Although the Los Angeles Dodgers signed Shohei Ohtani and acquired Tyler Glasnow to fill two key needs this offseason, they still have a good amount of work left to accomplish before the season begins.
The Dodgers remain in the market to add another top pitcher, with Yoshinobu Yamamoto at the top of their wish list. However, they are competing with the New York Yankees and New York Mets, along with a few other clubs, for his services, so it’s no guarantee they can add the right-hander.
Adding another position player also remains on the offseason agenda with Dodgers general manager Brandon Gomes saying the club will be opportunistic looking to add to their current group.
To address both those areas, the Dodgers could turn to the trade market, where they have a few top prospects that could interest opposing teams.
According to Bill Plunkett of the Southern California News Group, the Dodgers could trade Michael Busch or Miguel Vargas for an established player, and potentially Gavin Lux if the deal expands to include another position player:
The Dodgers’ top position player prospects – Miguel Vargas and Michael Busch – are also increasingly likely to move, with Gavin Lux also a trade candidate if the Dodgers can get the Brewers to include Willy Adames in a package with Burnes.
Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman noted that Busch or Vargas could be moved to a different team for an opportunity to get more playing time:
“There’s a lot of different paths we can go down – some of which create more opportunity (for Vargas or Busch), some of which make it harder and we’ll just have more clarity as we go,” Friedman said.
Busch was ranked the Dodgers’ top prospect for the 2024 season by Baseball America and is currently No. 2 in MLB Pipeline’s rankings. He batted .167/.247/.292 with five extra-base hits and seven RBI in three separate stints at the Major League level this year while appearing at four different positions.
Vargas also made his MLB debut during the 2023 season and has since graduated from prospect status. He struggled as the Dodgers primary second baseman for most of the first half before spending the rest of the year with Triple-A Oklahoma City.
As for Lux, he is on track to be the Dodgers starting shortstop in 2024 after missing all of this past season while recovering from knee surgery.
L.A. is confident that Lux will return to form, but could trade him if they feel they are able to upgrade at the shortstop position.
Blake Snell not among Dodgers targets
Blake Snell is the only other elite starting pitcher available in free agency, though his market has not been as active as Yamamoto’s. At the start of the offseason, a report suggested L.A. was among the teams interested in signing him. However, more recent reports suggest the Dodgers are no longer pursuing the left-hander.
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