The trade deadline has become an episode of L.A. Awe.

The Dodgers are so superior to every other NL team — “a grid better than everyone else,” in the words of one rival executive — that it influences not only their behavior, but many of the contenders in the league.

Multiple executives for NL wild-card contenders offered a version of this: How much do we give up to try to get into a one-and-done game that if we win we have to face the juggernaut Dodgers in the Division Series? Obviously, every contender wants to get in and most plan to upgrade through trades, but the Dodgers give pause about how much to surrender, even knowing the postseason can be fickle and upset-filled.

“We are a good club, but the Dodgers are a great club,” said an official from an NL contender. “We have to figure out how to get better to compete with them. And that means not giving away too many future assets because they are not going away.”

Think of the Diamondbacks and Giants, for example. They know they cannot win the NL West, as opposed to, say, the Brewers or Cardinals, who can win the NL Central or be wild cards. Arizona and San Francisco have just one way into the playoffs. Combine that with what awaits even if they do make the wild card and how strong the Dodgers project to be moving forward and that is why Arizona and San Francisco are still weighing being sellers with Robbie Ray and Madison Bumgarner, respectively, among others.

Yet, the Dodgers also are under stress. They have not won a championship since 1988 despite massive expenditures. President of baseball operations Andrew Friedman has done much to wall off decision making from the noise and disappointment of falling just short. Friedman has emphasized youth, depth, versatility and financial flexibility. Los Angeles is en route to its seventh straight NL West title and is the two-time defending NL champ.

But being around the team the past few Octobers, I do sense how tired they are of seeing video of Kirk Gibson limping around the bases and Orel Hershiser pumping his arm and hearing how they have not lived up to that. The sense is that Friedman will not mortgage the future, but would more willingly overpay to a degree than in recent years to get what the Dodgers need, which is bullpen depth to protect closer Kenley Jansen.

Jansen is still very good, but is having his worst season and remains homer-susceptible. The Red Sox worked around a floundering Craig Kimbrel to win the World Series last year by deploying starters out of the pen such as Nathan Eovaldi, David Price and Chris Sale. The Dodgers intend to have starters Kenta Maeda and Ross Stripling in the pen with Pedro Baez and Julio Urias. But they need more, which is why they have been associated with Edwin Diaz, Felipe Vazquez and Will Smith. They also could add a starter with the idea of converting another piece of the rotation to relief in October.

“They and the Yankees are set up as well as any teams for the next five years,” an AL executive said. “But you don’t want to look back in five years and this was the best shot and you didn’t check every box. They need to check the reliever box. It’s a real issue.”