MLB Rumors: Tampa Bay Rays want Los Angeles Dodgers’ top prospects in David Price trade
By Hayden Kane
David Price insists that he would like to remain with the Tampa Bay Rays for the rest of the 2014 season. His reasoning is that the Rays can still make a run at the postseason and so he would like to stay with them to assist in those efforts.
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The Rays might end up trading him anyway, however, in the best interests of the franchise and to take advantage of the current climate of the trade market. As such the trade talks have reportedly started already, whether Price likes it or not.
Reports indicate that the Rays have started trade talks with the most likely suitor: the Los Angeles Dodgers. Jon Heyman of CBS reports the following:
"The Dodgers have a handful of the most elite prospects in the game, as usual, and word is that the Rays have suggested they’d like “most of them” if they were to consider trading ace lefthander David Price to Los Angeles.It’s hard to know exactly what “most of them” means, but if it means trading two of the Dodgers’ consensus top three prospects — brilliant hitting shortstop Corey Seager, 17-year-old wunderkind lefty Julio Urias and athletic center fielder Joc Pederson — they should pass."
The current state of the Dodgers’ rotation makes these talks even more interesting. To wit: if they added Price, it would bump Josh Beckett and his resurgent season to the fifth spot in the rotation. It will nominally make Hyun-Jin Ryu the fourth starter. That sounds devastating, sure, and especially on paper. Quite frankly that is a comically strong rotation. Further, the Dodgers are considered one of the only teams that would be in position to lock Price up to an extension.
Is that worth top hitting prospects? It’s not necessarily an easy decision, and the Rays are highly unlikely to settle for less. It will be interesting to see if there is any momentum to a deal with the Dodgers as many people expect.