The Los Angeles Dodgers are not done in upgrading their roster for the 2024 Major League Baseball season. This time, they are trading for right-handed pitcher Tyler Glasnow and outfielder Manuel Margot from the Tampa Bay Rays. In return, the Dodgers will give pitcher Ryan Pepiot and outfielder Jonny Deluca.
But as ESPN MLB insider Jeff Passan tweeted, the deal will depend on Glasnow signing a contract extension with the Dodgers.
Glasnow has been with the Rays for the previous six MLB seasons. The 29-year-old pitcher never had a losing record from 2019 to 2023. However, he was diagnosed with a UCL tear and flexor strain on his right elbow in June 2021. He eventually needed Tommy John surgery after an unsuccessful rehab while on the 60-day injured list.
This year, he also missed 6-8 weeks due to a strain on his left oblique. Despite that, he had a 10-7 record and a 3.53 earned run average with Tampa Bay. He struck out 162 batters in 120 innings and walked only 37 batters.
Tyler Glasnow started his major league career in 2016 for the Pittsburgh Pirates. He played there until he got traded to Tampa Bay with Austin Meadows in 2018. In return, the Pirates got Chris Archer and Shane Baz.
Glasnow will join a Dodgers starting rotation with Walker Buehler, Tyler Glasnow, Bobby Miller, Ryan Yarbrough, and Emmet Sheehan. Three-time National League Cy Young Award winner Clayton Kershaw is still undecided to return following a shoulder surgery.
The Dodgers traded for Tyler Glasnow days after signing Shohei Ohtani to a ten-year, $700 million deal. However, the Japanese sensation won’t take the pitcher’s mound next season after undergoing surgery for the UCL tear on his right elbow.
Los Angeles’ National League team is also making their pitch for international free agent Yoshinobu Yamamoto, wherein Ohtani, Mookie Betts, and Freddie Freeman attended their meeting with the three-time Eiji Sawamura Award winner as Nippon Professional Baseball’s best pitcher.
-Lance Fernandez