3 top prospects the Dodgers can afford to trade before 2023 season

The Los Angeles Dodgers have perfected the art of being a big-market team that can spend while implementing small-market analytics to build a deep farm system. That's why the team has a decade-long postseason streak and still has one of the best farm systems in all of baseball.

Andrew Friedman has not been afraid to leverage that farm system in trades in the past, either. Better yet, when Friedman decides to trade a top prospect, he's usually right -- those prospects more often than not don't live up to hype. Yordan Alvarez is the lone exception, but he wasn't a "top prospect" when he was traded to the Houston Astros.

There's plenty of farm talent for Friedman to trade if the Dodgers decide to make a move before the 2023 season begins. But which of these prospects are the easiest to part ways with?

3 top prospects the Dodgers can afford to trade before Opening Day

3. Bobby Miller, Dodgers' No. 2 prospect (MLB Pipeline)

Before Dodgers fans come to my apartment with pitchforks, I need to express that, as a fan, I do not want the Dodgers to trade Bobby Miller. There's a lot to get excited about with Miller, and many Dodgers fans are already tabbing him as the next best thing.

However, fans also held similar sentiments about players like Josiah Gray and Keibert Ruiz, and look how that panned out. Based on recent Dodgers history, I wouldn't be totally shocked if Miller follows down the same path.

Miller has explosive stuff that certainly plays, but he hasn't put it together performance-wise at the minor league level. Solely using stats to evaluate prospects is extremely flawed, but it still tells us something. Despite his great stuff, Miller hasn't been great, posting a 4.25 ERA last season.

Miller is still a bonafide top prospect, though, and if the Dodgers want to make a trade for a big name like Bryan Reynolds, he becomes the first name that's attached. And while many fans would be upset with this decision, Friedman has earned the benefit of the doubt. I don't want the Dodgers to trade Bobby Miller but if they do, then he probably isn't as good as Dodgers fans think.

1. Jose Ramos, Dodgers' No. 8 prospect

While someone like Landon Knack may not have very much value anymore on the trade market, someone like Jose Ramos certainly could. Ramos is not going to be the front-line prospect included in a trade, but he certainly could be a sweetener added if the Dodgers make a bigger move.

Ramos is a top-10 prospect in the Dodgers' system, according to most outlets, and has produced nicely since making the transition to pro ball. While the 2022 season was a slightly down year for the right-handed outfielder, his overall numbers were still impressive.

Ramos slashed .249/.339/.479 with 25 home runs and 97 RBI in 123 games played between Low-A and High-A last year. Just about every MLB team would be willing to take on a 22-year-old outfielder who puts up those kind of numbers.

He has average to above-average speed that will translate well at a corner outfield spot defensively. Ramos also has a fantastic arm, and as long as hit bat continues to produce, he should have the makings of being a starting MLB right fielder.

So why trade him? The Dodgers have two outfield prospects that are more coveted at this point in time in James Outman and Andy Pages. Having that depth ahead of him makes it easier to potentially part ways with him in a trade, especially after they opted not to protect him ahead of the Rule 5 Draft.

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