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Dodgers trade Gavin Lux to dark horse destination as roster crunch continues

Eric Cole
Eric Cole

Dodgers Way

World Series - Los Angeles Dodgers v New York Yankees - Game 5 / Jim McIsaac/GettyImages

The Los Angeles Dodgers put themselves in a bit of a pickle when it was revealed that they were signing Hyeseong Kim recently. They talked a good game about how the team saw Kim as a "super utility" (whatever that means) player and that both Mookie Betts and Gavin Lux would see regular playing time in the infield.

Unsurprisingly, no one believed the Dodgers for a moment here. Lux has not exactly endeared himself to LA with his play on both sides of the ball and after posting a .703 OPS in 139 games in 2024, there were more than a few whispers that the Dodgers were looking to upgrade his roster spot.

With Kim in the fold, the writing was on the wall and, according to ESPN's Jeff Passan, the Dodgers are set to trade Lux to the Cincinnati Reds.

Dodgers strike trade to send Gavin Lux to the Reds

The calculus for the Dodgers is simple here. LA has few places on their roster that are more easily upgraded than Lux's spot at this point and there was little justification for keeping him around. Trading him now allows him to capitalize on what little value he has left. As for why the Reds need another infielder, they did just move Jonathan India this offseason, although they have a number of infield prospects as well which makes their end of the deal a bit of a head scratcher.

While not widely confirmed yet, the current word is that LA is getting outfield prospect Mike Sirota, a third round pick in the 2024 draft, back in the deal as well as a comp draft pick. Sirota has yet to play in pro ball, but he has real upside thanks to his speed and raw power. Until he struggled in his draft year, Sirota was a guy that was considered to be a potential top half of the first round talent.

Lux's tale may not be done, however, as there is currently reporting that Cincinnati could turn around and send Lux to the Yankees.

In short, Lux is finally out of the Dodgers' hair and they just landed a really interesting outfield prospect with upside. As to where Lux eventually ends up, that remains a bit more up in the air.

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Eric Cole

Eric Cole

I started my career writing about baseball covering the Atlanta Braves for SB Nation's Talking Chop back in 2015 which has since been renamed Battery Power. After years of writing for those fine folks, I made the decision to take over as Site Expert at House That Hank Built before becoming a full-time MLB Staff Writer for FanSided in 2023. Along the way, I have been a guest on multiple ESPN radio affiliates as well as 680 The Fan and 92.9 The Game to discuss Braves baseball and especially Braves prospects and was a long-time host on the Battery Power podcast. These days, I continue to write about the Braves as well as covering the Astros, Padres, and Angels with particular expertise with minor league coverage, the MLB Draft, and bashing Anthony Rendon when possible. When I am not writing about or talking about baseball (which is seldom), I am an avid baseball card collector (Maddux and Soroka being my primary personal collections) and I also collect shark teeth. All other sports are mostly dead to me as my Bills have broken my heart too many times.