While the Los Angeles Dodgers have had a presence on ESPN Buster Olney’s ranking of the top-10 starting pitchers, relievers and first basemen, the club was not represented on the list of second basemen. That hardly comes as a surprise considering the Dodgers are without a clear-cut starter.
However, players they’ve been connected to made the list, beginning with Detroit Tigers second baseman Ian Kinsler at No. 3. Brian Dozier of the Minnesota Twins checked in at No. 9, and Tampa Bay Rays’ utility man Logan Forsythe was named an honorable mention.
Of the trio, Kinsler was the first to be publicly linked to the Dodgers. The club reportedly views the veteran as a good fit for their roster, though the likelihood of a trade lessened once Kinsler asked for a contract extension in order to waive his no-trade clause.
But with trade talks for Dozier stalling, the Dodgers are expected to revisit scenarios involving Forsythe and Kinsler.
The 34-year-old Kinsler batted batted .288/.348/.484 with 29 doubles, 28 home runs, 83 RBI and a 124 OPS+ over 153 games last season. Defensively, Kinsler won the first Gold Glove Award of his career.
Dozier, who’s been linked to the Dodgers with the most frequency, is coming off a season in which he set career highs in on-base plus slugging percentage (.886), doubles (35), home runs (42), RBI (99) and OPS+ (136).
The 29-year-old finished the year batting .268/.340/.546 with a 136 OPS+, .370 wOBA and 132 wRC+ in 155 games. It’s believed the Twins are nearing a decision on whether to trade the one-time All-Star or begin the 2017 season with him still on the roster.
Forsythe reportedly was the subject of trade talks between the Dodgers and Rays prior to the non-waiver trade deadline. He was thought to have been a complementary piece in a potential trade for one of the Rays young starting pitchers. The last report of the Dodgers’ continued interest in Forsythe came in December.
Forsythe hit .264/.333/.444 with 24 doubles, 20 home runs, 52 RBI and a 113 OPS+ in 567 plate appearances over 127 games last season. His .778 on-base plus slugging percentage was down from an .804 clip in 2015 but was still good for the second-best mark of Forsythe’s career.
