The Oakland Athletics traded for slugger Adam Dunn at the end of August to bolster a struggling lineup for their postseason run. In the days leading up to that deal, there were multiple teams interested in acquiring the man known as “Big Donkey.”
The Los Angeles Dodgers were reportedly one team that was interested, and Bob Nightengale confirms that they made an actual attempt to acquire Dunn to add to their bench.
The #Dodgers tried to trade for #WhiteSox slugger Adam Dunn for bench help before he was traded to #Athletics
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) September 6, 2014
Dunn has made a strong impression in Oakland so far; in just 13 plate appearances Dunn is batting .455 with two home runs. That kind of instant power can make a huge difference in a playoff race, especially for a team like Oakland that has been starved for offense lately.
More from Los Angeles Dodgers
- MLB Trade Grades: Dodgers land Amed Rosario from Guardians
- Shohei Ohtani trade rumors live tracker: Every update so far
- After frantic trade day, Kiké Hernandez grateful for second chance with Dodgers
- This White Sox-Dodgers trade for bullpen help could lead to LA reunion
- MLB Trade Grades: Dodgers reunite with familiar face in Red Sox deal
For the season, Dunn is batting .226/.346/.449 with 22 home runs and 59 RBI. As far as his current fit on a roster is concerned, it makes more sense for him to be in the American League.
A National League team like the Dodgers still would have been able to use him, of course, but it might have been harder for them to maximize his power because of a lack of at-bats. That would have been especially difficult given the presence of Adrian Gonzalez at first base for the Dodgers.
Oakland will continue to try and get the most out of Dunn’s power in the final few weeks of the season and into the playoffs.
Be sure to stay tuned to FanSided for all of the latest MLB news, grumblings, rumors, and analysis as the 2014 season heads towards the playoff stretch.