Dodgers: 3 waiver trades we wish LAD were able to make in August

Hey, whatever happened to August waiver trades?

Ah, right, they were another opportunity for the rich to get richer, preying on failed semi-contenders who fell further off the map between the beginning and end of August. Probably fine to get rid of them, in all honesty.

Shame for the Dodgers, though, who have been among the “haves” every year for the past decade, and certainly would’ve further beefed up their roster by the end of the month if given the opportunity.

Would’ve been nice to have a chance to rob the Astros at this year’s August deadline and get vengeance for the Verlander move that swung a title in 2017, but we guess … we guess Max Scherzer will simply have to do. And an extra month attached, to boot.

In essence, Los Angeles has locked down their neediest spots with marquee acquisitions, and we’d put Scherzer and Trea Turner up against anyone acquired by any other contender.

The bullpen is still a little soft, though, and as the Dodgers front office has prove time and again, they’ll jump at MLB-experienced depth bats for the outfield every time they’re made available in 2021.

The ‘pen options are a little light, even in our hypothetical August that’ll never happen, but we’ve found a few that feel like solid mid-tier buys. Considering LA is plunging their depth right now and has tried everyone short of Andre Jackson thus far, these arms make sense.

Oh, and we threw in two additions from fading division rivals for good measure. Weren’t smart enough to trade your assets in July, huh, Diamondbacks and Rockies? Well, you can always try again before our Fake Sept. 1!

These 3 August waiver trade deadline candidates would’ve helped the Dodgers.

3. Kole Calhoun

Though you may no longer consider him a threat, D-Backs outfielder Kole Calhoun has been putting his peripherals to good use lately, peppering the right-field corner with liners over a red-hot week that would’ve increased his trade value … if this late trade still existed.

Over the past seven games, Calhoun is slashing .345/.387/.517, bringing his season line up to .246/.296/.365 after his average had languished in the .100s for much of the campaign. Of course, you’re all smart enough to know that average isn’t everything, but this is much more pleasing to the eye.

The 33-year-old Calhoun is also a solid defender who could fill the Dodgers’ right-field hole on occasion as their depth continues to get tested. “Second baseman Mookie Betts” might not be here to stay, but we’ve ended up with so many bizarre combinations in the outfield this year that we’re not ruling out another shuffle or two. You could do worse, for the last man on the bench, than Calhoun, who would be an upgrade over Billy McKinney or Matt Beaty, but wouldn’t demand starter reps like, say, David Peralta.

If given another few weeks to consider it, the Dodgers could’ve added another starting-caliber player to take limited appearances in Cody Bellinger’s stead to finish the season. Oh well.