Dodgers Digest Los Angeles Dodgers Baseball Blog
So, we were all pretty busy today and didn’t get a chance to write about it, but, hey, did you hear Juan Uribe nearly got traded today?
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Braves
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Dodgers
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7:10 p.m.
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Los Angeles
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2B
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Peterson
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CF
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Pederson
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CF
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Maybin
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SS
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Rollins
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1B
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Freeman
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2B
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Kendrick
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RF
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Markakis
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1B
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Gonzalez
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LF
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Gomes
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3B
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Turner
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SS
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Simmons
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RF
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Ethier
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3B
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Callaspo
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LF
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Guerrero
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Bethancourt
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C
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Ellis
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P
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Teheran (R)
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P
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Kershaw (L)
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I know, crazy, right? It didn’t end up happening because Atlanta infielder Alberto Callaspo invoked his no-trade clause — no, he’s not good enough to merit one, but every newly-signed free agent has trade protection until June 15 — which I guess makes some sense, because there’s just absolutely no fit for him in Los Angeles, and he probably would have been DFA’d immediately anyway.
The trade was never about Callaspo, anyway. Per multiple reports, the Dodgers would have received three players in addition to Callaspo — probably one major league pitcher and two prospects — and would have sent one prospect back to Atlanta. No, we don’t know who those players would have been; it’s worth noting that the Braves have two competitive balance picks that could have been traded too, and we know how the Dodgers feel about that.
Without knowing the full specifics, it’s hard to judge, but on the surface, “trade an aging extraneous infielder for some pitching help” seems to make sense enough. Not that it would have been easy to see Uribe go, of course, since the turnaround he made from “free agent disastrophe” to “fun loving Uribear” to “surprisingly valuable player” never stopped being shocking. And, I might add, this hardly guarantees that something similar couldn’t be revisited soon. (Not that it has to be the exact same deal, but I sure do hope Callaspo’s Atlanta teammates have the prank calls ready to go the second his trade protection expires in two weeks.)
Unsurprisingly, Uribe is not in the lineup tonight, as Justin Turner has all but taken over as the starting third baseman. Callaspo, the Dodger who never was, does get the start. Oh, and Clayton Kershaw against Julio Teheran is actually a pretty good pitching matchup, but hey, trade controversy!
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