NEWSLETTER
This morning, we heard that the Dodgers were the leaders for Manny Machado, and, separately, that the Orioles were expecting to deal him this week before they resume play in the second half.
Now, there are obvious dots to connect there, but only now can we say that they’re being explicitly laid out:
#Dodgers increasingly likely to land Machado, sources tell The Athletic. Barring last-minute snag, several of interested teams expect that outcome.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) July 17, 2018
I can report what you've likely already heard: The Dodgers are believed to be close on a deal for Manny Machado.
— Andy McCullough (@McCulloughTimes) July 17, 2018
Sources: top OF prospect yusniel diaz is indeed in the Dodgers’ Machado offer currently on table
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) July 17, 2018
Manny Machado just stopped by, and he said he’s seeing the reports of Dodgers and thinks/assumes they’re right (tho he said he doesn’t know for sure). The Miami product who’s been an Orioles his whole career said: “It’ll be different. But different can be good.”
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) July 17, 2018
The way these reports are coming out suggests to me that the deal is done, pending the All-Star Game. So … it’s happening. And I bet we hear more about it tonight, or perhaps tomorrow.
Like I said this morning, if the Dodgers do wind up getting Machado, as it seemed they might from the moment Corey Seager went down for the year, I tend to think that’s among the better outcomes out there. For one thing, it’s not the Brewers, with whom the Cubs compete directly in the NL Central. For another thing, the Dodgers – with Justin Turner in house and Corey Seager returning – are not necessarily an obvious suitor for Machado in free agency, so you might not see them using the extra time to court him like the Phillies would.
Sure, it makes the Dodgers more formidable in the theoretical future playoffs, but I always assumed they’d do SOMETHING to improve in July. So you can only just nod and think, “OK. Let’s do it.”
Hey, maybe word will come out during the game tonight, and Manny will just switch caps mid-inning. That’d be funny.
UPDATE: Ken Rosenthal, who interviewed Machado during the All-Star Game (and Machado sure wasn’t denying anything), now adds this:
Can report with more certainty: Machado to #Dodgers happening. Among remaining questions, in addition to specifics of return beyond OF Yusniel Diaz: How much money, if any, #Orioles will send #Dodgers to secure a better package and help ease LAD’s luxury-tax concerns.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) July 18, 2018
