Dodgers Rumors: Analyst Believes LA Has Highest Chance Of Landing Justin Verlander
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The Dodgers have some time to make moves especially with the departures of Cody Bellinger and Tyler Anderson which provides some insight of what fans think the Dodgers will look to add. While there's opportunity for the Dodgers to look for a centerfielder or shortstop, Astros pitcher Justin Verlander has been linked to the Dodgers for some time.
Verlander can bring an added edge to a pitching unit that struggled hard especially at the end of the season. The Dodgers went into the postseason without a designated closer along with starters dealing with injuries in various points of the season.
While it's still not certain where Verlander will land, MLB analysts believe the Dodgers are ahead of all teams in signing the Cy Young winner (via Jon Morosi, MLB Network).
I do believe the Dodgers are among the strongest candidates to sign Verlander. And indeed, when you think about this report, and credit to Jon Heyman for being first on this story, with Verlander now meeting with the Dodgers, the Astros investing a lot of money in [Jose] Abreu and really trusting some of their internal options, whether it's [Jose] Urquidy or [Hunter] Brown.
The Dodgers may have a higher priority on a pitcher than the reigning World Series champions.
Quite simply, their need for Verlander is less than the Dodgers' need for Verlander. And I know we've talked before about Verlander's comfort in Los Angeles — he obviously does have a lot of family connections out there, I think it would be a very comfortable place for him to live and begin the third act of his major-league career. It just seemed to me that the way this season ended — World Series championship, Cy Young, he gets his first World Series victory personally — that this was a natural closing of the second chapter of Verlander's career.
The Dodgers have kept themselves shut in recent free agency strategies so Verlander coming to the team surely remains up in the air. The veteran ace brings an advantage, but will the Dodgers be willing to pay top dollar for a 40 year old pitcher?
