Okay, I have gotten off the ledge. The Dodgers pulled off 5 trades, none of which figure to help the Dodgers this year, with the exception of opening up 40 man roster spots.
- July 30 – Dodgers trade Zach McKinstry to Chicago Cubs for RHRP, Chris Martin.
- August 1 – Dodgers trade LHRP Garrett Cleavinger to Tampa Bay for 18 year old OF German Tapia (DSL-Bautista).
- August 2 – Dodgers trade RHSP Mitch White and MiLB 3B Alex De Jesus (A+) to Toronto for 23 year old RHP Nick Frasso (A+) and 20 year old LHP Moises Brito (DSL).
- August 2 – Dodgers trade 3B/OF Jake Lamb to Seattle for cash or PTBNL
- August 2 – Dodgers trade RHP Clayton Beeter (#15 prospect – AA) to NYY for Joey Gallo.
The Dodgers picked up two 40 man roster spots with the above. They have used one with the addition of Miguel Vargas on August 2. They now sit at 39.
There is going to need to be some roster manipulation in the next two months. Coming off the 60 Day IL before the end of August (?):
Maybe before the end of the year:
Looking more doubtful:
Probable DFA for when players come off:
- Jake Reed
- Reyes Moronta
- Eddy Alvarez
- Then who???
- I am happy for Zach McKinstry. He is actually in the starting lineup for the Cubs. I have no visions of Chris Martin being a high leverage reliever. He is a single inning middle reliever. He will throw strikes. He will get strikeouts. He will not walk a lot of batters. And he will give up HRs. That is who he is.
- Garrett Cleavinger is not on the Tampa Bay ML roster. He has not yet been assigned to a MiLB team, but presumably it will be Durham Bulls (AAA). German Tapia is assigned to DSL Bautista. Far away from MLB.
- Mitch White will join Ross Stripling in the Blue Jays rotation. Alex De Jesus has been assigned to Vancouver Canadiens in High A. Harold has agreed to do one of his patented Meet Nick Frasso posts for later this week. Moises Brito is assigned to DSL Bautista. Far away from MLB.
- I am also happy for Jake Lamb who is heading home to Seattle. This was a convenient way of gaining a roster spot, and to make a player happy. Good for Jake Lamb, good for AF/BG.
- I am sorry, but I cannot get excited about this one at all. I will repeat what Joey Gallo said about his hitting ability.
“Coming here, I knew it was going to be really tough. It took a while for people to understand the player I am in Texas. Early on, I was the No. 1 prospect, but I struck out a lot. I was a strange player. But Rangers fans started to understand, ‘OK, this guy strikes out, but he hits homers, he plays good defense, he’s a good person.’ Rangers fans came to understand that. Here in New York, if you don’t get enough hits, it doesn’t matter what else you’re doing. They’re going to tear you apart. I’ve been a Three True Outcomes player my whole life. It’s not like I hit .300 my whole life. I’ve been a .200 hitter my whole life and I hit .160 here. So I knew New York was going to be a tough time and a tough place to play, especially the player that I am.”
I will also re-post the apparent pitcher’s book on Gallo.
Pitch chart for 4-seam fastballs that generated a swing-and-miss from Joey Gallo this season. Starting to think the book is out on that one. pic.twitter.com/DiZ68KIn1H
— Lindsey Adler (@lindseyadler) June 18, 2022
Gallo is now a Dodger so I will be rooting for him. He is currently assigned to MiLB (not to a specific team). He is due to be in SF on Wednesday, and it was reported that he will be in the lineup. The LAD active roster is at 25 after losing Jake Lamb and JT (IL) and only adding Miguel Vargas. Joey Gallo will make 26. James Outman and Miguel Vargas will stay with the big league team at least until CT3 and Edwin Ríos are due back. Both CT3 and Ríos are at OKC in rehab. CT3 went 0-3, while Ríos was 2-4.
I get it. The Dodgers are loaded. IF (BIG IF) May, Buehler, Treinen, VGon, all come back healthy, their pitching will be stacked. They have a 12 game lead heading into the first game post trade deadline. There was never a question that the LAD were going to make the playoffs. The question is (as it always is) how will they do in the playoffs.
LAD fans can hate the Pads all they want, but to ignore, or dismiss as insignificant, what they did this trade deadline is ignorant and arrogant.
They added:
Juan Soto, Josh Bell, Josh Hader, and Brandon Drury. All four are solid to elite additions.
They lost:
C.J. Abrams, MacKenzie Gore, Luke Voit, Eric Hosmer, Taylor Rogers, Dinelson Lamet, and 8 prospects:
- Robert Hassell III (#1)
- James Wood (#3)
- Robert Gasser (#7)
- Victor Acosta (#9)
- Jarlin Susana (#14)
- Max Ferguson (#16)
- Esteury Ruiz (#28)
- Corey Rosier (#32)
They are also getting Fernando Tatis, Jr. back later this month. If the Dodgers fans can be excited about getting the LAD injured players back, SD fans have every right to get excited about Tatis.
Granted, that pretty much decimates the Padres farm system, and I can hear those now who think that a farm system is more important than the ML team, will tell everyone how short sighted the Padres are. The Padres are going for it this year. They do not care if they catch the Dodgers. They are going to make the playoffs, and they are going to be very formidable come October. Plus, Machado, Tatis Jr., Soto, and Hader will all be back next year.
NYY also with a huge lead in the AL East (and AL), needed a LH bat. Andrew Benintendi (check). They needed a CF. Harrison Bader (check). A front line starting pitcher. Frankie Montas (check). They needed another reliever to take the place of Michael King. Scott Effross (check). And now they no longer have Joey Gallo.
The Cardinals needed starting pitching. José Quintana and Jordan Montgomery (check). They got reliever Chris Stratton who is having a rough year, but had three good years for 2019-2021. Maybe he gets reinvigorated joining a team in a pennant chase.
The Brewers lost Josh Hader, but got Taylor Rogers, Dinelson Lamet, Trevor Rosenthal, and Matt Bush. It is hard to argue that their bullpen is not better now than it was the day before the trade.
The Braves got RHSP Jake Odorizzi, RHRP Raisel Iglesias, and OF Robbie Grossman, and only losing LHRP Will Smith. Many are going to say…Robbie Grossman, big deal. I think that is what was said about Adam Duvall, Eddie Rosario, and Jorge Soler for the Braves last year.
The Phillies added a true CF (Brandon Marsh), another quality starter (Noah Syndergaard), and finally a quality proven closer for that bullpen (David Robertson).
Houston needed a catcher. Christian Vazquez (check). They needed a RH OF bat. Trey Mancini (check). They needed another high leverage reliever. Will Smith (check).
Three other AL teams that will be longshots to make it to the WS, Twins, Blue Jays, and Mariners all improved their teams.
The contenders seemed to have all got better.
I do not have access to the medical records for any of the LAD players on the IL. But we are talking about significant injuries, and to expect that they will all come back as good as they were before they went on the IL is not realistic. Buehler is already talking about perhaps going into the bullpen. He was not prolific in that role the last time he tried it. Will Dustin May be allowed to stretch out to be a realistic option in a starting role in October?
Tommy Kahnle is at best a 50-50 shot at being able to return this year. Victor Gonzalez last pitched August 21, 2021. Danny Duffy last pitched July 16, 2021. It has taken an extraordinarily long time for Blake Treinen to come back from what was originally considered a minor injury. Are all three going to make a full comeback?
The Dodgers are still the Dodgers. They have the best record in MLB with elite players hopefully back soon. If they get them all back, they will be more than tough to beat.
My biggest frustration for the day was the loss of Mitch White and Alex De Jesus. They have been favorites of mine since they signed. Maybe Nick Frasso does develop to become that guy. That was more of an issue for me than the questionable acquisition of Joey Gallo. Who knows, maybe Gallo becomes this year’s David Freese, Steve Pearce, and Jorge Soler by carrying the Dodgers in the World Series. He is capable.
The Padres are an exciting team. Good for them. I doubt they catch us, but I also doubt they finish 12 games back. If it works, they’re coming. They will be a force in the playoffs.
Anderson’s line, 5 IP 5 earned. 6 hits, 4 BB, 1 HR. The bullpen shut them down and we scored 9. Hate to say it but I see more like this in our future.
I have few words about Vin. Like everyone here, I have fond memories of Dodger broadcasts as a kid. From ‘59 to mid summer ‘66 I fell asleep every summer night to his spellbinding voice. Crickets outside my window and Vinny inside my head.
Great line Badger, “Crickets outside my window and Vinny inside my head.” The two sounds of summer and I’m happy to say I share those with you.
Me too. As if we were masketeers.
Ah, the good ol’ days Fred.
When it became obvious yesterday that it was going to be SD or LA who finally reeled in Soto, the competitor in me was rooting for us, but as I mentioned after the deal was made, I went into yesterday with very ambivalent feelings.
After a day of reflection, I’m glad we didn’t get him and kept our prospects. Not because I’m a prospect hoarder, but because we didn’t really need Soto, to the point where it was worth it to decimate our farm system.
Preller needed him far more than we did, because he basically had no good outfielders and, let’s face it, his job was on the line.
After explaining their logic in trading Hader mid-season while still in the playoff hunt, and talking up all the guys they got back from SD, Milwaukee dfa’d Dinelson Lamet today. Looks like SD forced him into the deal to save his salary $$ and after that trade the Brewers also traded for Bush and Rosenthal, whom they apparently like better than Lamet. I don’t see him passing through waivers, but in the unlikely event he does, I’d love to sign him to a minor league deal. I think there is still some potential there, if he could just keep off the IL.
I was not in favor of acquiring Soto, but I honestly thought that AF was going to go hard for him and come away with him. Apparently he did, but we will never learn of the package that was turned down. There will be “leaks” as to what that package might have been, but it will all be conjecture.
Thank you for the news on Lamet. I did not see that. I would not mind signing him to a MiLB contract. He is more than worth a gamble. In 2020, he was outstanding. I would like to see him in the bullpen fulltime.
Rogers, Bush, and Rosenthal make the Brewers bullpen deeper. Hunter Strickland is having a renaissance season. With Bush and Rosenthal, they will continue to have an outstanding bullpen, anchored by Devin Williams. It was the prospects they got back that were important, principally, LHSP Robert Gasser. Gasser was raised in El Dorado Hills (where I have resided for the last 20 years), and went to Oak Ridge High School (right around the corner from us). So I followed him at Delta College and the University of Houston and then the draft. I try not to follow many Padres (MacKenzie Gore was different), but now that he is in the Brewers organization, I will follow him more closely.
Soto will be available in a couple of years and by then the Dodgers payroll could slimmed down with Cartaya, OUtman, Vargas, Miller, Stone, and Pepiot replacing salaries now held by Kershaw, Justin Turner, Buehler, Urias, Bellinger etc.
The Dodgers will always compete. I am not worried a bit about that. This will be the 10th consecutive year that LAD will make the playoffs. I agree they will NOT be caught by San Diego, which will make it 9 out 10 NL West Division winners.
You know my moniker was AlwaysCompete. So I know how important it is to make sure the team is competitive year after year. But it is also about finishing. In those last 9 years, the Dodgers won 1 WS, lost 2 WS, Lost 3 NLCS, and lost 3 NLDS. So the competition part is there, now they need to finish. The Dodgers are the best team in a 162 game season, but are they the best team in a short series?
I have always had a concern about the LAD starting pitching. Again, it was not the depth that I was concerned with, it was who will be there in October. I am also concerned with the bullpen. IF Treinen and VGon make it back, I will be less worried. I still believe that Brusdar Graterol needs to learn how to pitch rather than throw hard. Evan Phillips is a standout. I still believe Caleb Ferguson is the best LH setup pitcher the Dodgers have. Yency Almonte has also been mostly outstanding. After that, there is no consistency with Vesia, Bickford, Price, or Martin. And Kimbrel is a HUGE wild card.
Hader got a save yesterday, and David Robertson had a perfect one inning save with 2 K’s. I still would like to know why AF/BG wanted Chris Martin over Robertson. I am only speculating that it might have something to do with the psyche of Kimbrel.
Both James Outman (LF) and Miguel Vargas (DH) will be in the starting lineup. tonight. Bellinger, Alberto, and Smith are the bench. Gallo has not yet been added to the roster, but that could be a game time addition.
Luis Castillo and the Mariners beat Gerrit Cole and NYY today in NY.
And Muncy is hitting cleanup. When the rules are changed and the shift is outlawed, maybe Manford should help Roberts by including a rule that a cleanup hitter has to have a .175 BA or higher.
Dustin May starts tonight for OKC. Let’s see if he can build on that 3.0 IP and 46 pitches.
Multiple MiLB transactions:
Promoted to AA Tulsa – LHP Lael Lockhart and RHP Cole Percival
Released from AA – RHRP Kevin Malisheski
Promoted to A+ Great Lakes – OF Damon Keith, INF Austin Gauthier, RHP River Ryan
Released from Great Lakes – OF Edwin Mateo
19th round OF Chris Alleyne has been assigned to Rancho Cucamonga (Low A).
Lost in the trade deadline and Vin Scully passing, I failed to mention that the Dodgers had to be thrilled with the way the Andre Jackson pitched in Salt Lake City on Tuesday. Jackson pitched 5.0 shutout innings. He allowed 4 hits and 3 BB’s. He struck out 10, which matches his career high. That is two solid outings back to back.
8th rounder Taylor Young is also going to Rancho.
River Ryan is one to watch. He’s the pitcher we got from SD for Matt Beaty. Poor Matt got off to a horrendous start with the Pads, then injured his shoulder in May and hasn’t been seen since. I’d really like to see them non tender him at the end of the year so he could sign with a non-contending team that would give him more playing time.
Nice to see AJax get on track again.
We’re getting to the point where AF is going to need to use some of our more mature prospects in trades for younger (more control) returns, such as the Beaty for Ryan trade and yesterday’s White/DeJesus for Fratto deal. We just can’t afford to keep all these guys and protect them from Rule 5 so we need to turn some of them into younger prospects.
Taylor Young and Chris Alleyne are both 5th year seniors. They are 23, Young turns 24 this weekend, and Alleyne turns 24 in November. They are going to have to impress early.
River Ryan was a 2-way player in college and last year with the Padres. He actually hit well, but apparently not enough to continue. He is a fulltime pitcher with the Dodgers. He is starting but he is on a pitch count. High was 75. Ryan turns 24 later this month. FanGraphs grades him with a Future Value of 35+ as a SP. That puts him between “Swing/Spot SP” and “Emergency Callup” per FanGraphs. But 24 and just getting promoted to High A screams reliever. Hopefully he will pitch well at Great Lakes and start next year at Tulsa.
My Vinny line I enjoyed the most was about Duke Snider. The Dodgers had a couple of base runners and the count went full on the next hitter. It went something like this: Two on, count goes full, the pitcher is in trouble and looks over at the on deck circle and sees a threat as Duke Snider is taking practice swings”
I loved that line.
Another one of my favorites was about a chicken that was loose and running around the field being chased by a handful of guys and as the chicken runs toward the stands, Vin says, well it is in foul territory.
My favorite: “There’s a ground ball back of second, Mantilla over, up with it, throws low and wildly, Hodges scores we go to Chicago”
There are of course many more, but I was 11 when I heard that one and it stuck with me. My team in the World Series. And I actually got to go to a game. Wow. What a start to a life long love affair.
I have no real idea how good the dozens of top prospects are throughout the league so I’ll take your word for it here. I too was against giving what was needed for Soto, didn’t want him in our Division, and figure we have a shot at him when he becomes a free agent. San Diego is not likely to extend him. If we take care of our own business we should be fine. San Diego, and everyone else for that matter, is chasing us.
That said, I’m holding my breath when it comes to our starting pitching.