The Los Angeles Dodgers have to be stunned at what they’ve gotten this season from Michael Conforto.
Nearly everyone assumed that Conforto would somehow be great for the Dodgers after inking a one-year, $17 million contract this offseason. He was decent for the Dodgers’ rivals, the San Francisco Giants, but the Dodgers usually seem to get the most out of their veteran signees.
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Instead, Conforto has a .173 average, .602 OPS, and -1.0 bWAR in 71 games. The Dodgers seem to be experimenting with more left field alternatives of late, and a trade before the Jul. 31 deadline could wind up sealing Conforto’s fate.
Is that trade coming? It’s too early to say, but one baseball insider has an interesting idea of who the Dodgers could acquire.
On Tuesday, Russell Dorsey of Yahoo Sports named Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Brian Reynolds as a potential trade fit for the Dodgers.
“Longtime outfielder Michael Conforto was supposed to fill that need after a strong 2024 season, but that success has not followed him to L.A., as Conforto is slashing just .173/.300/.302 with six homers and 77 wRC+ this season,” Dorsey wrote.
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“Starting pitching should be the Dodgers’ main concern ahead of the trade deadline, but acquiring an additional outfielder who could replace Conforto or allow Teoscar Hernández to move back to left field should also be a target. Potential targets: Bryan Reynolds (Pirates).”
Reynolds is only in year three of an eight-year, $106.75 million extension, so it would be something of a surprise to see him get traded. Then again, it’s the Pirates, so any chance they have to save a buck, they might just take.
But the 30-year-old Reynolds also has just a .709 OPS and -0.3 bWAR of his own. Do the Dodgers really want to sink more money into the corner outfield, especially for a 5 1/2-year commitment, just to hope for marginal improvement?
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