Dodgers Dugout: Looking at the Logan Forsythe trade
Hi, my name is Houston Mitchell, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. Since the new second baseman is named Logan, I wonder if he has ever met Hugh Jackman?
Next season’s team
Let’s take a look at a projected 25-man roster if the season started today:
Catchers: Yasmani Grandal, Austin Barnes
First base: Adrian Gonzalez, Darin Ruf
Second base: Logan Forsythe
Third base: Justin Turner, Rob Segedin
Shortstop: Corey Seager
Left field: Andrew Toles, Trayce Thompson (or Scott Van Slyke)
Center field: Joc Pederson, Enrique Hernandez
Right field: Yasiel Puig, Andre Ethier
Starting rotation: Clayton Kershaw, Rich Hill, Kenta Maeda, Julio Urias. The fifth spot would go to Brandon McCarthy, Scott Kazmir, Hyun-jin Ryu, Alex Wood, Brock Stewart or Ross Stripling.
Note: The Dodgers want to conserve Urias’ innings (they would like to limit him to 160-180 innings this season), so it is entirely possible that he will not start the season with the team. If he is healthy, I would put Wood into the rotation until Urias is ready, but the Dodgers have a lot of options.
Bullpen: Kenley Jansen, Luis Avilan, Pedro Baez, Grant Dayton, Josh Ravin, Yimi Garcia or any of a cast of thousands.
Added since last time: Logan Forsythe, acquired from Tampa Bay for pitcher Jose De Leon.
Say goodbye to: De Leon and reliever Carlos Frias, who was removed from the 40-man roster to make room for outfielder Brett Eibner.
About Forsythe
The Dodgers finally acquired their second baseman, and it’s a good pickup. Logan Forsythe, who turned 31 on Jan. 14, hit .264 with 24 doubles, 20 homers and 52 RBIs for the Rays last season. He will be paid $7 million next season, with a team option for 2018. Over his last two seasons, he is hitting .273 with a .347 on-base percentage, with 57 doubles and 37 homers. He’s not much of a base stealer (15 steals in 25 attempts), but he is good defensively.
A couple of weeks ago, I ranked the Dodgers position players by WAR. So how would Forsythe rank? Well, over the last two seasons, he has a WAR of 8.4. That puts him sixth overall in baseball, trailing Jose Altuve (12.1), Ian Kinsler(12.1), Robinson Cano (10.7), Brian Dozier (8.9) and Jason Kipnis (8.4). So, that is a big improvement for the team.
Would it have been nice to trade for Kinsler or Dozier? Sure, but did you really want to give up Cody Bellinger to get one of those guys? Because that’s what it would have taken. And the Dodgers are going to need Bellinger when Adrian Gonzalez’s contract expires after 2018.
Losing De Leon is not great, but he wasn’t the Dodgers’ top pitching prospect (Yadier Alvarez is) and the Dodgers had to part with someone to get a second baseman. We won’t know how good this trade is for quite a while, but right now I think the Dodgers did OK. And those of you comparing this trade to the Pedro Martinez-for-Delino DeShields deal need to join us in the real world.
But here’s what makes the Forsythe trade even better: His former teammates are sorry to see him go. Evan Longoria: “I’m surprised and upset at losing a player, clubhouse presence and friend like Logan. He’s a rare player. I always wish him the best.”
Making the trade even better: Forsythe has a career .278/.343/.475 slash line against left-handers.
Where will Forsythe bat? Manager Dave Roberts envisions him as a leadoff hitter.
Because of the trade, we will go over the Dodgers’ top prospects in the next newsletter.
Brett Eibner?
The Dodgers acquired Eibner from Oakland on Wednesday for minor league infielder Jordan Tarsovich. Eibner, 27, hit .193 with 10 doubles and six homers with the Royals and A’s last season. He’s just here to provide some depth.
And finally
You won’t have Brett Anderson to kick around anymore. He agreed to a one-year deal with the Chicago Cubs. With the Dodgers’ luck, he will go 15-1 and win Game 7 of the World Series.
Have a comment or something you’d like to see in a future Dodgers newsletter? Email me and follow me on Twitter: @latimeshouston
Twitter: @latimeshouston
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