Baseball reporter Jon Heyman firmly believes the Twins will be blown away by a trade offer for Brian Dozier.
The “likelihood is they will be” blown away, Heyman writes at Fan Rag Sports.
Twins Chief Baseball Officer Derek Falvey told the Star Tribune on Sunday that they expect a lot in return to trade any “meaningful” player.
Dozier is meaningful, and then some. He has two years remaining on his contract ($6 million 2017, $9 million in 2018) and has been a consistent right-handed power threat at second base. He hit a career high 42 homers last season and he seems to get better with age.
His next big step could be putting together a complete six months. In 2015 he was dominant in the first half and bad in the second half. Last season, Dozier hit just 5 homers in the first two months before tearing the league apart the final 120 days.
The Dodgers are pushing for Dozier the hardest, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today. The Yankees have Dozier on their radar, too, per Heyman.
The LA #Dodgers are the most aggressive team in trade talks with the #Twins for 2B Brian Dozier, and have now piqued Minnesota's interest.
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) December 4, 2016
Talks are expected to heat up with the MLB Winter Meetings beginning Monday in Washington D.C. If the Dodgers are involved in a deal, ESPN and Heyman believe right-hander Jose De Leon and first baseman/outfielder Cody Bellinger “are names that have come up frequently this offseason.” De Leon’s name, however, is more prevalent in the Dozier discussion.
De Leon is L.A.’s No. 2 prospect, according to MLB Pipeline. More on the 24-year-old De Leon:
“De Leon’s stuff significantly improved in pro ball after he upgraded his conditioning and mechanics. He works at 92-94 mph and can reach 96 mph with his fastball, which has riding life. De Leon’s changeup progressed so much in 2015 that it has become his best secondary pitch, and he also has a low-80s slider that’s effective.”
In 2015 he led the minors with 12.8 strikeouts per nine innings.
Here are a few of @JDL_87’s 2016 numbers with the @okc_dodgers & LA #Dodgers. pic.twitter.com/oWGsKFyuwK
— SportsNet LA (@SportsNetLA) December 1, 2016
Meanwhile, Dozier is also at the winter meetings. Does that mean anything? Who knows.
#MNTwins 2B @BrianDozier is on his way to the winter meetings to take part in MLB partnership announcement tonight.
— Dustin Morse (@morsecode) December 5, 2016
