Tim Rogers
The weird trade deadline of this weird baseball season is on August 31st this year. For the #ProspectHugger like myself it is bitter sweet. Prospects you learn about, follow and might even get to know, are usually part of these deadline deals. Let’s take a look at some of the last few seasons and the prospects that were traded.
2016
- Rich Hill and Josh Reddick for Grant Holmes, Frankie Montas and Jharel Cotton
- Yordan Alvarez for Josh Fields
The Rich Hill trade ended up being a good one despite the cost. Holmes has had some injury issues but finally could crack the A’s pitching staff in 2021. Cotton had some initial success but that has not been sustained, mostly due to injuries. Montas has been similar but had an 80-game PED suspension.
The Alvarez trade was a disaster as he won the 2019 American Rookie of the Year. He is a DH and it would have been nice to get better value for him later.
2017
- Willie Calhoun in the Yu Darvish trade
- Oneil Cruz in the Tony Watson trade
- Jacob Rhame for Curtis Granderson
Oneill is a top prospect for the Pirates but Watson was pretty good for the Dodgers. In the Darvish trade, you have to trade quality to get quality. At the deadline, Darvish was the most coveted starting pitcher and he was excellent in the playoffs before the Astr*s scandal occurred. I thought Granderson was going to be a big part of the Dodgers offense. He hit a slump about a week after the Dodgers traded for him and never recovered.
2018
- The big Manny Machado trade for Yusniel Diaz, Zach Pop, Dean Kremer and Rylan Bannon among others.
- Brian Dozier for Logan Forsythe, Devin Smeltzer and Luke Raley
The Machado trade helped the Dodgers get to the 2018 World Series. Kremer and Diaz look like they could help the Orioles eventually. The Twins really did nothing to help at all. Smeltzer has pitched for the Twins a bit in the big leagues but would not have with the Dodgers.
2019
Almost a month before this trade happened, Hulsizer was called up to the Quakes and I got to cover him. He crushed the ball and was excellent with the media. This was the first trade that got a little personal for me. At least the Dodgers got a legitimate bullpen arm in Kolarek. I always check to see how Niko is doing.
What Will 2020 Bring?
There are two things I am positive about; the Dodgers farm system is stacked and there are too many worthy prospects compared to the number of future openings. Every off-season the Dodgers will also need to decide who they should protect on the 40-man roster. That could mean some players get moved now to clear space so that they don’t lose them later for virtually nothing.
Nothing the Dodgers do will surprise me. In 2017 and 2018 they got the biggest prizes in Yu Darvish and Manny Machado. The big prizes this year include Lance Lynn, Trevor Bauer and Mike Clevinger. We’ll see what the front office does soon. For now, I am just hoping for the best for the prospects in the Dodgers system.
