As January draws to a close, the Los Angeles Dodgers continue to have their sights set on adding elite talent to the roster before Opening Day.
After missing out on signing one of the top free agents, the club has shifted their focus to the trade market, engaging in talks with the Cleveland Indians and Boston Red Sox for their respective star players.
L.A. most prominently has been linked to potential deals involving Mike Clevinger and Francisco Lindor, but with those discussions currently at a stalemate, they have ramped up their pursuit of Mookie Betts in recent days.
With a resolution potentially inching closer, the Dodgers are reportedly still reluctant to include Gavin Lux and Dustin May in any trade scenario, via Andy McCullough of The Athletic:
The Dodgers lack interest in parting with elite prospects like Lux or pitcher Dustin May.
Lux and May have been at the center of trade speculation over the last year and a half, and while teams clearly covet them, the Dodgers remain adamant they aren’t looking to move the top prospects under any circumstance.
That especially holds true for a player like Betts, who is on track to become a free agent after the 2020 season.
Though Lux and May appear to be off the table in trade talks, the Dodgers’ farm system is flush with enough talent to complete a deal with Boston.
Seven prospects in the organization were recently included on Baseball America’s top 100 list for the 2020 season, which is the most in the National League. That trails only the Tampa Bay Rays, who had eight prospects featured in the rankings.
While Betts is the primary focus of L.A., recent rumblings indicate a potential trade could be expanded to include David Price. The southpaw is owed $96 million over the next three years remaining on his contract.
The Dodgers certainly have the financial flexibility to absorb the majority of Price’s salary, which in turn could further lessen the prospect cost it will take to land Betts.
However, Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman has typically shied away from this strategy in recent years and is unlikely to make an exception for Price, who is entering his age-34 season.
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