Los Angeles Dodgers: Five bold predictions for 2018

1. The Dodgers do not make a big move until the trade deadline

While most of the Dodgers’ core does remain intact heading into 2018, there are still some moves that the organization can make and some holes to fill. The biggest move to make was trading for Giancarlo Stanton; that fell through due to the luxury tax. LA still needs a big right-handed hitting bat to fill out their roster, but that may never come to fruition with a crowded outfield.

The next best move and perhaps the most logical is to bring in a right-handed number two pitcher behind Clayton Kershaw. Yu Darvish is currently a free agent with multiple teams shopping his services. If he walks, the Dodgers do not have a great option to pitch behind Kershaw. If they stay complacent, the pitching staff becomes one injury away from a meltdown.

Thus, names such as Chris Archer, Jake Arrieta and Gerrit Cole have all been tossed around with the Dodgers. All three of those guys make viable sense and the Dodgers can realistically acquire any of them this offseason. If they do, Los Angeles solidifies the depth in the starting rotation and creates one of the best one-two punches in baseball.

However, the team will likely follow their offseason trend and stay relatively quiet. The Dodgers have not done anything of significance yet this season and that will undoubtedly carry over into 2018.

Instead, the Dodgers will likely stick to their guns, waiting for the trade deadline again to acquire a pitcher. At that point, the Dodgers can afford to trade for an arm as a lesser asking price with only half a season remaining. It didn’t really work out in 2017, but the Dodgers will look to try again in 2018.