It all sounds so familiar.<\/p>\n
The Dodgers signaling that they don\u2019t have any big needs. That they\u2019re content settling for modest, marginal moves. That a bigger splash wouldn\u2019t be worth the long-term risk. That a blockbuster acquisition isn\u2019t in their future.<\/p>\n
Dodgers President of Baseball Operations, Andrew Friedman and the Dodgers are giving no indication that they plan to make a franchise-altering moving ahead of the MLB trade deadline. MLB Photos via Getty Images<\/p>\n
Nine months ago, club officials gave those same indications at the start of the offseason.<\/p>\n
Then, they turned around and signed two of the biggest names on the free-agent market.<\/p>\n
Right now, a similar script could be unfolding ahead of the Aug. 3 trade deadline.<\/p>\n
The Dodgers are operating as if no big deal is coming. But many corners of the industry are skeptical that will actually be the case.<\/p>\n
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told the California Post that he believes Los Angeles is more of a \u201cseller\u201d ahead of the trade deadline. Getty Images<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s what is known entering the final week before the deadline:\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2013\u2013 The Dodgers are already baseball\u2019s most talented team, owning an MLB-best 67-39 record that has all but assured them of another National League West division title.<\/p>\n
\u2013\u2013 They are confident their roster will be healthy come the stretch run of the season, with Edwin D\u00edaz and Kik\u00e9 Hern\u00e1ndez set to come off the injured list this week<\/a>, Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow progressing in their own injury rehabs, and Will Smith and Shohei Ohtani expected to make recoveries<\/a> from lingering neck and knee issues, respectively, as well.<\/p>\n \u2013\u2013 Even if they do nothing of note before next Monday\u2019s deadline, they will be consensus favorites to win a third-straight World Series in October, returning practically every key member from their title defense last season.<\/p>\n \u2013\u2013 Their front office has long been loath to paying inflated deadline prices, especially in years when their roster has no glaring holes.<\/p>\n Edwin Diaz\u2019s return should give Los Angeles a major boost in its bullpen and secure one of their question marks. Getty Images<\/p>\n That\u2019s why, in recent weeks, sources with knowledge of the team\u2019s plans have downplayed the chances of the club making a major trade; be it for Tarik Skubal, a bigger-name reinforcement at catcher, or some other surprise target that could materialize in the coming ays.<\/p>\n Instead, their preference would be to unload some excess pieces of the roster \u2013\u2013 perhaps Eric Lauer, or Alex Call, or Ryan Ward \u2013\u2013 and take advantage of the deadline market to balance out an outfield-heavy farm system.<\/p>\n \u201cI could almost argue,\u201d manager Dave Roberts insisted in an interview with The California Post<\/a> last week, \u201cthat we\u2019re sellers more than buyers.\u201d<\/p>\n Still, some rival teams aren\u2019t sold<\/a> on the idea of the Dodgers truly laying low this deadline season, as The Post\u2019s Joel Sherman reported this weekend.<\/p>\n History says to be wary of falling for a potential Dodgers\u2019 bluff, or discarding the possibility of an aggressive, unexpected, last-second shift in approach.<\/p>\n The sport, after all, still remembers what unfolded this past winter, when the team went all-in on marquee acquisitions \u2013\u2013 even when it felt it didn\u2019t really need to.<\/p>\n And as long as this deadline offers the opportunity to get another \u201cneedle-moving\u201d player, as has been repeatedly shown during president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman\u2019s tenure, the Dodgers will be lurking with a war chest of enticing trade chips.<\/p>\n Detroit ace Tarik Skubal is considered the best player available at the trade deadline \u2014 and Los Angeles is the team best suited to get him if they choose. Icon Sportswire via Getty Images<\/p>\n Granted, this deadline does not represent a direct comparison to last winter \u2013\u2013 when the Dodgers were initially believed to be reluctant to adding another reliever on a long-term deal or hitter on a top-of-the-market salary, then did both anyway by signing D\u00edaz to a three-year, $69 million contract (giving him the highest annual salary for a reliever in MLB history) and Tucker to a four-year, $240 million deal (the second-highest annual salary for a player in MLB history, behind only Shohei Ohtani\u2019s heavily deferred yearly total).<\/p>\n Part of the club\u2019s stated reason for their latest winter spending spree was to avoid deadline shopping, when prices are high and negotiations complex.<\/p>\n And assuming the team doesn\u2019t have any further injury setbacks, their need for further additions now is even less pressing than it was back then.<\/p>\n However, speculation still abounds about what they might do in the next week.<\/p>\n Their involvement in the Skubal sweepstakes, in particular, will be closely monitored until the two-time Cy Young Award winner\u2019s situation is resolved.<\/p>\n For now, the Detroit Tigers seem undecided about trading the pending free-agent left-hander. For the Dodgers, a best-case scenario might be if he goes undealt.<\/p>\n If the Tigers decide to move him, though, the Dodgers are still seen as a logical, if not likely, landing spot. They could offer top prospects (they have nine farmhands currently ranked as top-100 talents in the sport by MLB Pipeline), young pitching (such as Emmet Sheehan or River Ryan) and a host of other enticing options from their No. 3-ranked farm system (according to Baseball America\u2019s farm system evaluations).<\/p>\n Kyle Tucker was the big-name acquisition the Dodgers picked up before the season started. Getty Images<\/p>\n Skubal or not, the Dodgers will have other items on their deadline to-do list.<\/p>\n They would like to do some selling, as they have in recent years. Lauer is the most obvious candidate to be moved, as he\u2019d become a superfluous arm once the rotation gets healthy. Call has emerged as another possibility, as The Athletic first reported<\/a>, particularly on a trade market with a dearth of right-handed-hitting outfielders.<\/p>\n