Friedman, Roberts Detail Moment Dodgers Landed Tigers’ Skubal
· Yahoo Sports
LOS ANGELES -- The day after the Los Angeles Dodgers made the biggest splash in the MLB Trade Deadline with the acquisition of Detroit Tigers back-to-back Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal, president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman detailed how the blockbuster deal was formulated behind the scenes.
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Friedman told the media on Sunday that talks to acquire Skubal heated up on Friday, but later learned that an official deal had not been accepted until sometime during Saturday's game.
He was not shocked that the Tigers accepted the offer, considering he had sent over Zyhir Hope (Dodgers' fifth-ranked prospect/25th in MLB) and right-handed prospects Brady Smith and River Ryan in a prospects bundle package.
"I felt like we were being really aggressive. We put some really talented players on the table, so I felt like that it was a really good chance," Friedman said.
There were many iterations of trade packages that were discussed by Friedman and the Tigers' president of baseball operations, Scott Harris.
At the end of the day, as noted by Friedman, with where the Dodgers' core stands in the present moment in the hunt for being the first National League team to three-peat as World Series champions, it made the most sense to pull the trigger.
So, with Skubal dotted down in Dodger blue, what does that mean for Shohei Ohtani's pitching progression and the entire outlook of the Dodgers' rotation moving forward?
For one, Eric Lauer, who has been the most surprisingly reliable starter for Los Angeles since his arrival in late May, will be slotted into a more bullpen-focused initiative. Concerning Ohtani, Friedman still believes that he will be back on the mound at some point this season.
This was even more evident by the fact that Ohtani will resume his throwing program when the Dodgers travel to Wrigley Field to face off against the Chicago Cubs, according to Dodgers manager Dave Roberts. That three-game set will kick off a six-game road trip.
Speaking of Roberts, the Dodgers skipper found out the blockbuster trade was complete before the first pitch of Saturday's game.
"You can feel the energy, the excitement, the buzz. This was a different year, in the sense that it was Skubal or nothing," Roberts said.
Roberts added that, with the addition of Skubal, this is "as good as he's seen" from any Dodgers pitching staff that he's had.
Friedman also confirmed that Skubal will be making his turn in the Dodgers' rotation for his debut on Tuesday.