Phillies Trade Chips: Peter Bourjos
By Matt Veasey
BOURJOS TO THE LOS ANGELES DODGERS
The Dodgers are in control of the top NL Wildcard slot, but are in a real battle for one of those berths, with a half-dozen clubs currently battling within less than a handful of games of one another.
LA also trails their bitter rivals, the San Francisco Giants, by a half-dozen games in the NL West Division race. So that fight is still within range of winning, thus avoiding a one-game playoff, where the Pittsburgh Pirates can tell you, anything can happen.
The Dodgers starting outfield right now consists of talented but enigmatic Yasiel Puig in right, mercurial rookie call-up Andrew Toles in center, and converted infielder Howie Kendrick in left, with Scott Van Slyke around as a backup.
Much of that is due to injuries, as the Dodgers have both 24-year old Joc Pederson and veteran Andre Ethier on the DL at the same time. Pederson is due to return tonight, and if he is 100%, that is a huge boost.
Ethier has a small fracture in his leg, and it is hoped that he can return at some point in August. The Dodgers have also been linked to a possible bigger deal for someone like Jay Bruce of the Reds.
If LA does a Bruce deal, they would then start Pederson, Puig, and Bruce across their outfield. However, even with that starting combo, a player such as Bourjos, one who could bring that veteran, speedy, talented, versatile mix would be a huge bonus for depth and bench purposes.
That, and I think Bourjos would look great in one of those shiny white Dodgers home unis. If the Dodgers would send a lower Top 30 prospect such as 24-year old righty Brock Stewart, it could prove a deal beneficial for both sides.
An older prospect, Stewart could be worked at AA Reading or AAA Lehigh Valley as a starter for now, and if it doesn’t work out, he could always be tried in a relief role down the road.