Could the Dodgers make a deal for the superstar?
In case you hadn’t heard, things aren’t going well for the Los Angeles Angels.
The Angels kept Shohei Ohtani and made a blockbuster deal for Lucas Giolito ahead of the trade deadline, only to go on a freefall to find themselves out of playoff contention.
Fast forward a month, and Ohtani won’t pitch until 2025 after having surgery on a torn UCL, Giolito is now pitching for the Cleveland Guardians, and it was recently reported that the team would be open to trading superstar centerfielder Mike Trout — if he requests one.
So things are definitely in flux out in Anaheim, and the roster could look quite different next season.
A Trout trade — a once unthinkable proposition for the franchise — is now a real possibility, so much so that BetOnline has put out odds on the star’s next team if he’s dealt from the only one he’s known.
And the Dodgers are definitely contenders for him.
LA has the best odds to land Trout in a potential swap, and those odds are listed at +300.
The 32-year-old is still looking to add a World Series title to his already Hall of Fame worthy resume and the Dodgers are set up to be championship contenders for the foreseeable future.
LA has the second-best record in the National League — after being in third place in the NL West in June — and a lineup centered around All-Stars Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman, who are under contract until 2032 and 2027 respectively.
Add in a solid young pitching staff with Bobby Miller, Emmet Sheehan, a returning Walker Buehler — and potentially Clayton Kershaw next season — and LA should be going on a deep postseason run in 2024 and won’t be fading any time soon.
All of that adds up to what could be an attractive next destination for Trout, and with LA having one of the top farm systems in the sport, they definitely have the capital to make what would be a historic trade.