Dodgers Have Clear Trade Target in Blue Jays All-Star Pitcher Expected to Be Dealt

If the Los Angeles Dodgers don't make a move ahead of this year's trade deadline, they'll still be considered the favorites to win the 2026 World Series.

After all, the Dodgers are expecting to add Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow and Shohei Ohtani to the starting rotation, Edwin Diaz to the bullpen and Will Smith and Kiké Hernández back to the lineup in the coming weeks/months.

However, the Dodgers are looking to complete a three-peat, something no National League team has ever done.

They also have a farm system overflowing with talent and the flexibility to add any amount of payroll they'd like.

So why not get better ahead of the Aug. 3 trade deadline?

While the Dodgers will continue to be linked to Detroit Tigers ace Tarik Skubal until he's either traded elsewhere or the deadline passes, there's another starting pitcher the team should target in the next 10 days. And he's someone who will almost certainly be moved as his team, the Toronto Blue Jays, have shockingly fallen out of the playoff race.

Dodgers Should Trade for Kevin Gausman Ahead of Deadline

Blue Jays right-handed pitcher Kevin Gausman makes perfect sense as a Dodgers trade target.

Gausman, 35, is a 14-year veteran and two-time All-Star who's in the final season of his five-year, $110 million deal.

While Gausman has loved his time in Toronto, he also wants another opportunity to compete for a World Series title. With the Blue Jays sitting at 46-56, it appears likely they'll become sellers just nine months after being two outs away from a World Series victory.

Gausman is in the midst of a down season as the entire Blue Jays team has faltered, going 4-9 with a 4.51 ERA. However, he's already taken down 115.2 innings, and does have 117 strikeouts to just 34 walks.

Gausman has pitched at least 174 innings in each of the last five years, and at least 180 innings in every season as a Blue Jays (since 2022). He also has plenty of postseason experience, with a career 3.83 ERA over 56.1 innings.

He was dominant last postseason, finishing with a 2.93 ERA across 30.2 innings.

Why Kevin Gausman Makes Sense for Dodgers

The Dodgers have a temporary hole in their starting rotation with Snell and Glasnow on the IL and Ohtani currently not pitching.

For now, LA is using bullpen games as their de facto sixth starter.

While the Dodgers are expecting Snell to return soon — likely sometime in mid-August — there's currently no timelines for Ohtani or Glasnow.

Thus, the Dodgers could use another starting pitcher for the time being, and if they add one, they'll be looking for someone who can also help the team in the postseason as a non-starter (since their rotation should be full with Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Ohtani, Snell and Glasnow).

Gausman can do just that.

While he's exclusively been a starting pitcher for the majority of his career, he did pitch one scoreless inning in relief against the Seattle Mariners in Game 7 of the American League Championship Series last year. If he'd be open to coming out of the bullpen in October, he could be a great multi-inning option as a player who's been there and done that.

In the immediate, he would be a much-needed innings-eater for a team just looking to get to October as healthy as possible. The team will feel comfortable having Gausman pitch every sixth day, taking down six innings and keeping the bullpen fresh.

Due to his age, down year and the money left on his expiring contract, Gausman shouldn't cost too much in a potential trade. He made it clear he wants a chance to compete for a World Series title, and no team gives him a better opportunity to do just that than Los Angeles.

“I would love to finish [in Toronto],” Gausman said to The Athletic. “But at the same time, I would love to have another opportunity. At the same time, it wouldn’t mean as much as it meant last year.”

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