Dodgers: Trust the Front Office in Judging Talent

The trade deadline has come and gone with the Dodgers making a few buzzer beating moves. While they did trade away some minor league talent, the front office has been great at judging their own players’ abilities.

Andrew Friedman was signed to a five-year deal shortly after the 2014 season, and not long after that, he made Farhan Zaidi the Dodgers General Manager. This was Friedman and Co.’s third trade deadline since they joined and if the past two years are any indication, they did not trade any one who will be missed.

The prospects the Dodgers have traded at the deadline with Friedman guiding the ship are Hector Olivera, Paco Rodriguez, Victor Araujo, Zack Bird, Frankie Montas, Grant Holmes and Jharel Cotton. While that certainly sounds like a ton of prospects traded in only two years, none of the aforementioned players have turned into anything that would make the Dodgers regret selling them.

Hector Olivera is currently playing in the Independent League for the Sugar Land Skeeters, and Paco Rodriguez is currently not playing in any baseball league, so two of the players Friedman traded are not even in the minor leagues anymore.

Victor Araujo was also released last year after putting up an ERA close to five, and Zack Bird is currently on the 60-day disabled list and put up an ERA over eight last season for the Single-A Carolina Mud Cats.  It’s very easy to see that the plethora of prospects that were traded for Alex Wood have not become anything worthwhile.

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Last year the Dodgers traded for Rich Hill and Josh Reddick at the trade deadline, and at the time it seemed like an overpay for many when they dealt Jharel Cotton, Frankie Montas and Grant Holmes for two rental players (although Rich Hill ended up re-signing with the blue).

Holmes posted a few solid seasons in the Dodger farm system, but ever since he went to Oakland, his numbers have dipped tremendously. This season Holmes is 8-10 with a 4.38 ERA, and in 2016 he posted a 6.91 ERA after being traded to the A’s and playing for the Stockton Ports.

Unlike Grant Holmes, Jharel Cotton and Frankie Montas have played for the A’s, with Cotton being the only one currently in the big leagues. Last year Cotton made some Dodger fans regret trade when he posted a 2.15 ERA in five starts and carried a no-hitter into the seventh inning in one start. This season Cotton has regressed to the mean, and in 15 starts he has posted a 5-8 record with a 5.49 ERA.

Montas is a flamethrower that some thought would be the eventual setup man to Kenley Jansen but then was traded to Oakland. This season he appeared in 23 games for the A’s, posting an ERA over seven and allowed batters to hit .302 off of him. Although he throws hard, he’s shown you need more than just a blazing fastball to make it in the majors.

At this year’s trade deadline, Friedman and Co. traded for Yu Darvish, Tony Cingrani and Tony Watson. The reported prospects the Dodgers gave up are Oneil Cruz, Angel German, Willie Calhoun, AJ Alexy, Hendrik Clementina and Brendon Davis.

Although it seems like the Dodgers gave up a boatload of prospects, the only significant name of note is Willie Calhoun. While there is no doubt Calhoun should rake at the Major League level, his defense has put his position in question, and he might be best suited as a designated hitter.

Cruz is another interesting young player but he is ways away from the big leagues, and with the Dodgers sporting the best record in the league, it was time for them to stack up their odds to win the World Series.

Next: The Dodgers land Yu Darvish

Given the past few deadlines, there is a good chance the Dodgers won’t regret the trades they made this year. While some fans tend to get upset when prospects are traded, it’s important to remember that prospects are just potential big leaguers and some may never even pan out.

Andrew Friedman and Co. have done an excellent job of judging the talent they have in the farm system, so all we can do is trust the moves they made and hope this year’s finally parlay into a World Series win.