Dodgers News: Farhan Zaidi Says Potential Trades Hurt By Tight Races
Despite Los Angeles Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman’s and general manager Farhan Zaidi’s best efforts during the offseason to bolster the starting rotation, it’s quickly emerged as the club’s Achilles heel.
Season-ending injuries to Brandon McCarthy and Hyun-Jin Ryu stripped the Dodgers of two-fifths of the starting rotation and left the team in need of reinforcements. With Mike Bolsinger’s success tailing off over his recent outings and Carlos Frias now on the disabled list with lower back tightness, the Dodgers’ need for starting pitching has been magnified.
With the trade deadline just over three weeks away, Zaidi said finding a pitcher to acquire has been made difficult given tight races across the divisions, via Time Warner Cable SportsNet LA:
I think one of the issues we’ve run into is the race is pretty tight, particularly the Wild Card races in both leagues. There’s a limited number of sellers and I think that has affected our ability to move as quickly as maybe we would have liked to add some depth starting pitching-wise. We’re continuing to be out there, obviously with Carlos going on [the DL], we’re going to have to bridge the gap a little these next couple weeks before the break.”
Clay Buccholz and Jeff Samardzija have been linked to the Dodgers over the last few weeks, though no potential deal has seemingly come close to be being completed. Additionally, the Dodgers were said to also have interest in New York Mets left-hander Jonathon Niese.
While the three aforementioned pitchers would help stabilize the Dodgers rotation, each is in the final year of their contracts. That could both work in favor of the Dodgers and against them. On the one hand, trading for a rental presumably wouldn’t require Los Angeles to part ways with elite prospects. However, the rotation would again be an issue at the conclusion of the season.
[divide]Clayton Kershaw Comments On First Half Of 2015 Season
How would the rotation be a problem at the end of the season? McCarthy and Ryu are coming back next year. They’ll probably lose Greinke unfortunately too. That means that they would have Kershaw, Ryu and McCarthy. Plus, they have Zach Lee almost ready to be called up, and I’m sure he’ll be on the major league roster by next year. They would only need one more starter, which means that they would only need one more starter, which they could either trade for again, extend the contract of one that they already have or use Frias or Bolsinger, depending on who’s better.
Brandon McCarthy and Hyun-Jin Ryu will both be coming off season-ending surgery. That’s enough reason for concern. Also, wouldn’t automatically count on Zach Lee making the team.
I say pay for Hamels. If we’d had a third ace the past two seasons, then Mattingly would not have been tempted to start Kershaw or Greinke on short rest. It should be clear to Mattingly and everyone else by now that today’s pussies can’t handle short rest!
Mathew are you crazy? Next year as stated by JayMunz we have Ryu coming back. The surgery on Ryu was not a complete shoulder rebuild it was a labrum tear. He will not be 100% but he apparently pitched with it torn all these years he should be fine and then get better/stronger as the years progress. Also why do we want scrub pitchers? If the Dodgers are going to pick up a guy for next year get someone you just have to pay money to and not prospects. Or trade for a younger guy as we will have several very high rated prospects blocked by Dodgers that are in place for years to come. There is hope that Beachy will help although he just allowed 3 earned runs in 6 innings in a loss last night. Lee has pitched well in rehab they should bring him up after the All Star break. Or bring up Holmes. I do not understand why they keep trying to bring up guys that have failed like Surkamp, West etc.