The Dodgers might be eyeing an outfield upgrade at the trade deadline, with one of Boston’s young outfielders potentially in their crosshairs.
Boston’s outfield is getting crowded. They’ve got Jarren Duran, Wilyer Abreu, Ceddanne Rafaela, Masataka Yoshida and Rob Refsnyder already sharing time. And it’s about to get even more complicated with top prospect Roman Anthony expected to debut soon. Newsweek’s Drew VonScio suggests the Dodgers could target Rafaela as a replacement for struggling Andy Pages.
“Rafela isn’t performing as good as he would like, but his batting average is 71 points higher than (Andy) Pages,” wrote VonScio. “Through 50 at-bats Rafaela has a slash line of .220/.291/.260 which also shows he finds his way on base at a higher rate. Adding Rafaela would give the Dodgers another advantage they currently don’t have with Pages. Rafaela is also capable of playing shortstop and second base, so the Dodgers could get creative with him, Tommy Edman and Mookie Betts as to how they get deployed on a nightly basis.”
What makes Rafaela particularly interesting is his versatility. He signed an eight-year, $50 million extension with Boston this year and can play both shortstop and center field at a high level. That’s where the Dodgers could get creative.
Tommy Edman currently mans second base for LA, but they’ve got Hyeseong Kim swinging a hot bat in Triple-A. If Kim takes over at second, Edman could shift to center field – though the Dodgers might prefer keeping Edman in his valuable utility role.
Adding Rafaela would give the Dodgers multiple lineup configurations. They could move Betts back to right field, slide Michael Conforto to center, and put Teoscar Hernández in left. Or if they prefer keeping Betts in the infield, they could play him at second with Edman taking over center field duties.
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The bottom line is Rafaela would be an upgrade over Pages in the lineup while giving manager Dave Roberts more defensive flexibility. He’s not just a rental either – he’s under club control through 2032. The Red Sox might not be eager to move him, but with their outfield logjam and Anthony knocking on the door, they might need to make room somewhere.
