Dodgers: Ranking the team’s most untouchable pieces

The average team has one or two players that they would be hard-pressed to move. A legit argument can be made that the Dodgers are fortunate to have multiple players you can consider “untouchable.”

The Dodgers have one of the best rosters in baseball and to have one, you will need some elite players. Los Angeles has players that are among the best at their respective positions and young players with elite talent that are vital to the franchise’s future.

Most of their value comes from their numbers that contribute to LA’s winning ways. However, some of these players’ meaning to the team goes beyond just statistics.

This description describes the players that the Dodgers cannot afford to give up because it would be nearly impossible to replace their production and overall value.

Today we will look at the five (everyone loves round numbers) most “Untouchables” that the Dodgers have on their roster right now.

Honorable Mention: Kenley Jansen

Six players should be off-limits in my opinion, but for the sake of the article, I had to leave one off.  And it was hard to exclude Jansen.

All I can say is that other than Andrew Miller, no other reliever can challenge Jansen for the title of “Best Reliever in Baseball” at the moment.

What more can you say about Jansen? He has a 1.13 ERA in 16 innings to go along with 32 strikeouts and zero walks. Yes, zero. He has an absurd 18 strikeouts per nine innings rate and is striking out a ridiculous 53.3% of batters faced. Oh, and he has a -0.96 FIP, which I’ll admit, did not know was possible.

He can enter high leverage situations before the ninth inning and go more than one inning. Not many, other than Miller, can do the same. However, he is a closer, and elite closers are easier to replace than elite position players.

Justin Turner

I had written before the season started on how Justin Turner has become the new Adrian Gonzalez regarding being the new “most reliable bat” in the lineup. He is great at working counts, getting hits when most needed, and has proven to be clutch in the postseason.

In his 39 games (162 plate appearances) before going down with an injury, he was raking. He had an astonishing .379/.453/.493 slash line with 13 doubles. In his three-plus years as a Dodger, JT has hit .351 with runners in scoring position. He’s transformed into a true-middle-of-the-order bat and probably LA’s most clutch hitter.

However, as good as he has been at the plate this season, he’s been just as reliable on defense, if not better. He has been a defensive rock and has accumulated a highlight reel of defensive plays in 2017. He may not be a Nolan Arenado because of the lack of range and elite arm, but his glove and reflexes are on par. Long story short, he’s become an elite defensive player too.

Turner’s presence extends beyond the field though. He is the heart and soul of the Dodgers’ clubhouse and the undisputed team leader. He is always upbeat and is perfect for team chemistry. His story of grinding as a fringe major leaguer to star in Los Angeles is also a good thing to have around the younger members of the team because it sets an example that hard work is everything and not to take talent for granted.

His rise has sky-rocketed him into “fan-favorite” status so moving him would possibly cause an uproar from the Dodger fan base.  And it means a little extra when your franchise is the one that a journeyman became an elite player with.

Cody Bellinger

After a scorching couple of weeks, the rookie has understandably cooled off. However, this doesn’t take away from the 21-year-old’s ability or importance fo the Dodgers. Everyone knows that Cody Bellinger is the heir at first base for Adrian Gonzalez, and if everything goes as planned, he’ll be at the receiving end of throws from the rest of the Dodger infield for a long time.

Remember, the reason that Brian Dozier is not wearing Dodger Blue is that the front office was unwilling to part with the prospect. After seeing Dozier’s 2016 season, it said a lot of how they viewed Bellinger.

Top prospects don’t always pan out, but when they do, you have to hold onto them. It may be a small sample-size, but Bellinger has not shown signs of being a bust so far; he had seven home runs in his first 16 games and is the quickest Dodger to eight home runs (23 games). When you combine his pop, elite defensive ability, defensive versatility, and athleticism, you have the makings of a future superstar.

Middle-of-the-order bats do not always come around, so like successful prospects, when you have a legit heart-of-the-order-bat, hold onto it. Remember, it has not even been a year since Bellinger could legally drink, meaning he can be a vital part of the team for 10-15 years.

Maybe the best part of it all is that Bellinger is under team control through 2022 and will be very affordable. Him being so cheap allows the Dodgers to be financially flexible in free agency once the large contracts of the team’s veterans come off their books.

So why trade a young and affordable player that the fans love, for an established veteran with less upside who will probably give you similar production at a higher cost for a lesser amount of time? No reason.

Julio Urias

As hard as it is to find elite position players, it’s even more so to find pitchers of that status. Pitching will always be highly valued (whether overvalued is another debate) because like the saying goes “pitching wins championships,” and it’s true.

True aces do not grow on trees, and there are probably just five or six true aces in baseball. As scary as it is to think about, Clayton Kershaw will not be Clayton Kershaw forever. So, when you have Julio Urias, a young prodigy who has a chance to be an ideal in-house replacement, cherish him, coddle him, or do whatever because chances are you won’t find another generational arm for a long time. And, like Bellinger, he is on his rookie contract.

You can’t ignore his cultural significance either. Los Angeles has a large Mexican community who adore their Dodgers and Urias is from Mexico. Remember Fernandomania? While it won’t ever be that big, Urias has the hype surrounding him and the ability to relate to a large portion of the fanbase.

The present and previous front offices refused to part with a particular trio of prospects to acquire a Cole Hamels or David Price to group with Kershaw and Zack Greinke in 2014 and 2015. Urias was part of that trio, and it spoke volumes regarding Urias and his ability.

He debuted as a teenager last year and flashed the ability that made him an untouchable prospect and screamed “future ace.” He appeared in 18 games, starting in 15 of them, and had a 3.39 ERA and struck out the same amount of batters as innings pitched.

He settled in after the 2016 All- Star break, throwing 40.2 innings and compiling a 1.99 ERA. These are impressive numbers for any young rookie pitcher, but when it’s a teenager posting them, you know you have someone truly unique. Urias is hands down the best young pitcher in baseball and has already gained experience that many pitchers don’t ever get to go through, and that’s pitching in the playoffs.

That postseason experience is invaluable and will only make him a better pitcher as he develops. In a few seasons, he will be the arm fronting the Dodgers’ rotation because you just don’t let go of a generational arm talent.

Corey Seager

Number one and two were closer than I initially believed. Seager is an example of the top prospect in baseball working out. The reigning Rookie of the Year is probably the best shortstop in baseball and is rather accomplished for a player who just turned 23 last month.

He has played in 225 games, won Rookie of the Year and Silver Slugger awards last season, and finished top-3 in MVP voting in 2016. As a rookie, he broke numerous franchise records as well. He’s also a career .307 hitter with a .886 OPS and has played in two postseasons. Pretty accomplished, huh? And I haven’t even brought up the financial incentives of keeping him.

Corey Seager will soon be the new face-of-the-franchise and was part of the trio I alluded to during the Urias section. Almost every team wanted Seager when he was a prospect, but the Dodgers just would not budge.

I mean there is a reason that Adrian Gonzalez said he could see Corey Seager in the Hall of Fame one day. That statement carries a lot of weight coming from a player of Gonzale’s stature.

Seager is already a top-10 player in baseball, not just the National League, and it should stay that way for a long time. He has the makings of a perennial MVP-candidate, as last season showed, and a future batting champion.

Combine this ability with the fact that he plays a premier position such as shortstop, where offense has been historically hard to find, and his value inflates even higher. He is a legitimate franchise player but happens to be on a team with another one who is slightly more accomplished.