With An Abundance Of Pitchers, The Dodgers May Be Looking For A Trade
The Dodgers have reloaded with top free-agents this off-season which already cost them a whopping $194 million. What else could the Dodgers be planning this winter?
After locking in Rich Hill, Kenley Jansen, and Justin Turner, the Dodgers seemed to be out of big off-season pickups. That didn’t stop them from entering into talks with the Minnesota Twins about a trade for 2B Brian Dozier.
However, Fox Sports’ Ken Rosenthal reports that the Dozier trade is nowhere near being finalized. What is certain, is the Dodgers’ willingness to part with prospects in order to pick up some more major talent. In particular, they have shown the willingness to let go of top pitching prospect Jose De Leon. Their reasoning for wanting Dozier makes sense. He is an impact player at a position with a gaping hole currently.
Sources: #Dodgers, #Twins remain in dialogue about a Brian Dozier trade, although no deal is imminent. @MLB @MLBNetwork
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) December 14, 2016
Dozier is coming off a career year last season with a slash line of .268/.340/.546 while crushing 42 home runs and stealing 18 bases. The Dodgers happen to have 10 pitchers who could start for them next season. So they are more than willing to let go of an arm to add another great bat to their lineup.
With the Dodgers’ chances of landing Dozier unclear, they are also looking into 2B Logan Forsythe of the Tampa Bay Rays, mainly because the Twins would want more than just De Leon for Dozier. The Dodgers have also been linked to the Detroit Tigers’ Ian Kinsler but this trade seems unlikely for L.A. Ken Rosenthal reports that Kinsler would want an extension to waive his no-trade clause. The Dodgers probably won’t agree to these terms for a 34-year old player.
No matter what happens with the Dozier trade or other potential pickups, the Dodgers are ready to upgrade their 2B spot. They have the assets to do it which will make the rest of this off-season compelling to observe. Major changes could still be made to the 2017 roster.
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