Dodgers Pick Up Josh Reddick And Rich Hill From Oakland

The Dodgers trade for Josh Reddick and Rich Hill. What are the fantasy impacts of this deal?

The Dodgers beefed up right field and strengthened their rotation right before the deadline this year. Will it be enough to propel them into the post season? Clayton Kershaw is still without a timetable for a return, so the Dodgers needed good starting pitcher. Here is the full deal:

This deal has all sorts of fantasy ramifications. Reddick is hitting .296 with eight homers, 28 RBI, and five steals in 68 games. He figures to lock down right field for the Dodgers, who just two short years ago had more outfielders than they knew what to do with. Now they had to trade for one.

Reddick should see a nice increase in stats moving from the Coliseum to Dodger Stadium. Dodger Stadium isn’t small, but it’s a lot smaller than where he was playing. If Reddick is out there in your league (he is still available in 52% of ESPN.com leagues), I would go pick him up. Don’t be surprised if he reaches 20 homers on the season.

The clear loser here is Yasiel Puig. The Dodgers failed to trade him after landing Reddick, so they sent down Puig to AAA instead. If you own Puig in most leagues, he can be dropped. You can hang on to him in dynasty leagues since he is only 25 years old.

Hill is 9-3 with a 2.25 ERA in 14 starts this year, but he has only started three games since Memorial Day due to blister issues. This should be a huge red flag for the Dodgers, but they figure that as long as he can take the mound until Kershaw returns, they will get by. Hill’s stats should stay around the same as they were in Oakland. I would expect his ERA to be at or around 3 by the end of the year, but he should still be strong enough to help the Dodgers and your fantasy team as long as he is over the blister issue.