It was reported last Tuesday that the Los Angeles Dodgers agreed on a blockbuster trade to acquire Mookie Betts and David Price from the Boston Red Sox.
The deal, which was a three-team trade, would send Alex Verdugo and Minnesota Twins pitching prospect Brusdar Graterol to Boston, while Kenta Maeda would be dealt to Minnesota. Additionally, the Red Sox were reportedly expected to cover around half of Price’s three-year, $96 million contract.
When trades are agreed upon, the only hurdle that remains are player physicals, and that is what was holding this deal up. The Red Sox reportedly found an issue with Graterol’s medicals and attempted to receive more compensation as a result.
It seemed like an issue for the Twins and the Red Sox to work out, but that grew complicated. There was a threat of sorts made by the Twins that they would walk away from the table.
Ultimately, the Dodgers and Red Sox reached a new agreement, with Verdugo and Jeter Downs part of a package heading to Boston for Betts, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan:
BREAKING: The trade that will send Mookie Betts to the Los Angeles Dodgers has been agreed upon, sources tell ESPN. Outfielder Alex Verdugo and shortstop Jeter Downs are among those who will go to the Boston Red Sox.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) February 9, 2020
The Red Sox are also due to receive catching prospect Connor Wong from the Dodgers:
Catching prospect Connor Wong is headed to the Boston Red Sox alongside outfielder Alex Verdugo and shortstop Jeter Downs in the trade that will send outfielder Mookie Betts, starter David Price and cash to the Los Angeles Dodgers, sources tell ESPN. Players have been notified.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) February 9, 2020
Price remains part of the trade and the Dodgers will still receive cash considerations that amounts to roughly half of his remaining $96 million salary, per Mark Feinsand of MLB.com:
Source confirms Red Sox and Dodgers are in agreement on a deal that will send Mookie Betts and David Price to L.A. for Alex Verdugo, Jeter Downs and one other player, pending medical reviews. @JeffPassan 1st with the agreement.
— Mark Feinsand (@Feinsand) February 9, 2020
Per source, the Red Sox will also send cash to the Dodgers, which is expected to cover about half of the $96 million owed to Price over the next three seasons.
— Mark Feinsand (@Feinsand) February 9, 2020
Downs essentially replaces Graterol, who is likely headed to L.A. as part of a Maeda trade. The Dodgers certainly had the most to lose if this deal fell through, so even though there wasn’t much worry about that happening, it is good to see that they were able to get over the hurdles and come to an agreement to acquire a former MVP winner and a former Cy Young Award winner.
They also had another trade set up with the L.A. Angels to send Joc Pederson and Ross Stripling down to Anaheim, but that was reliant on the Boston trade going through so that now should be agreed upon fairly quickly.
With Betts at the top of their lineup and Price in the middle of their rotation, the Dodgers can now be considered heavy favorites to represent the National League in the World Series in 2020.
Betts is set to hit free agency next winter, but with the Dodgers saving some money by trading Pederson and Stripling, it appears L.A. has desires of retaining its new superstar acquisition long-term.
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