The Los Angeles Dodgers surely are a busy bunch during MLB’s winter meetings. Fresh off acquiring shortstop Jimmy Rollins from the Philadelphia Phillies, Los Angeles has sent second baseman Dee Gordon and starter Dan Haren to the Miami Marlins.
The Marlins will send former first-round pick and top prospect Andrew Heaney to the Dodgers in the deal. Also joining Heaney in Dodger blue will be Enrique Hernandez, Austin Barnes and Chris Hatcher.
Gordon led the Majors with 64 stolen bases and 12 triples this past season. He also put up a .289 batting average and played stellar defense in an All-Star campaign.
Haren has been a reliable starter when healthy over the course of his MLB career. He was 13-11 with a 4.02 ERA in 32 starts this past season.
Heaney, a first-round pick of the Marlins in 2012, skyrocketed through the system and had a cup of tea with the Major League club in 2014. He struck out over a batter per inning in two-plus minor league seasons and was ranked as the organization’s top prospect by Baseball America at the end of the 2013 campaign.
Austin Barnes is the other real noteworthy player heading to Los Angeles in this deal. He was ranked among the team’s top-20 prospects. The 24-year-old infielder hit over .300 in stops in both High-A ball and Double-A Jacksonville this past season.
Reliever Chris Hatcher should also help fortify the Dodgers bullpen. He put up a 3.38 ERA and 1.19 WHIP while striking out more than a batter per inning in 52 appearances for the Marlins last year.
This four-for-two swap seems to favor the Dodgers from an organizational standpoint, but there is little questioning the impact that Gordon will have as the Marlins lead-off hitter in 2015. It just seems they paid a lofty price to acquire the infielder.
Photo: USA Today