5 potential trade destinations for Brian Dozier
Brian Dozier of the Minnesota Twins is having a season for the ages, but with a front office in limbo, his future in the Twin Cities is murky.
Brian Dozier is in the midst of a historic season. With 41 homers and counting, he is only the fourth second baseman in league history to top the 40-homer plateau. Dozier has also stolen 15 bases in 17 tries, while being a generally positive defender in the field. Prior to this season, Dozier had been a .240/.314/.411 hitter with good pop but a tendency to fade in the second half.
He’s turned that stat line on its ear this season and emerged as one of the best hitters in the game, and all for the low, low price of $3 million. With the Twins mired in mediocrity after a surprising finish last season, there is speculation swirling that the new front office that will take over in Minneapolis will look to capitalize on Dozier’s peak value and trade him for an elite pitching prospect.
If Dozier is actually floated on the trade market this winter, interest will be at a supreme level, as power at the second base position is an exceedingly rare phenomenon. The following five teams have the talent pool in their farm system and the need at second base required to make a play on Dozier.
Washington Nationals
The Nationals might not stand out immediately when thinking of teams who would jump at the chance to trade for Brian Dozier, but bear with me. Washington made waves all last offseason by trying to sign Jason Heyward and Yoenis Cepsedes even when there was no immediate need for either of them. They ended up with Ben Revere, and have been using Trea Turner in center field every once in a while.
Turner’s natural position is at second base, but he has been so electric in the outfield (and Revere so useless at the plate) that the Nationals may consider leaving him in center field for good. Danny Espinosa, who is currently playing Turner’s natural position, shortstop, is a free agent at the end of the year, and is not a candidate to be re-signed by the Nationals given his .214/.311/.377 batting line.
There are several ways to make this trade work for the Nationals, and it largely depends on what they want to do with Ryan Zimmerman, a diminishing asset if ever there was one. The Z-Man is an iconic franchise player, but he has struggled with injuries and aging the past two seasons. If the Nationals are willing to make Daniel Murphy their permanent first baseman and transition Zimmerman to a bench role, they could use their deep prospect pool to make a play on Dozier. With Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg signed to long-term deals, and Tanner Roark also firmly planted in the rotation, the Nationals could pick from Joe Ross, Lucas Giolito, A.J. Cole, and Reynaldo Lopez to acquire Dozier. Michael Taylor, another top prospect who could use a fresh start, could be used to sweeten the deal.