut to the Yankees, but overall, no one wanted Cashman to come in and make a deal when he knocked on the doors.

"I would say disappointed that I can't add to what I already have," Cashman said when asked how dispirited he was about not landing an upgrade. "Me and my staff worked extremely hard. Have no regrets in terms of effort. You'd like to have more if you could, but I didn't have any realistic chance in my mind, based on the dialogue, to do so."

What now then? Cashman has said throughout the season that he trusts the current roster he has to win a World Series, and that's exactly what he did again to look optimistically into the rest of the season.

"The fallback is we know we have a good club already," he explained. "The job is to obviously look under every rock to see if we can add to what we have. I feel comfortable walking away from everything in front of me."

Cashman is now banking on his current injured star players to come back and make an impact. Dellin Betances and Luis Severino are two of the main players he discussed, saying they should be able to give the Yankees solid innings if all goes well in their rehab. It is unknown if Severino will be a starter at that point, mentioning in the past that a bullpen role could be in the cards. But it is too early to tell as they just threw from 90 feet today.

There is also the likes of Giancarlo Stanton, Gary Sanchez, Brett Gardner, and CC Sabathia all waiting to return. Luke Voit, who suffered a sports hernia, is also the latest member on the list. His injury could be day-to-day or require surgery that would leave him out for weeks.

The Yankees, though, have battled through this adversity all season long as many know by now. It was just that their latest struggles in the rotation matched up with the trade deadline perfectly. And the fact that Cashman couldn't bring in an arm to make Yankee fans take a big sigh of relief brought the anxiety levels up a little more.

But Cashman and manager Aaron Boone didn't seem bothered. They know what they have on their roster is already special, and if health can finally come their way, their potential is still a heavy World Series contender.

"Nothing changes here," Boone said. "Just in there celebrating a win with those guys, and looking around the room and knowing we got everything we need to be a championship club. We're ready to roll and move forward now."

It's hard to see that right now, especially with the other contenders bulking up for the fall. However, Cashman and the rest of the Yankees aren't wavering, as they'll continue to battle through the second half to secure the division and a spot at winning it all.

All Yankees fans can do now is move forward as well, and hope not landing that coveted, trade-deadline player doesn't cost them in the end.

Fingers crossed.

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