Dodgers: A Christmas Wish List for Dodgers Santa

2. A legit left fielder instead of a platoon

Dear Dodgers Santa,

The Dodgers got through the season running all different left fielders.  They even had some historic performances from role players like Kike Hernandez’s three-homer game.  What they could use for 2018 is a legit left fielder, whether that comes through free agency, or if an internal option distances themselves from the bundle of outfielders.

The best internal option could end up being Joc Pederson who is coming off a stellar World Series performance in which he smashed three key home runs and could have won World Series MVP had the Dodgers won game seven.  The Dodgers asked Joc to improve his conditioning this off-season so he could show up to spring training in much better shape and win the starting left field job.  While Kike will likely get starts against southpaw starting pitchers, the majority of the games will be started by someone else.

The other potential options at the moment are Andrew Toles and Alex Verdugo.  Toles was off to a hot start in 2017 but then blew out his ACL attempting to catch a ball in the left-field corner.  If he is fully healed, he is a strong left fielder and a real base-stealing threat who can hit atop the lineup.  Alex Verdugo is the best defensive option of the three and also rarely strikes out.  He didn’t show much in 2017, but he is still a highly regarded prospect with a bright future.

There is still a chance that the Dodgers could sign another outfielder with their newfound cash flow generated by the Matt Kemp trade.  If they sign someone like Lorenzo Cain, then Chris Taylor would shift to left field which would give the Dodgers a legit left field option and a true center fielder.  Regardless of who it is, the Dodgers need to be gifted with a legit left fielder in 2018.