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MLB rumors: Dodgers rivals make scary evaluation on Tarik Skubal trade possibility appeared first on ClutchPoints. Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The Detroit Tigers are having a difficult season, and Tarik Skubal is set to be a free agent at the end of the season. There will be multiple suitors for Skubal if the Tigers trade him. One of those teams that could be making a play for Skubal is the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Now, Alden Gonzalez of ESPN believes the Dodgers are going to make a play for Skubal, with one of the biggest reasons being that they can.
“Nobody, rival evaluators say, matches up better with the Tigers on a deal like this than the Dodgers. The Tigers’ farm system is loaded with promising infielders but could use more outfielders beyond 21-year-old center fielder Max Clark. They could also stand to infuse it with more pitching. The Dodgers can offer both,” Gonzalez wrote.
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The Dodgers have all the prospects necessary to make a play for Skubal, and while they could make a play for him in the offseason, there is a risk if there is a salary cap instituted in the next MLB CBA.
“In Josue De Paula, Zyhir Hope and Eduardo Quintero, the Dodgers have three outfielders who cracked McDaniel’s midseason Top 50. That list doesn’t include Mike Sirota, who’s tearing it up in Double-A and rising fast, or Charles Davalan, last year’s No. 41 pick, or Ryan Ward, who’s coming off a 36-homer season in Triple-A and would probably have a big league role if he played elsewhere,” Gonzalez continued. “But the Tigers wouldn’t trade Skubal without also landing a young, ready-made replacement for their rotation. The Dodgers have (Justin) Wrobleski, Emmet Sheehan and River Ryan, all of whom perfectly fit that description. Teams would generally be hesitant to part with such promising arms for someone who will hit the open market in a few short months. The Dodgers could do so without compromising much of their long-term plans.”
It would be unlikely that the Dodgers trade an all-star pitcher in Wrobleski, but moving on from Sheehan and Ryan plus an outfield prospect could be a major haul for the Tigers. Meanwhile, the Dodgers would then have a rotation that includes Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Shohei Ohtani, Roki Sasaki, Wrobleski, and Skubal, which would be the best in the majors.
The Dodgers, at 63-39, are one of the best teams in baseball. They currently lead the NL East and are a half-game back of the Milwaukee Brewers for the best record in baseball. They continue their series with the Philadelphia Phillies on Tuesday night.
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