LOS ANGELES _ The seismic three-team trade that leaked Tuesday, igniting intense reactions on opposite coasts with superstar outfielder Mookie Betts slated to go from Boston to Los Angeles, before stalling and angering people at all levels of the baseball industry, is finally on the verge of completion in a slightly different form, according to a person with knowledge of the situation.
As originally designed, the Boston Red Sox, seeking to dip under the collective balance tax threshold, will send Betts, their best player, and starting pitcher David Price along with cash to the Dodgers. Los Angeles will ship outfielder Alex Verdugo to the Red Sox, according to a person with knowledge of the situation.
The Dodgers also will reportedly send Boston two highly regarded minor league prospects, catcher Connor Wong and shortstop Jeter Downs. Neither player was part of the original proposal. The first variation of the trade had the Minnesota Twins sending pitching prospect Brusdar Graterol to Boston and receiving starter Kenta Maeda from the Dodgers. Maeda would still go to Minnesota, but Graterol would land in Los Angeles.
The trade agreement is pending a medical review of all players involved.
The final piece was where things got complicated. The Red Sox had agreed to take Graterol, the Twins' top pitching prospect with a 101-mph fastball, but refused to proceed when they reviewed his medical records. As a result, Boston sought a different return package for Betts and Price. The Dodgers apparently thought differently of Graterol's health record.
The transaction is expected to trigger a second trade: The Dodgers would send outfielder Joc Pederson and right-hander Ross Stripling to the Los Angeles Angels for infielder Luis Rengifo. Prospects could also exchange hands. The deal would amount to a salary dump for the Dodgers in their quest to get under the competitive balance tax while taking on Betts' $27 million this season and about half of the $96 million Price is owed over the next three seasons.
Graterol, 21, underwent Tommy John surgery in 2015 and missed two months with a shoulder impingement. Those red flags did not scare the Red Sox until they saw his medical records. The Red Sox had planned to use Graterol as a starter, but they concluded after reviewing the records that his arm is better suited to the bullpen.
By Friday, the delay had peeved Scott Boras, Graterol's agent, and MLBPA executive director Tony Clark enough that they publicly denounced the situation. Boras defended his client's health. Clark lambasted the process in a statement.
"The proposed trades between the Dodgers, Red Sox, Twins and Angels need to be resolved without further delay," Clark said. "The events of this last week have unfairly put several players' lives in a state of limbo. The unethical leaking of medical information as well as the perversion of the salary arbitration process serve as continued reminders that too often players are treated as commodities by those running the game."
The trade's completion registers as a loud finale to the offseason for the Dodgers after they whiffed in previous attempts to land a superstar player.
They managed to acquire Betts, perhaps the best player in baseball not named Mike Trout, without giving up one of their top prospects. Betts, 27, is in his prime. He won the 2018 American League MVP after batting .346 with a 1.078 on-base-plus-slugging percentage and 32 home runs as the Red Sox toppled the Dodgers to win the World Series. Last season he hit .295 with 29 home runs and a .915 OPS. His 17.0 WAR over the last two years is second only to Trout's 18.4.
Betts will slot in atop the batting order to upgrade the already potent offense. Widely considered the best right fielder in the sport, he will stand next to center fielder Cody Bellinger, giving the Dodgers a superb defensive outfield.
He will enter free agency next winter _ part of the reason the Red Sox traded him was they believed they didn't have a chance to keep him _ but the Dodgers have deep pockets and are intent on extending the marriage.
Price, 34, isn't the elite pitcher he was a few years ago but he also isn't just a bridge to Betts. If healthy, the 34-year-old Price can bolster a rotation that lost fellow left-handers Hyun-Jin Ryu and Rich Hill in free agency. The 2012 American League Cy Young Award winner, Price posted a 3.84 earned-run average in four seasons with the Red Sox. A move to the National League West, a division with more spacious parks in the league without a designated hitter could boost his effectiveness.
