As 2019 has seen the abandonment of waiver trades through the end of August, many teams around the MLB will be provided with limited opportunities to deal ahead of the July 31 deadline.
Seemingly, it’s more difficult because there are a multitude of clubs who may consider themselves in contention and aren’t quite sure whether or not they’re buyers or sellers with two full weeks remaining.
Conceivably, a team who is five or more games behind in a prospective Wild Card race could end up being ten games out by the time the deadline rolls around—or vice-versa.
It’s tough to fathom who the Dodgers are talking with about any prospective trades, as front office boss Andrew Friedman typically does a fine job at not showing his hand. Nevertheless, we can almost be assured that the club is looking for a much-needed upgrade(s) to an otherwise mediocre bullpen.
Some sort of move on the relief pitching front, whether or not it proves to be a beneficial in the end, is virtually guaranteed.
However, when I recently read a few stories about Los Angeles possibly being interested in arm for the starting rotation, I began to scratch my head.
According to a report out of Detroit, Friedman and his troops have been talking to the Tigers about southpaw starter Matthew Boyd.
Slugger Nick Castellanos garnered quite a few conversations about a conceivable trade during the winter months, and recently, we discussed how lefty reliever Shane Greene would fit into the Los Angeles bullpen nicely.
But another starter?
Even with veteran lefty Rich Hill on the shelf, the Dodgers appear to be fine down the stretch in the rotation. Ross Stripling has filled in admirably, and Julio Urias is always a possibility. There’s some logic in stating that by adding someone like Boyd, the Dodgers would be able to float Stripling along with somebody like Kenta Maeda back to the bullpen, but Stripling and Maeda are not overwhelmingly huge upgrades on the existing relief corps.
So far this season, Boyd has posted a 6-7 record with a 3.95 ERA and a 3.47 FIP over an even 114 innings of work alongside 152 punchouts. Besides the promising strikeout rate, these numbers certainly are not anything to write home about, as many folks who have been following the rumors feel that the Dodgers would be much better off using their resources on a prospective deal for a bonafide, high-quality relief arm.
Our good friend Connor Byrne at MLBTR pointed out that Boyd could be a wise investment for Los Angeles being that he’s under control for the next several seasons, coupled with the possibility that it’s conceivable that Hill and lefty Hyun-Jin Ryu might not be with the squad next season.
Still, many pundits believe that the 2019 Dodgers are the best squad the organization has fielded in recent seasons and that they have the best chance of bringing home a World Championship, something the city has been waiting on for more than 30 years. Consequently, the stretch run of the 2019 season could be viewed as more critical than a theoretical starting rotation in 2021.
There may not be many rumblings or rumors at this exact moment in time, but there will definitely be some kind of action in the L.A. camp before the deadline lands on July 31.
Whether Friedman decides to make another huge splash in the 2019 trade market or not remains to be seen.
