As the trade deadline approaches, rumors are starting to heat up, and unexpected trades are being discussed. An example of this would be the Kansas City Royals reportedly discussing moving closer Wade Davis, and the Los Angeles Dodgers are considered one of the favorites to land him if he is in fact being shopped around. He is considered one of the best relievers in baseball and last year he was the best in the MLB without question. Davis had a 0.94 ERA with 78 strikeouts in 67.1 innings. He hasn’t shown the same level of dominance this season but he has been very good nonetheless. He currently has a 1.60 ERA with 32 strikeouts in 33.2 innings.
Sources: Royals trying to package Ian Kennedy in a potential Wade Davis deal. Dodgers a strong match. Covet Davis and can take on Kennedy $.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) July 28, 2016
Coming into this season, the Dodger bullpen, outside of closer Kenley Jansen, was supposed to be the Achilles heel of the team and be one of the worst in baseball. It is fair to say that the group has made those predictions look ridiculous. They own a 2.97 ERA and a .200 BAA, both of which lead baseball. However, since the All-Star break, the bullpen has started to show some fatigue. Kenley Jansen has also had his fair share of troubles, blowing two saves since the All-Star break, and almost blowing a third one on Tuesday versus the Tampa Bay Rays. The bullpen has thrown the fifth most innings as a unit because, outside of Clayton Kershaw, the starters for the Los Angeles Dodgers have struggled to pitch into the seventh inning meaning the bullpen arms are being overworked almost daily. However a trade for Wade Davis may be just what the team needs in order to continue the stretch of dominance by the underrated bullpen.
Adding Wade Davis to an already formidable unit would be a downright scary thought for the rest of the NL, especially to rivals such as the San Francisco Giants. Kenley Jansen is bound to get back on track and once he does, pairing him with Davis would theoretically shorten a nine-inning baseball game down to seven innings. The eighth and ninth inning would be shutdown by Wade Davis and Kenley Jansen, respectively. This was the thought the Dodger front office had when they had acquired Arnoldis Chapman from the Cincinnati Reds, only to back out of the trade because of the assault charges charged against Chapman.
Nevertheless, #Dodgers very interested in Davis #Royals. Remember, tried to pair Chapman/Jansen in offseason.
— Joel Sherman (@Joelsherman1) July 28, 2016
The hard part, as usual however, are the negotiations. Arnoldis Chapman was recently traded from the New York Yankees to the Chicago Cubs. This net the Yankees a coup of young talent starting with shortstop Gleyber Torres, the Cubs’ number one prospect. The Yankees were also able to acquire three other younger players to rebuild a rather mediocre farm system. The Yankees got this return even with Chapman about to become a free agent at the end of this season. Wade Davis won’t be a free agent for another year so he would theoretically cost more than Chapman did. However, the Dodgers can point to his decline in his strikeout rate, increase in walk rate, and his trip to the DL this season in an attempt to lower his value just a bit.
He would still cost a lot, but another thing Los Angeles can do is take on Ian Kennedy and his money. Kennedy signed a five-year $70 million contract this past off-season and, according to multiple reports, is still owed $65.2 million through 2020. This would be the perfect time for the Dodgers to show their financial strength. Taking Kennedy off of the Royals’ books would lower their prospect demand.
The possibility of adding Wade Davis to an already impressive bullpen should be more than an exciting concept for the Dodgers and their fans. He may not be the starter like the team needs but the bullpen is equally as important. As the Kansas City Royals have shown the past two seasons, a bullpen is a must if you want to contend for a World Series. The Royals didn’t have a great rotation or offense by any means, but their bullpen was able to pick up the slack and carry the team. The Dodgers should take after this model and make their once Achilles heel their true strength.
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