July 24th, 2019 at 8:00 am 
by 0799291000348 The Dodgers aren’t trading top catching prospect Keibert Ruiz.
Nor will they be trading infielder Gavin Lux, right-hander Dustin May, or fellow catching prospect Will Smith prior to next Wednesday’s July 31 trade deadline to improve their bullpen.
A bold prediction?
Perhaps.
But for as much as Dodgers fans (including yours truly) would love to see the team acquire a top-tier closer like Pirates left-hander Felipe Vazquez, or Padres right-hander Kirby Yates, or Indians left-hander Brad Hand, or Giants left-hander Will Smith (the pitcher), for various reasons there is almost no chance that any of these pitchers will be wearing Dodgers Blue on August 1, 2019.
Just six months ago Baseball America rated the 20-year old Ruiz as the game’s top catching prospect and the 20th best prospect in all of Major League Baseball. This from Baseball America‘s scouting report:
- “… a gifted switch-hitter with excellent timing, bat speed, and loose wrists … giving him excellent plate coverage against all types of pitches;”
- “… he has progressively added strength…and is now projected to hit double-digit homers to go with his plus bat;”
- “(his) defense … is advanced for his age and constantly improving;
- “Ruiz’s success on both sides of the ball as a teenager in Double-A makes him the top catching prospect in baseball. His potential as a switch-hitting, middle-of-the-order hitter has him in line to be the next great Dodgers’ homegrown catcher.”
Ruiz is now 21-years old and was recently promoted to the Triple-A Oklahoma City Dodgers after slashing a somewhat disappointing .254 / .329 / .330 / .659 for the Double-A Tulsa Drillers. But despite his mediocre Double-A offensive stats, Ruiz remains a highly-regarded catching prospect – one that the Dodgers will not trade to the division-rival Giants for a two-month rental of Will Smith (the pitcher) – or to the division-rival Padres for Kirby Yates, who becomes a free agent after the 2020 season.
As much as the Cleveland Indians might want Ruiz as their future catcher, they are already well positioned for the 2019 postseason and will not trade their closer Brad Hand.
Felipe Vazquez, arguably the current best closer in MLB and under team control through 2023 with a very team-friendly contract, would be a tremendous addition to the Dodgers bullpen. Reportedly, the Pirates will only part with Vazquez if they are overwhelmed by another team’s offer. Rumors that the Pirates would only trade Vazquez to the Dodgers for two of their top four prospects (Lux, Ruiz, May, and Smith – among others) make this rumored trade proposal easy for the Dodgers to reject.
Whereas it might seem reasonable for the Dodgers to include either Ruiz or Smith in a package with several mid-level prospects for Vazquez, the current state of the Dodgers catching makes this problematic. It would not be surprising for the Dodgers to change out both of their current catchers for the 2020 season. Fourteen-year MLB veteran Russell Martin will be a free agent after this season and will be 37 years old early next season. Austin Barnes continues to demonstrate that he is a good fielding / no-hit catcher, and (catcher) Will Smith has a total of 29 plate appearances at the Major League level.
Look for the Dodgers to improve their bullpen before the trading deadline, but not at the expense of their top four prospects.
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Agreed. And I agree with the approach. Keep our young talent.
I can hardly wait to see what that the Dodgers will do by the deadline.
Yeah, I’m terribly interested in seeing who Friedman gets bit just as curious who is traded away. I’m betting DJ Peters and one or more lower level pitching prospects.
For those crying the Dodgers MUST give up one or more of their top prospects please remember that following that path WOULD have dealt away one or more of Pederson, Bellinger, Seager, Buehler or Verdugo – all unthinkable now. Also please remember that this management team has managed to find Chris Taylor, Max Muncy and; so far, Matt Beaty. NO GM is going to hit on every signing or trade but I don’t see how anyone can doubt the talent evaluation of this team’s management.
FYI – Matt Beaty was drafted by the Dodgers in 2015; the 12th round from Belmont University in Nashville TN
Sounds like wishful thinking on your part, Jesse. Then again, the more I see from this Dodger club of late the more I’m beginning to wonder if they should just stand pat and ride out what they do have. Ruiz, Lux, May, Smith, Beaty, possibly even Gray and Peters (that big guy has completely turned himself around, folks!), that group is so insanely talented and SO VERY close to joining the parent club roster at this point that it probably isn’t worth dealing any of them away this late in the game.
Regarding Vazquez, Pirates are obviously scared of making another foolish mid-season deal like they did last year when they sent Tyler Glasnow and Austin Meadows away to Tampa for ho-hum starter Chris Archer (lol) so they’re off the list anyway. Giants won’t let “old buddy” Zaidi part with that “other” Will Smith while they’re still in the hunt for a potential WC spot, plus I agree that it doesn’t help the Dodgers much trading within their own division (especially with the Padres’ system as equally stacked as theirs by comparison). Brad Hand, nah. If the Indians had to do it all over again, they probably would NEVER let themselves get suckered into that deal with SD in the first place. I can still see the Dodgers making a last-minute play for Amir Garrett of the Reds (my fallback option) or that Shane Greene kid from the Tigers, but that’s about it. Trade market this year just isn’t what it used to be and you can thank MLB for eliminating the waiver deadline as the root cause of it.
Matter of fact, I can honestly see the Dodgers becoming “semi-sellers” instead. Shipping out blocked MLB-ready prospects they have no long-term plans for in exchange for even more low-level farm system depth would not surprise me at all…or dealing away one of the more “expendable” big-league roster guys (Pederson? Barnes? Alexander? Garcia?) to make room for more of those highly-touted homegrown kids that are just obliterating the competition at the AAA level right now. Rather interesting route the front office could take right there…
Top notch analyses. Although I think the Indians got the better of the trade with the Padres for Hand, one of the best closers in MLB, and Adam Cimber as Mejia looks over-rated, especially as a catcher. Love to have Garrett, but Reds are in the hunt for post season and I don’t think they will part with their best left hander in the bullpen. Greene scares the heck out of me; his peripheral stats do not support his ERA, and he is pitching half of the time in one of the best pitchers parks in baseball. More on who I believe Dodgers will target / acquire before the deadline.
Full disclosure. I am a diehard Pirate fan stalking Vazquez trade discussions. Feel free to stop reading (smile). The Dodgers are loaded and are primed to win the World Series with only one spot currently looking like a weakness. Late game relief. My opinion is you should NOT mortgage your farm system, however since you are loaded I do think there is significant missed opportunity if the Dodgers don’t look to add their current year version of Andrew Miller or Aroldis Chapman. I think the Dodgers should be willing to trade one of their top 4 prospects likely with other good prospects to try to fill that gap. By no means does it need to be Vazquez but it needs to be one of the elite relievers. Just an observation from a Pirate fan who would be more than willing to give up Josh Bell and others 3 -4 years ago if it meant adding a player who would have allowed Pirates to win the World Series during their 3 year playoff run. I could take any (and probably two) of your four top prospects out of your system and Dodgers will still look like a loaded team going into next year and several years after. Part of having a loaded farm system allows you to go fill (over pay sometimes) your current holes. Dodgers may roll through the playoffs and never have late inning issues (maybe Kelly returns to form), but I would hate to be a fan holding top prospects (when you have many) and watch close games be lost in an area that likely could have been addressed.
Thanks for reading and contributing. I would love to have Vazquez, but don’t think it will happen.
“Look for the Dodgers to improve their bullpen before the trading deadline, but not at the expense of their top four prospects.” I have said this all along because the best relievers out there still won’t guarantee a ring if Dodgers still have those same issues which lead to back to back WS losses.
I would trade Ruiz because I like will Smith better. I would be willing to send 2 other prospects say Jeter downs and say Rios to the pirates along with K Ruiz for Vasquez. A world series championship would move Freidman to the next level.