In the weeks leading up to the July 31 trade deadline, the Los Angeles Dodgers had their sights on acquiring impact arms to bolster their pitching staff.
The club appeared open to adding both starting pitchers and relievers in their effort to piece together the most talented roster possible for another deep postseason run. The Dodgers were linked to many of the biggest named rumored to be available, including Pittsburgh Pirates closer Felipe Vazquez, who was seemingly a perfect fit.
However, the two-time All-Star ultimately stayed put in Pittsburgh as a result of the high asking price placed on him. The Pirates reportedly insisted on receiving one of Gavin Lux or Dustin May, on top of catching prospect Keibert Ruiz, in any Vazquez trade with the Dodgers.
Such was a common theme for much of deadline day. With the exception of Zack Greinke and Shane Greene changing teams, other big-name players remained with their current organization. The list extends to the San Francisco Giants’ Madison Bumgarner and Will Smith, as well as the New York Mets’ Noah Syndergaard and Edwin Diaz.
President of baseball operations Andrew Friedman revealed that the Dodgers focused on impact players and were aggressive in pursuing them, even if going against conventional wisdom with their offers, via Rowan Kavner of Dodger Insider:
“Throughout the last three or four days, the confidence level of lining up on something was kind of a roller-coaster ride,” Friedman said. “Ultimately, the small list of guys that we really targeted and spent a lot of time and energy on were guys that ultimately didn’t move.
“If you expect to win a deal from a value standpoint in July, you’re not going to make deals. So, we made plenty of offers that were definitely ‘under water’ from a value standpoint but felt good about making because of the team that we have. But things have a funny way of playing out. A year or two from now, that could end up a really good thing. We’re not sure. But, as far as process and the conversations and how aggressive we were, we feel really good about what we could control.”
Though the Dodgers didn’t make the impact trade that many expected, they still made a flurry of smaller moves over the course of July.
L.A. acquired first baseman Tyler White from the Houston Astros and later added infielder Kristopher Negrón in a trade with the Seattle Mariners.
The club also signed former Boston Red Sox setup man Tyler Thornburg to a Minor League contract in hope that he can potentially recapture his dominant form with the Milwaukee Brewers.
On Trade Deadline day, the Dodgers further bolstered their infield depth with the acquisition of Jedd Gyorko from the St. Louis Cardinals before adding a left-handed specialist to the bullpen in Adam Kolarek from the Tampa Bay Rays.
