3 Gavin Lux trades Dodgers should consider this offseason

2. Gavin Lux to the Reds in a Luis Castillo Package

Could the Dodgers package Gavin Lux to the Reds to bolster their rotation?

Is the rotation a major need for the Dodgers in this very moment? Not particularly; with David Price returning, the unit will be fronted by Clayton Kershaw, Walker Buehler, and Price, ahead of Julio Urias/Tony Gonsolin/Dustin May.

But is anything really a “major need” for the Dodgers right now? No! So why not try to shore up the area that felt like a relative weakness in the postseason while the offense surged?

Luis Castillo, a supreme changeup artist, is coming off a special 2019 season (226 Ks in 190.1 innings pitched) and an exceptional follow-up 60-gamer. Unfortunately, 2020 may have been the last, best chance for this Reds team to contend — sorry!

With Castillo, Trevor Bauer, and Sonny Gray fronting the rotation, Cincy became the scary team nobody wanted to face in a short series — until they produced a big, fat zero’s worth of offense, swept out of the postseason 1-0 and 5-0 by the Atlanta Braves. Oops!

Now, without Bauer, the team’s offensive woes will only be hit with a cleaner spotlight in 2021. They could, however, surrender the season and reopen their window by dealing Castillo (or Gray, honestly, we’re not picky) for a package headlined by Lux and Josiah Gray/Dustin May, adding a premium up-the-middle bat as well as a pitcher who’ll be rounding into form when their next great season begins.

Castillo is under control all the way through 2023. We’ve heard crazier.