Dodgers Trade Target Randy Arozarena Heading to AL West Contender in Blockbuster Deal

Longtime Los Angeles Dodgers trade target Randy Arozarena is heading to the American League West.

The Tampa Bay Rays have sent the All-Star outfielder to the Seattle Mariners in exchange for minor leagues outfielder Aidan Smith and right-handed pitcher Brody Hopkins, plus a player to be named later.

For all the Dodgers’ shortcomings in terms of lineup depth, particularly in the outfield, the Mariners had it worse. The Dodgers enter Friday with the highest WRC+ of any team in MLB per FanGraphs, at 118. The Mariners are 23rd. In six games since the All-Star break, Seattle is 1-5 having scored a total of 11 runs.

Arozarena has been particularly tough against left-handed pitching this season, slashing .244/.359/.522 (.881 OPS) with only 18 strikeouts in 106 plate appearances. The Mariners had a mere .665 OPS against lefties as a team and will need plenty of help to make up ground in the American League West after ceding first place to the Houston Astros amid their post-All-Star slump.

The Dodgers, meanwhile, have additional targets on their deadline shopping list besides an outfield bat. They have been linked to several starting pitchers in recent trade talks, while they await the returns of Max Muncy and Mookie Betts to bolster their lineup.

Arozarena, a Cuban native who defected to Mexico in 2015, is a career .256 hitter who won the American League Rookie of the Year award with Tampa Bay in 2021. Remarkably, he won the award after starring for the Rays en route to their World Series run in 2020, when they lost to the Dodgers in six games.

Arozarena went 8 for 22 in the World Series with three home runs and a .364 batting average. That followed a heroic performance in the ALCS — .421 with three homers in five games — that earned him MVP honors.

The Dodgers have been linked to Arozarena in the past, but for now they’ll have to watch him from afar — again. The Mariners visit Dodger Stadium on Aug. 19-21.

Photo Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

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