Playing GM for the Dodgers: Three trade deadline moves for reigning champions looking for World Series repeat

No team in Major League Baseball has set the bar as high as the Dodgers, who haven’t missed the playoffs since 2012. In the last 12 seasons, they’ve won 11 division titles, four pennants and two World Series. They’ve gotten to the point that it is considered a disappointment unless they finish October with a ring.

Given the overwhelming odds that the Dodgers make the playoffs again (they are -1600 to win the NL West, per BetMGM), the focus with the trade deadline isn’t necessarily on making the postseason but instead making sure the upcoming playoff roster is strong enough to win the World Series (the Dodgers are +140 to win the NL and the favorites at +240 to win the World Series). 

These Dodgers are actually struggling mightily right now. After building a nine-game lead through July 3, they’ve gone 3-11, which is tied with the Pirates for the worst record in baseball in that time. The NL West lead has shrunk to 3 ½. 

Still, everyone assumes the Dodgers will win the West, so it’s all about getting things right before October. 

We know plenty about all the starting pitching injuries the Dodgers have gone through, but they have so many arms that surely they’ll be able to find four playoff starters from Tyler Glasnow, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Blake Snell, Clayton Kershaw, Shohei Ohtani, Emmet Sheehan et al. 

They actually have plenty of talent everywhere, to the point that Dodgers general manager Brandon Gomes told The Athletic this week that “we’ll see how these next few days come out and what everything looks like, but as of now our stance hasn’t changed on needing to go out and get additional pieces.” 

So, hey, maybe they don’t really do much. But what if I were the GM? Here are three moves the Dodgers should make. 

The bullpen is a major issue right now. On the season, the Dodgers’ 4.41 bullpen ERA ranks 24th in baseball. Things have gotten progressively worse, too. Look at the bullpen ERA by month:

And now Tanner Scott has an elbow injury. Michael Kopech (could return in August), Evan Phillips (out for season), Brusdar Graterol (could return later this season) and Blake Treinen (possibly coming next week) are all varying levels of hurt too. 

Basically, the point of attack for the front office this deadline is the bullpen. 

How about shooting high for Duran? The Twins’ fireballer has succeeded as a closer and setup man. He has a 1.94 ERA this season. He’s under team control through 2027, too. 

Yeah, the price would be gigantic for a reliever, but at least he isn’t a rental and he is a major needle-mover. 

A big-name closer to watch here who would be a rental, should the Cardinals fall far enough back, would be Ryan Helsley. 

The Dodgers could probably use two relievers, actually. It can’t hurt, given how often they deal with injuries. Some other names in the mix could be Griffin Jax of the Twins, Guardians setup man Cade Smith or even Orioles closer Félix Bautista. 

The former All-Star again looks like his old self for the Pirates and is under team control through next season.

If the Dodgers grabbed Duran and Bednar while getting healthy returns from Kopech, Treinen and Graterol, all of a sudden the bullpen issues become a thing of the past. 

3. Keep others from getting Eugenio Suárez

The Dodgers’ opponent last World Series was the Yankees, who desperately need an upgrade at third base. The biggest NL threat to the Dodgers might well be the Cubs, who they could sure use an upgrade over Matt Shaw at third. The Tigers might well end up the best AL team and they could also, you guessed it, use third base help. The Brewers are tied with the Cubs for the best record in baseball and there’s talk of them upgrading at the hot corner.

Suárez is a free agent after the year and leads the NL in homers while leading the majors in RBI.

Meanwhile, the Dodgers currently have third baseman Max Muncy on the injured list. If they grabbed a third baseman, Tommy Edman could slide over to second base. Hyeseong Kim becomes a good bench player. Edman becomes outfield depth when Muncy returns with the ability to play second base too. The additional depth guards against future injuries and, let’s face it, the Dodgers’ offense hasn’t been quite as good as advertised lately. They’ve averaged 3.82 runs per game in July while hitting just .212/.280/.369 as a team. 

Am I suggesting the Dodgers need Suárez? 

Absolutely not. But if they’re the new Evil Empire, why not say screw you to so many other contenders and drop the hammer? Embrace the villainy.

It won’t happen, but I was playing Dodgers’ GM for a second. I’d totally see what Arizona would take from the Dodgers for him.