Well it has been an exciting two weeks for Dodger fans. They landed the two most sought after free agents on the markets, and by the way, they are both Japanese. Go figure.
In between they traded Pepiot and Deluca to the Rays for Margot and Glasnow. That deal has been discussed at length on many Dodger sites including this one.
With Ohtani and now Yamamoto becoming Dodgers, are they finished? Well, we all know there will be depth signings for the minors. Someone has to be moved off of the roster to make room for Yamamoto. No less than 4 candidates for that honor. I would think Brian Hudson is the most likely candidate.
But will they add or make a couple of trades to strengthen the 40 man roster? I tend to believe that Freidman is not done. I still think since Ohtani will not pitch this year, and the fact that they will monitor Buehler’s innings closely, means they need at least one more starter.
They might even look at getting another RH outfielder with some pop. There are a couple free agents who fit that bill with Adam Duvall and Tommy Pham at the top of the list.
Several posters on a couple of sites keep mentioning making a trade with the Brewers for Burnes. Several also do not feel comfortable with Gavin Lux as the full time SS. So they advocate getting Adames in the same deal, and making Lux a part of the trade.
I would not do that deal for two rentals. Burnes has already stated that he is looking forward to testing free agency. Adames, although a SS with some power and at this point a better defensive SS than Lux, is not a great hitter and his K rate is high. I believe Lux is a better all around player, and really deserves a chance to either prove he can play the position at the major league level or not.
Others have said the outfield is weak, and that Mookie needs to stay in RF. Dave Roberts has said Mookie will play mostly at second base. He did not completely rule out some time in the outfield. But Mookie feels more into the game when playing second, and it reduces the chances of a serious injury from running into a wall in the outfield.
As usual, some fans keep calling for the Dodgers to unload Austin Barnes and Chris Taylor. Taylor would be hard to move with two years and 30 million left on his deal. Most teams do not want a 15 million dollar utility player.
It could happen if LA ate some of his contract, but at this point, he is the only player on the roster with those kinds of skills. He is proficient as both an infielder and outfielder at multiple spots on the diamond.
As for Barnes, we fans look at his bat and cry foul! But the team and front office value his defensive and game calling skills. No, he is not very prolific at throwing out base stealers. But with the new bases and rules, few catchers are.
Hunter Feduccia is the minor leaguer closest to being ready for the majors. But he has no experience handling a major league staff except for those MLB pitchers sent to AAA for rehab, or to get their game in order.
They have four catchers on the 40 man roster. It is a position of strength. I think and believe that trading one of the young catchers in a deal for a major league starter is not out of the question.
I do not believe they will sign any of the remaining free agents who have a QO attached to them. And the reasoning is simple. They are already losing 2 draft picks and 1 million dollars in international pool money for signing Ohtani. AF loves his picks too much to lose two more if he signs another free agent with a QO.
So, no Hader, or Bellinger. There are also some who think that the Brewers, if inclined to trade Burnes, would want the team getting Burnes to take Yelich also. With as much money as he is owed and his decline in production over the last few years, I would not do that deal under that provision.
I still feel like LA was forced to take Margot in the Glasnow trade. The only good part of that deal is that the Rays are paying 4 million of his salary.
We all would have much rather had Arozarena. But he was not on the table. Defensively, I have little problem with Margot, my problem is that I believe he brings little to the offensive side of the game. His career OPS is below .700. He also has no power.
Now, AF might just take what he has into spring training in 8 weeks. Then again, he might feel the team needs a little more. Only time will tell. I expect if they do anything, it will not be until after the new year.
The Dodgers signed 25 year old infielder Jonathan Araúz to a MiLB contract. This is strictly organizational depth. Look for more of these as the Dodgers are very limited with infielders at the upper levels (AAA and AA) both in quantity and quality.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto will be introduced on Wednesday at 3:00 PM. A roster spot will need to be open before they officially announce his signing.
That sums it up nicely Bear.
I think Margot will hit lefties well enough to at worst not be a hole in the lineup and I like that he offers more contact type at bats than what Taylor and Muncy offer.
I would rather have Adames play third if he were acquired and keep Lux at short.
I am not sure that Cease would be a better pitcher than Sheehan.
OB why do you continue to harp on the K percentage of Adames (26%) and suggest that Duvall would be acceptable with a K percentage of 31% ?
I agree we will wait out the market a bit. I still see us adding a low-end SP and possibly a RH OF.
And I wonder what will become of Vargas & Busch.
Agree with ya Bear on Giolito and maybe one other inning eating depth type who keeps us in winnable games. I heard somewhere used 17 starters last year. Of course don’t foresee needing that many but surely more than currently have.
I have been advocating for Lucas Giolito (and Max Fried and Jack Flaherty) for two years. I was looking forward to after the 2023 season when both Giolito and Flaherty would become FA. I do not think Giolito falls into the reclamation project that Tyler Anderson, Andrew Heaney, and Noah Syndergaard did. He had a bad post trade 2023, but otherwise has been a fairly productive SP in a bad system. It is not like CWS develops pitchers like Cleveland, Houston, and LAD.
There will be teams who will give Giolito a multi-year deal. He has earned it. I know he wants to pitch for LAD, but will he really sacrifice a multiyear $15MM AAV++ deal to pitch for the Dodgers? Will the Dodgers pay him more than what Seth Lugo got from KC (3 years $45MM)? More than what KC paid to Michael Wacha, 2 years $32MM? He is worth more than Flaherty’s 1 year $14MM deal he signed with Detroit.
He is the innings eater they could use as the #4/#5. Does he want to pitch enough for the Dodgers to give them a hometown discount? 2 years with an option? 3 years with an option?
Remember the Dodgers have 3 pitchers ready to return to the rotation in 2025:
RHSP – Shohei Ohtani
RHSP – Dustin May
RHSP – Tony Gonsolin
Are they really looking for a pitcher with more than a 1 year deal?
The 1 year reclamation projects I see more are:
LHSP – Sean Manaea
LHSP – James Paxton
LHSP – Hyun-jin Ryu
RHSP – Frankie Montas
RHP – Michael Lorenzen
I think there are trades in the future for no other reason than they need to move some players out.
One of Busch or Vargas is likely to go. Maybe a pitcher or two as well.
Even if these trades are for minor league lottery tickets or depth.
The Dodgers through? I would think they are never through.
I believe the the Vargas/Busch situation has to be addressed. I would like to see Vargas stationed in LF for now and considered a Muncy replacement in 3-4 years. I would include Busch (plus a catcher and pitching) in a trade with Miami for Luzardo. I don’t see how AF can justify sending Busch (or Vargas) to AAA again.
When I first saw Vargas hit in 2022 call up he passed the eye test for me. I don’t have the expertise to breakdown a swing like some here. But, I liked his swing, the way the ball came off his bat, and his ability to hit into the gaps. The numbers weren’t there, but it was a small sample size. In 2023 he was handed the 2B job at the start of the season. With two (?) broken fingers. Why would the Dodgers play a player, especially, a rookie that was injured? While trying to play injured it is natural to try to compensate for the injury which throws other body parts out of sort. It also messes with the mental side of the game. Ask Cody Bellinger. So, sure Vargas failed. Healthy, I feel that he will be positive addition to the team no matter what position he plays. Like Lux, Vargas will be a solid major league player. A star? Maybe. Maybe not. Though there’s nothing wrong with solid.
I think it’s crazy to consider including Lux to the Brewers in a trade for Burnes and Adames. Both will be free agents in 2025. To give up a few years of Lux (plus whoever else) for one year of Burnes and Adames doesn’t seem like an AF move. I know Lux may be a liability at SS and they already have that at 3B. Let’s see what they can do before doing something foolish. Heck, maybe Muncy has lost some weight, added some quickness, and has been taking 100’s of groundballs a day. The team is talented enough to overcome a possible weak left side of the infield. If Lux fails then AF has plenty of prospects to correct the defense.
Trade for Luzardo or sign Giolitto (2 yrs/$30M + option). Ohtani will be available in 2025, but May will be big question mark. Personally, I have a feeling that May will be reduced to a reliever. That’s if he is able to return at all. Gonsolin always seems to have arm issues and there’s no guarantee he will successfully recover as a starter from his surgery. He will be 31 in May of 2026 when he is, hopefully, available to pitch again. I see him in the BP as well if he does return. So, I don’t believe there should be a problem adding either Luzardo or Giolitto to the rotation. As we found out last year you can never have too much starting pitching.
As far as Taylor and Barnes being moved I would keep them for now. Taylor is way overpaid, but his defensive qualities and 2-3 ten game insane hot streaks a season are almost worth the 150+ K’s and issues making contact that comes with it. Or something like that. I accept Barnes futilities at the bat and lack of throwing out runners. He did have a strong second half at the plate though. And, the pitchers love to pitch to him. So, there’s that. Again, the strength of this team can overcome whatever weaknesses these two players might have. We can’t have All Stars everywhere…… or can we?
Carry on.