Dodgers News: Friedman Feels Intriguing Prospect Could Handle Shortstop if Trea Turner Exits
Dodgers shortstop Trea Turner is a free agent, one of four big-name shortstops to hit the market this week. Los Angeles will be active in trying to re-sign Turner, and they'll also be in on the other big names, knowing they need someone at shortstop when 2023 rolls around.
But L.A. doesn't necessarily have to sign a big name. There are options on the trade market, for one thing. And Dodgers president of baseball operations noted at the GM meetings in Las Vegas this week that they have internal options, too, as Bill Plunkett reports in the Orange County Register.
Beyond the quartet of free agents, Friedman and Gomes indicated the team does “feel good” about Gavin Lux as an internal option to replace Turner at shortstop. Lux was a shortstop throughout his amateur career and for the first few years in the minors before the Dodgers moved him to second base with Seager at the major-league level. ...
Additionally, the Dodgers could use Chris Taylor at shortstop and prospect Jacob Amaya “can certainly handle it defensively and his offense is developing.”
“There are a lot of options externally and we have good options internally,” Friedman said. “So we get to wade through that market and figure out what ultimately makes the most sense.”
Lux and Taylor are both kind of obvious, as both have played shortstop for the Dodgers are various times over the past few years. Amaya should be obvious — he's their top shortstop prospect, after all — but he's not a top prospect and his minor-league performance has been fine but hasn't screamed "ready for the big leagues." But he's excellent defensively and gets on base pretty well, so he certainly could fill that spot if necessary.
Amaya would be a shift from the "have an All-Star at every position" approach the Dodgers have taken recently, but every All-Star was once a minor-leaguer looking for a chance.
