Dodgers GM Directly Addresses Max Muncy, Michael Conforto Trade Rumors

Give credit where it's due: Jim Bowden, who regularly posits rumors and hypothetical trades online and on his SiriusXM show, had a chance to confront Dodgers general manager Brandon Gomes with a hypothetical or two Sunday.

Boy, did he ever.

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“Are there spots where the Dodgers can improve a little bit?" Bowden asked Gomes. "I keep going back to third base and left field. (Max) Muncy’s hitting .206, he’s 34 years old. Conforto’s under the Mendoza (line). I was thinking maybe Ryan McMahon and Luis Robert. Does that make sense?”

Gomes chuckled.

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“I think both of those guys (Conforto and Muncy) are in a good position to continue to get back to what their historic performance is," Gomes said. "Munce has actually been pretty good for the last month or so. Michael is grinding hard in the cage and has hit a ton of balls hard for outs. I’m sure he’s happy to see the Diamondbacks go. It feels like he just could not, they could not let him get a hit at any point. They were getting to everything. I think both of them are trending well.

"Our expectation is those guys are going to be a staple of the lineup for the rest of this season.”

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Bowden's sentiment certainly echoed that of fans who have grown frustrated with Conforto and Muncy as the outliers in a relatively deep Dodger lineup. Gomes said what he had to say in that situation, too — suggesting less than full belief in a player usually doesn't boost their chances of turning their season around.

Gomes wasn't wrong, either. Muncy and Conforto were trending so well, they both hit home runs as part of their two-hit performances in the Dodgers' 9-5 win Tuesday in Cleveland.

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Muncy is slashing a respectable .281/.389/.474 since May 7, when he hit season-lows in all three categories (batting average, on-base percentage, slugging).

Conforto's turnaround has been less pronounced, and his .172/.312/.287 slash line certainly justified the follow-up question from Bowden, who suggested the Dodgers might move Andy Pages or Hyeseong Kim to left field if the veteran does not produce.

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“I think Michael’s in a fine place," Gomes said. "He’s going to keep getting those opportunities, and we fully expect him to return to, from this point forward, what he’s done versus especially right-handed pitching historically. That’s not something we’re looking at right now.”

It's worth noting that both Muncy and Conforto were on the bench Wednesday with a left-handed starter, Kolby Allard, on the mound for the Guardians.

Gomes didn't mention the "p" word — platoon — but he didn't have to. If the pattern of sitting Muncy and Conforto against left-handed pitching persists going forward, it's evidence the Dodgers have enough help in the organization for Gomes to avoid squandering marginal value on the trade market.

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