Dodgers Predicted to Trade For an 'Impact Bat' to Replace Michael Conforto
The Los Angeles Dodgers have one of the best offenses in baseball. Shohei Ohtani, Freddie Freeman, and Will Smith have the Dodgers second in baseball in team OPS at .776.
But, even with a strong offense, Fabian Ardaya in The Athletic's "Bold Predictions" article had the Dodgers' trade deadline plans revolving around finding more offense. He predicts that "The biggest deadline acquisition will be a bat."
"They have three former MVPs and the current leader in the NL batting race." Ardaya wrote. "They have a bigger priority in the bullpen that they'll need to address. But one way to mitigate all the questions about the Dodgers' pitching staff is to create a lineup with no holes."
The Dodgers offense is already strong, and the pitching staff is full of question marks, and yet, Ardaya predicts that the Dodgers will go after an offensive upgrade. And there's one clear way to upgrade the offense: replace Michael Conforto.
"The Dodgers clearly saw that in adding Michael Conforto this winter," Ardaya writes, "But that hasn't worked out - he has a .620 OPS. If they can find a way to add an impact bat, they can move around the pieces to make everything else work."
Other than Conforto's .620 OPS this season, he has -0.6 WAR, and is batting just .184 on the year. His 76 OPS+ is by far the worst in his career, nearly 20 percent worse than his previous career low of 95 OPS+ in 2016.
Adding a replacement for Conforto would go a long way. If they find a new left fielder, the Dodgers' lineup would be, from top to bottom, one of the most dangerous in the league.
While pitching is still a need, and Ardaya isn't shutting down the possibility of adding bullpen help especially, the biggest addition according to his prediction will be a bat. And the most obvious player to replace is Conforto in left field.
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 18, 2025, where it first appeared.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Times
9 minutes ago
- New York Times
The Dodgers need to trade for a reliever. One they already acquired is showing promise
CINCINNATI — As the Los Angeles Dodgers scour the market for ways to reinvest in their beleaguered bullpen, they're still waiting to find out what they have in the deal they've already made. Tuesday, that acquisition got booed. The Dodgers enjoyed the result. Alexis Díaz did not understand why boos roared throughout Great American Ball Park when the former Cincinnati Reds All-Star returned to face his former team for the first time. He continued what he hopes can be a career revitalization, needing just eight pitches to record four outs and keeping the score tight enough for the Dodgers to rally back and win, 5-4. Advertisement Díaz's outing was largely a footnote in a night the Dodgers should be proud of. Just a week ago, manager Dave Roberts declared his bullpen had hit 'rock bottom,' imploding in unwatchable fashion. Tuesday, it inherited a bases-loaded situation in the fifth and got out of it with minimal damage. The relievers wouldn't allow a run the rest of the way. Díaz, looking more like the version of himself that excelled here, helped the Dodgers pull it off. It was not a night that will change the team's course before Thursday's trade deadline. The Dodgers are still seeking at least one right-handed reliever via trade, and have been connected to just about every high-leverage reliever available. Another emerged Tuesday, according to league sources: Tampa Bay Rays closer Pete Fairbanks. Whoever the Dodgers do get will come at an extreme cost. Díaz largely did not, acquired at the end of May for a reliever in rookie ball named Mike Villani and a willingness to take on Díaz's salary in his first year in arbitration, approximately $3 million. That's how far Díaz's stock had fallen. He'd broken out as a rookie in 2022, with a 1.84 ERA in 59 appearances. The next year, he was an All-Star. Even a year ago, he recorded 28 saves. The Reds sent him to the minors after six ineffective innings with a 12.00 ERA, and shipped him out two months into the season. So, when Díaz jogged out from the bullpen in the seventh inning on Tuesday night, a home Cincinnati crowd of 36,135 booed. 'I expected something different,' Díaz said. 'For those years I was here, I pitched really well and I was liked during that time. So to see that, it surprised me a lot.' Díaz was surprised and still grateful to the organization that allowed him to flourish. He made quick work of his former team, showing off some of the overhaul the Dodgers have put him through over the last two months. His fastball touched 96 mph and had life. His slider was firm. He threw strikes. Advertisement 'I think that was personal,' Roberts said. 'That was good to see. The stuff, the fastball, the slider, all that stuff was big … I think a lot of adrenaline, coming back to a place, being welcomed by boos, I think was a little bit more motivation.' The Dodgers' changes with Díaz were immediate, with the team trying to microwave some of the leftover traits to recreate an All-Star reliever out of Díaz under their watch. Rather than have him report to the big league club or even to Triple-A Oklahoma City, they sent Díaz to Arizona to work under the close eye of development staff at the team's spring training complex. After having Díaz face hitters once to get a baseline, the team started running through suggestions. First, they wanted to get his arm back on time, rather than having it rise up late in his delivery and sacrifice command and velocity as a result. They suggested he start with his glove lower, below his belt, but that didn't work. Watching one of the game's best, Díaz had an idea. The right-hander noticed that former Cy Young winner Corbin Burnes would start his delivery with his glove positioned on his front hip, which allowed him to bring the glove and his arm across his chest before rearing back for a pitch. That was similar to a mental cue that Díaz used as a rookie. 'I looked and it seemed perfect,' Díaz said. It was worth a shot. He tried it against hitters, and his stuff was better. Another effect: his arm angle had dropped precipitously after his 2022 season, from 17 degrees to 12 degrees in 2023 to 10 degrees a year ago. In his brief time with the Dodgers, his arm angle has averaged 18.9 degrees. 'My arm was more on top of the ball than I was at the beginning of this year,' Díaz said. 'We were able to do it quickly.' 'It was just kind of getting his delivery into a better place, his direction and how he's getting into his back hip,' general manager Brandon Gomes said earlier this month. 'His arm slot crept up a little bit, and having a little better direction to the plate.' Advertisement This is by no means a finished product. Roberts admitted this weekend that the team still doesn't know what it has in Díaz, much less with just three appearances under his belt. Upgrades are still needed. But, at least for one night, he found a way to silence the boos and look like his old self. (Photo of Alexis Díaz on Tuesday: Sam Greene / The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Ohtani strikes out 4 times; Will Smith's RBI double in 9th gives Dodgers 5-4 win over Reds
CINCINNATI (AP) — Will Smith had an RBI double in the ninth inning as the Los Angeles Dodgers rallied for a 5-4 victory over the Cincinnati Reds on Tuesday night. Shohei Ohtani struck out four times in a major league game for the sixth time, but it was the first time it happened in his first four at-bats. The reigning NL MVP also had a nine-game hitting streak snapped. The Dodgers got three hits from Freddie Freeman, including a game-tying RBI single in the seventh inning, and Tommy Edman had a two-run homer in the first inning. Former Cincinnati closer Alexis Díaz (1-0), who was dealt to the Dodgers on May 29, pitched 1 1/3 scoreless innings. Jake Fraley and Noelvi Marte homered for the Reds, who have dropped their last two games after winning four straight. Fraley had a two-run shot to right in the fourth inning tie it at 2-all and Marte followed two batters later with a drive to right to give Cincinnati the lead. Michael Conforto drew a walk off Emilio Pagán (2-3) to lead off the ninth and scored when Smith lined a double off the left-field wall with two outs. Alex Vesia retired the Reds in order in the ninth for his fourth save. Key moment The Dodgers trailed 4-2 before evening it in the seventh inning on RBI base hits by Smith and Freeman. Key stat Cincinnati starter Nick Lodolo, whose 11 strikeouts were one off his career high, is the 13th MLB pitcher to strike out Ohtani three times in a game. Justin Verlander and Justus Sheffield have done it twice. Up next Ohtani (0-0, 1.50 ERA) is expected to go four innings Wednesday in his seventh start of the season for the Dodgers. RHP Nick Martinez (9-9, 4.69 ERA) gets the call for Cincinnati. ___ AP MLB:
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Will Smith, Freddie Freeman have clutch hits as Dodgers defeat Reds
For the first half of July, the Dodgers' slumping offense struggled to generate consistent scoring chances. In recent weeks, the problem has been more about capitalizing upon them. But down the stretch in a 5-3 win over the Cincinnati Reds on Tuesday, the team finally found a few clutch late-game hits. Will Smith and Freddie Freeman hit consecutive two-out RBI singles in the seventh inning, erasing the two-run deficit Tyler Glasnow had left behind in a disappointing four-plus-inning, four-run start. Then, Smith came through again in the ninth, lacing a go-ahead, two-out RBI double off the wall in left that scored pinch-runner James Outman all the way from first base. For a team with 37 comeback wins this season, few felt bigger than Tuesday's unlikely turnaround. Amid the Dodgers' many issues at the plate this month, hitting with runners in scoring position had grown as one of the most glaring weaknesses. Entering play Tuesday, the team was hitting just .242 in such situations in July, ranking in the bottom half of the majors for the month. Wasted chances were a defining theme of the team's series loss in Boston over the weekend, punctuated by a Sunday defeat in which they went one-for-11 with runners in scoring position and stranded 13 men on base. Read more: With Dodgers battling more injuries, prospect Alex Freeland called up for MLB debut Early in Tuesday's game, the problem persisted. After a two-run home run from Tommy Edman — who was back in the lineup despite a flare-up of his ankle injury over the weekend — in the second inning, the Dodgers (63-45) left runners stranded in scoring position in the fourth, fifth and sixth innings. In two of those failed rallies, strikeouts from Shohei Ohtani proved costly, part of an 0-for-five night in which he struck out five times. Meanwhile, Glasnow faltered in the sweltering summer heat, giving up two home runs on elevated sliders in the fourth inning before leaving the game with the bases loaded and no outs in the fifth; lucky that only one of the runners he left behind came around the score. But from there, the Dodgers faced a predictable that had so often proved fatal during their scuffles in recent week: A multi-run deficit, against the heart of the opposing team's bullpen. This time, however, the Dodgers found late life. Michael Conforto started the seventh inning rally, drawing a walk as a pinch-hitter to lead off the inning. That was followed by a bloop single from Mookie Betts, who reached base three times to continue his subtle turnaround since moving to the leadoff spot. Ohtani struck out behind him, finishing the night ranked tied for fourth in the majors with 129 punchouts this year (including 17 in his last 38 at-bats). Read more: As Dodgers look to upgrade outfield, Harrison Bader could be a trade deadline fit But then, Smith — the National League batting leader with a .325 average — dumped a single into left. Freeman then tied the score with an RBI single the same direction, giving him his first three-hit game (two of which were opposite-field line drives; a good sign for his long-ailing swing) in more than a month. The score remained tied into the ninth, thanks largely to 1 ⅓ scoreless innings from former Reds closer Alexis Díaz, who was booed by the Cincinnati fans in his first trip back to the ballpark since being dealt to the Dodgers earlier this season. And in the ninth, Conforto again battled his way on base with a 10-pitch walk, before Smith lined a double off the wall in left that allowed Outman to fly around the bases for the eventual winning run. Sign up for more Dodgers news with Dodgers Dugout. Delivered at the start of each series. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
