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5.5c-3.1-3.7-4.6-7.6-4.6-11.7c-0.1-4%2C1.3-7.5%2C4.3-10.7%0A%09%09%09c3-3.2%2C6.8-4.7%2C11.4-4.7c5.8%2C0%2C11.5%2C0.8%2C17.3%2C2.5V127z%22%2F%3E%0A%09%09%3Cpolygon%20class%3D%22st2%22%20points%3D%22980.9%2C49.7%20955.6%2C120.2%20929.3%2C49.7%20906.7%2C49.7%20943.6%2C150.3%20924.4%2C199.8%20947.5%2C199.8%201004.4%2C49.7%20%09%09%0A%09%09%09%22%2F%3E%0A%09%3C%2Fg%3E%0A%3C%2Fg%3E%0A%3C%2Fsvg%3E%0A)
In order to get the Dodgers' roster to where it is, some sacrifices had to be made. A few were easy enough to let go of — Manuel Margot and Caleb Ferguson, for example — whose time in LA seemed to be coming to an end anyway. A few others were a little harder to watch leave.
LA let Ryan Pepiot go in return for Tyler Glasnow, only to watch the young righty go on to pitch six innings and strike out 11 batters at Coors Field, of all places. Margot even got his revenge against the Dodgers; his one home run of the year came during LA's two-game visit to Minnesota.
And then — deep sigh — there's Michael Busch, who was traded to the Cubs on arbitration deadline day in return for prospects in a roster-clearing move to make space for Teoscar Hernández. Busch never really caught fire with LA in 27 games last season as a fill-in third baseman, although he's mostly a first baseman by trade.
Letting him walk away made sense; he wasn't going to get much playing time around Freddie Freeman at first and Max Muncy at third, and he hadn't shown enough promise at the plate to justify giving him a bench spot after re-signing Kiké Hernández. Clearly, part-time reps weren't working for him in Los Angeles.
However, things look a bit different now that Busch has found his groove and exploded with the Cubs. He's homered in five straight games through April 15, which is more than enough to make Dodgers fans feel like running head first into a wall.
He had no place to play. The prospects could become stars. It was the right move.
— Blake Harris (@BlakeHHarris) April 14, 2024
He had no place to play. The prospects could become stars. It was the right move.
He had no place to play. The prospects could become stars. It was the right move. https://t.co/k7prZTkFYO
Former Dodgers prospect Michael Busch has homered in five straight games for the Cubs
Busch is hitting .327/.410/.731 through 16 games as the Cubs' everyday first baseman, with six home runs and 12 RBI. He's also walked 13.1% of the time. The numbers he's putting up with the Cubs look a lot like what he did in Triple-A with the Dodgers in 2023, when he was their No. 4 prospect.
If you were to ask anyone, Dodgers fan or not, who they would take between Freeman and Busch as their everyday first baseman, pretty much anyone who's not a Cubs fan would take Freeman in a heartbeat. However, that doesn't make the baseball equivalent of watching an ex be happy with a new partner any easier.
Deep breaths, Dodgers fans, and join us in repeating Blake Harris' mantra if Busch somehow manages to keep this up.