Dodgers strike again, trade for Rays ace Tyler Glasnow
Hours after officially introducing Shohei Ohtani as the newest member of the organization, the Los Angeles Dodgers struck again.
According to ESPN’s Jeff Passan and others, the Dodgers have reached an agreement to trade for Tampa Bay Rays ace Tyler Glasnow and outfielder Manuel Margot. The Rays will reportedly receive RHP Ryan Pepiot and OF Jonny Deluca, two of the Dodgers’ top prospects, and the deal is also contingent on Glasnow signing an extension with Los Angeles.
Glasnow is coming off a strong bounce-back season in which he posted a 3.53 ERA with 162 strikeouts over a career-high 120 innings. The 30-year-old previously missed most of 2021 and nearly all of 2022 after undergoing Tommy John surgery, but now the right-hander once again ranks among baseball’s best pitchers and should immediately slide into the front of Los Angeles’ rotation.
The Rays were looking to move Glasnow because he is due $25 million for the last year of his contract. They’ll now reload once again with a young arm in Pepiot who projects as a future MLB starter and who posted a 2.14 ERA in 42 big league innings last year, as well as an outfielder in Deluca who has dominated the minors since being drafted in 2019.
Los Angeles was plenty comfortable adding that salary, especially after Ohtani deferred the majority of his $700 million contract, leaving the Dodgers on the hook for just $2 million this season.
The Dodgers also net a useful bat in Margot, who has historically been strong against lefties and who also boasts a great outfield glove. He’ll slot in alongside Chris Taylor, James Outman and Jason Heyward, along with Mookie Betts, the six-time Gold Glove right fielder who is expected to be the Dodgers’ every day second baseman in 2024.