The Dodgers finally did it. They finally got one of the big guns. After days filled with silence broken up with one trade for Tommy Edman and Michael Kopech from the Cardinals and White Sox, LA finally decided to put their massive organizational firepower to good use and land one of the most sought-after trade candidates on the market this season.
Per Jeff Passan, the Dodgers have acquired the Tigers' Jack Flaherty after weeks of being linked to him by the rumor mill. He'll head to LA in return for Dodgers prospects Trey Sweeney, who was just acquired earlier this year in a trade with the Yankees, and Thayron Liranzo, one of LA's two representatives at the All-Star Futures Game this season.
Dodgers pull off a trade with Tigers for coveted trade deadline candidate Jack Flaherty
Thanks, Yankees, for sending Trey Sweeney in the Victor González trade and balking at Flaherty's price tag! Appreciated.
Flaherty earned his way back into this position as one of the hottest trade chips on the market by pitching 18 starts for a sub-3.00 ERA for the Tigers this season. He looks like a far cry from the pitcher who was basically thrown out by the Cardinals at last year's trade deadline and was then demoted to the Orioles' bullpen after seven disastrous starts.
His utility for the Dodgers is clear: Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Walker Buehler are hurt, so Flaherty will slot perfectly into one of their spots in the rotation. Although Justin Wrobleski, River Ryan, and even Brent Honeywell have been completely serviceable and even very good, Flaherty will be a much easier starter to bet on when the Dodgers get into the postseason.
Really, all of this is just a massive relief, as it means a dominant starter will head to LA and it confirms the Dodgers weren't just sitting idle or losing out the entire time.