Dodgers: Predicting potential upcoming trade targets near deadline

The Dodgers have the best record in the National league right now but may look to make a move before the trade deadline. While the team is loaded with weapons, the front office may look to add an elite right-handed arm to the rotation.

The Dodgers are one of the best teams in all of baseball right now. And while most teams would be satisfied with the lineup they have, the front office might have a different opinion. There have been trade rumors all around baseball that feature the Dodgers, especially after losing Julio Urias for a year.

While he may not have been a big part of the first half of the season, Urias was almost certainly destined for a spot in the eventual playoff rotation. Now that he is no longer an option, the team may look at the trade market to find a back-end starter to help take them to the World Series.

With all of the talent within the organization, don’t be surprised to see the Dodgers take a run at an elite starter as well. Typically a team will use a four-man rotation in playoff scenarios, and the only proven starters this year are Kershaw, Wood, and McCarthy.

Might we see another ace on the staff come July? Late last month, our own Sunit Bhakta gave us a few creative options for potential starting pitching. Those options were Yu Darvish, Gerrit Cole, and Jake Odorizzi.

With the Rays only 2.5 games out of first, Odorizzi seems to be a less likely trade target for Los Angeles. Tampa Bay isn’t quite ready to become deadline sellers, so that takes him out of the equation. The Rangers are 13 games out of their division, and yet only 1.5 out of the wild card race. So Yu Darvish is also more than likely off of the table for the time being.

The Pirates, on the other hand, are having a less than successful year thus far. The team lost one of their stud outfielders to a lengthy suspension for the use of performance-enhancing drugs early on in the season. And even though Starling Marte is scheduled to come back mid-July, Pittsburgh is five games out of their division and 11 games out of the wildcard. It seems as though 2017 is the ideal scenario to begin their rebuild process, and they could start that with a trade of Cole.