January 19th, 2020 at 8:00 am 
by Ron Cervenka With each passing day and with pitchers and catchers scheduled to report for spring training in three short weeks, Dodger fans are slowly coming to grips with the fact that the blockbuster offseason acquisition they were hoping (and praying) for by Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman probably isn’t going to happen. However, and this is a rather big ‘however,’ the 43-year-old Dodger executive has made several somewhat under-the-radar acquisitions for a team which, quite frankly, was – and is – already very very good.
On Friday it was reported and confirmed that Friedman had made yet another such acquisition – that of 24-year-old utility infielder/outfielder Clayton Daniel – from the Chicago Cubs in exchange for right-hander Casey Sadler, whom he had designated for assignment two days earlier.
(Photo credit – Clinton Cole)
As every Dodger fan knows, Sadler was one of – if not the – best reliever in the Dodgers bullpen during his brief two months in Dodger Blue. In fact, after being acquired from the Tampa Bay Rays on July 3, 2019, in exchange for 23-year-old minor league right-hander Nathan Witt, Sadler posted a 4-0 record with an outstanding 2.33 ERA in his 24 relief appearances (and one spot start) with the Dodgers. As a surprise to absolutely no one, the 29-year-old Stillwater, OK native wasn’t out of work very long, with Friday’s announcement that he had been traded to the Cubs for Daniel.
As for the Dodgers new Clayton, he was selected by Chicago in the 31st round of the 2018 MLB First-Year Player Draft out of Jacksonville State University. Over his two minor league seasons, Daniel posted a respectable slash line of .290/.367/.379/.746, having reached the Double-A level.
Here is the official Dodgers press release in the Daniel-for-Sadler trade:
The Los Angeles Dodgers have acquired infielder Clayton Daniel from the Chicago Cubs in exchange for right-handed pitcher Casey Sadler.
Daniel, 24, has been with the Cubs’ organization for two seasons, batting a combined .290 (127-for-438) with 72 runs scored and 36 RBI across four different minor league levels. Last season, the Alabama native split his time between Low-A South Bend and Double-A Tennessee, hitting a combined .305 (73-for-239) with 11 doubles, two homers and 21 RBI. He was originally drafted in the 31st round of the 2018 First Year Player Draft out of Jacksonville State University.
Sadler, 29, was designated from assignment on Wednesday after spending the majority of the 2019 season with the Dodgers. The Oklahoma native made 24 appearances (one start) with the Dodgers, posting a 4-0 record with a 2.33 ERA (7 ER/27.0 IP) and 20 strikeouts. He was originally acquired on July 3 from the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for right-hander Nathan Witt. He has been in the Majors for parts of four seasons, going 5-1 with a 3.55 ERA (26 ER/66.0 IP) and 46 strikeouts in 42 games (two starts).
It’s no secret that Sadler had become extremely popular among Dodger fans and his departure came as a bit of a shock for a team that already had a boatload of utility infielder/outfielders in Kiké Hernandez, Chris Taylor, Matt Beaty, Tyler White, Kyle Garlick, and Edwin Rios. Then again, Friedman had to create a roster spot for returning left-hand Alex Wood, and Sadler ended up being the odd man out.
Although it remains to be seen as to who the actual winner of this trade will be, it is impossible to ignore the fact that the Cubs got a (very) good one in Casey Sadler.
Play Ball!
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Posted in 
Frankly, this team is good enough to win it all. I like the direction they are heading towards develo… https://t.co/it1LCj6WnP
Let’s hope for the 2017 version of Alex Wood to shows up this year.
Proud for both teams.
Clayton Daniel is a player.
Yes he is my son!
Cool. Dodgers are the best place for him. No other development system like them in MLB, they are the best. Good luck to Clayton!
Congrats to you and your entire family, Ricky. Looking forward to seeing Clayton at spring training.
Watched a video of your son taking batting practice. His height listed at 5′ 7″ but he appears to be a very well built athlete. Andrew Friedman and his scouting group do a terrific job of acquiring under-the-radar ballplayers who then excel in the Dodgers organization. I will enjoy following him through his minor league journey – best wishes to him for realizing his dream of playing MLB.
Ah….SOOO cool. HUGE congratulations. Culmination of dreams for you both I’m sure. Hope he opens some eyes very wide this season!!
That’s awesome – congrats Dad@
Hate to be the one to mention it but in all probability the Dodgers will likely trade Kiké or CT3 (or both!) now, at mid season, or next offseason to acquire additional pitching or RH power. So having a “boatload” of solid utility players on the roster and on the farm in development is a smart move.
I like both Kiké and Taylor a LOT. It’ll be painful to see either of them go but I am particularly upset about possibly losing Kiké. I think he could be an everyday player for a LOT of teams
Eventually, room has to be there on the now 26 man roster and Dodgers or no team can keep all their players, it’s just how the game operates these days. But keep in mind that Kiki and or Taylor by themselves will not get any substantial deal done. Teams have made it clear that unless Dodgers are willing to trade from the top of their farm system there will be no deals made. So wss.
Why not DFA Tyler White. How is he more valuable than Sadler? IDGI.
I totally agree. Last year he wasn’t very good, now he is supposed to have figured out some health issue, but Sadler already proved himself. But there are always things we don’t know about players do in this case we just have to trust that AT knows what he’s doing. Maybe the fact that Sadler was out of options and would have to be kept on the 26 man roster is a bigger issue for AF than we think.
Tyler White is also out of minor league options, and he has AJ Pollock, Kiké Hernandez, Chris Taylor, and Austin Barnes ahead of him for a bench spot, with Kyle Garlick also competing and still has 2 minor league options. My guess, the Dodgers saw something in Clayton Daniel that they really liked and were willing to trade a guy who was a long shot to make the opening day roster. I discount Daniel’s height, I think he is a good ball player and we may one day look back on this trade in the same way we consider the trade of Zach Lee for Chris Taylor.
Righties in the pen:
1 kj
2 Joe Kelly
3trienin
4 Stripling, Gonsolin, May if not in the starting rotation.
7 Baez
8-9 Sborz
Plenty of choices that’s why Sadler was expendable.
That’s true and Sadler was out of options, but White is too, and we already have guys who are or should be ahead of him in the pecking order. I myself would certainly give Kyle Garlick a shot at a roster spot over Tyler White but I don’t have any say so and neither do any of us so IIWII.
Kenley sucks, Kelly sucks, Baez sucks, the new guy is extremely overpaid. Sadler is young and had potential. Also, the Dodgers aren’t smart enough to keep Gonsolin and make him a starter, they will probably move him so they can overpay some washed up old guy.
No need for a “big one”. The blogs and digital media drove the narrative that the Dodgers needed a premium acquisition.
The Dodgers are always among the top three in baseball polls of post season contenders. We have the team. The team needs to execute. Sounds simple, but actually winning the WS requires everything to go right. Baseball is a game of variability. There’s just too many variables to ensure that the team with the most regular season wins.
The Dodgers Were Just 2 Starters and 2 Relievers Away From Going To The World Series And Winning If Nobody Cheats Them Out Of Another Championship? They’ll Never Give The Trophy To The Dodgers Because If They Do That, They’ll Have To Play The Players And Face Lawsuits N It’s A Business Let Us Not Forget Were Just The Fans That Means Nothing Of Course!