Will The Dodgers Trade Alex Guerrero?

In the beginning of the 2015 season, Alex Guerrero was somewhat of a revelation. Of course Stacie and I had already spotted his talent from the early days of his Dodger career. Before the season started the Dodgers had to place him on the roster because of a clause in his contract or risk losing him. The Cuban infielder got off to a torrid start. He batted .423 (11 for 26) in the month of April with five home runs and 13 runs batted in. Since then he’s been quietly ice cold. He hit just .239 (16 for 37) in May and only .220 (11 for 50) in June. His power has disappeared as well. Since May he’s hit just one home run.

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I theorized that the Dodgers were using Guerrero on the bench because he was hitting much better as a pinch-hitter/sub than as a starter. Now those numbers have evened out and I wonder if we might see the right handed hitting Cuban missile traded before the deadline.

The question is has Guerrero’s bat silenced because he hasn’t been getting enough at-bats? Or is he just in a slump? His home road splits suggest that he hits much better away from Dodger Stadium. At Dodger Stadium he is hitting only .188 (15 for 80) with four home runs and a .590 OPS. However on the road he’s hitting .303 (23 for 76) with six home runs and a .943 OPS in 80 plate appearances.

Guerrero’s real strength is his ability to hit with runners in scoring position. In that scenario he’s batting .311 (14 for 45) with two home runs and 18 runs driven in. He’s hitting .292 with six home runs with runners on base. He seems to do well in clutch situations.

As we inch towards the trade deadline, I get the feeling that Guerrero may end up being part of a trade package that brings a starting pitcher to Los Angeles. I don’t have any concrete evidence or credible sources to back this up right now. It’s just a feeling I am getting because Guerrero is without an everyday position.

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Manager Don Mattingly has said that they can’t just put Guerrero anywhere because they don’t have a spot for him. The club is committed to Justin Turner as the everyday third baseman and the only other position they can really play him at is in left field. With Andre Ethier, and Scott Van Slyke ahead of him on the depth chart, and Carl Crawford on the mend, there isn’t anywhere else they can play him.

I do think that trading Guerrero would probably be a mistake. He has a power bat and is an immensely talented hitter. However if Guerrero could bring in a good starting pitcher to Los Angles it might be worth trading him. As of right now Guerrero is batting .244 with 10 home runs and 30 runs batted in over 164 plate appearances. Trading him would weaken the bench considerably. The Dodgers are already loaded with power though.

Do you think Guerrero packaged with a couple of prospects could bring back a Johnny Cueto type starter? Better yet, should the Dodgers flip Guerrero for pitching? Do you think the Dodgers should hold onto him instead?

The July 31 non-waiver trade deadline is just 16 days away. Let the speculations begin! What do you think the Dodgers should do with Alex Guerrero?