LOS ANGELES _ An hour after Major League Baseball's trade deadline Monday came and went, the Los Angeles Dodgers announced they traded right-hander Ross Stripling to the Toronto Blue Jays for two players to be named later.
The day began with the Dodgers reportedly seeking a frontline starting pitcher. It'll end with them trading a mainstay in their pitching staff.
The Dodgers drafted Stripling in the fifth round of the 2012 draft. He broke into the majors with the club in 2016 and remained, bouncing between the rotation and bullpen as he became a clubhouse favorite over the next five seasons. He enjoyed his best success as a starter over the first half of the 2018 season and made the All-Star team.
This season, he was slated to break spring training in the bullpen again before the league shutdown in March because of the novel coronavirus pandemic. The circumstances changed when the Dodgers reconvened for training camp in July once David Price decided not to participate this season.
Stripling filled Price's spot and limited the San Francisco Giants to one run over seven innings in his first start. The next five outings, however, were more of a struggle. He pitched to a 6.75 ERA in the six starts, allowed 12 home runs in 33 2/3 innings and failed to go deeper than 5 2/3 innings in any start. In his final start as a Dodger, he allowed three runs over four innings against the Texas Rangers on Saturday.
Trading Stripling was the only move the Dodgers made Monday while the San Diego Padres perhaps became their biggest challenge in the National League with a flood of activity over 24 hours.
The Dodgers were interested in adding an established starting pitcher, namely the Texas Rangers' Lance Lynn, but stood pat with the best record in the majors at 26-10. Lynn would've further solidified a rotation with uncertainties after Clayton Kershaw and Walker Buehler.
The 33-year-old right-hander ranks sixth in fWAR among qualified pitchers since the start of the 2018 season and has thrown at least 100 pitches in 32 straight starts. He owns a 1.93 earned-run average in eight outings for the struggling Rangers this season.
Lynn would not have been just a rental for the final month of the regular season and whatever the playoffs hold. He is under contract through 2021, when he is slated to make $9.3 million. That would've met the criteria the Dodgers were seeking in an acquisition. But they reportedly deemed the price for Lynn too high.
Instead, the Dodgers will proceed with the in-house options to round out the rotation in October. They don't lack choices. Dustin May, Tony Gonsolin, Julio Urias and Alex Wood are all possibilities. But they come with questions.
Wood remains on the injured list with shoulder inflammation after a recent minor setback. Urias has recently stumbled. May and Gonsolin have shined but lack experience.
Meanwhile, the Padres added Mike Clevinger, the best starting pitcher on the market, to complete a renovation of their roster. The club also acquired catchers Jason Castro and Austin Nola; relievers Austin Adams, Dan Altavilla and Trevor Rosenthal; and first baseman Mitch Moreland.
The Padres began Monday five games behind the Dodgers in the National League West standings. The Dodgers are the No. 1 seed in the NL. The Padres are No. 4. If that doesn't change, the teams would meet in a five-game National League Division Series if they both survive their three-game first-round series.
