Dodgers Tabbed Best Landing Spot for $4.125 Million Shutdown Reliever at Trade Deadline

Jun 14, 2025; Houston, Texas, USA; Minnesota Twins relief pitcher Jhoan Duran (59) delivers a pitch during the ninth inning against the Houston Astros at Daikin Park. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

As the trade deadline nears, the Los Angeles Dodgers are seen across the baseball world as a team that is looking to fortify their roster with the right deal(s).

Bleacher Report's Joel Reuter has linked the Dodgers as the best possible fit for the formidable Jhoan Duran, the closer for the Minnesota Twins.

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Amid the constant injuries surrounding the pitching roster this season, paired with the subpar performance of the current closer Tanner Scott during the first half of 2025, a trade for a reliever might just be a reality for LA — at the right price, of course.

Whatever that price may be, Duran appears to be a top candidate to deliver elite production to a bullpen in need. Across 45 appearances, the 27-year-old has just a 1.62 ERA this season, currently the lowest of his MLB tenure.

When it comes to Duran's fastball, there are no other pitchers (with a minimum of 150 batters faced) who have a greater fastball speed to the 100.3 mph average that the right-hander boasts.

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The fastball is the second-most thrown pitch in Duran's four-pitch arsenal behind his splitter, used 36.9 percent of the time. Perhaps the most lethal of his offerings is the sweeper, although Duran only uses it 8.3 percent of the time.

Duran's sweeper has been tossed 56 times and has yet to have a hit recorded against it. Opposing batters have swung on and missed this pitch 58.8 percent of the time. For a pitch that Duran only threw once last season, it looks like the added selection to his pitch mix is helping out his production.

The combination of Duran having two more arbitration years on his current contract as well as the Twins being five games out of the final Wild Card spot are means for quite a hefty return if a deal were to present itself. Given the Dodgers' recent miscues when it comes to trading for pitchers at the deadline, perhaps the best course of action will prove to be no action from LA.

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