This recent move came out of nowhere. I had thought, like many others, that the Dodgers were done with their shopping. Instead, they prove once again that you should never take a nap on this team. Not only can they score runs in bunches, but the front office is always looking for ways to improve the ballclub and will make a move at any time. Case in point, following Friday evenings game against the Tigers the Dodgers traded for one-time Detroit star and current Mets outfielder Curtis Granderson in exchange for pitching prospect Jacob Rhame. You can follow Granderson here on twitter: @cgrand3. Per a Dodgers press release:
Granderson, 36, has a .254 career batting average with 312 home runs and 853 RBI in 1,760 games in 14 Major League seasons with the Tigers (2004-09), Yankees (2010-13) and Mets (2014-17). The three-time All-Star (2009, ’11, ’12) and 2011 Silver Slugger also won the 2016 Roberto Clemente Award for his community work. Defensively, Granderson has appeared 1,246 games in center field, 445 games in right field and 59 games in left field during the course of his career. He’s also played in 51 postseason games, tied for the 14th most among active players.
Granderson has posted a .276/.399/.603 slashline in his last 71 games since May 21, going 55-for-199 with 40 runs, 13 doubles, two triples, 16 homers and 38 RBI in that span. Overall, he’s batting .228 with 19 home runs and 52 RBI in 111 games with the Mets, including a .282 mark with runners in scoring position.In turn, outfielder Joc Pederson has been optioned to Triple-A Oklahoma City to make room for Granderson. As you know, Joc has struggled mightily of late and needs some time in the minors to works things out. Per Daniel Kramer at MLB.com:
"(Pederson) being optioned gives him an opportunity to reset," Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said before Saturday's game. "I have no doubt that Joc is gonna come back here and help us win a lot of baseball games -- obviously get to our ultimate goal, and that's to win a championship.As for Granderson, he is a well respected veteran who should provide even more leadership to a club seeking a path to a championship. He has also been one of the hottest hitters in the league. Per Jeff Todd at MLB Trade Rumors:
He has destroyed opposing pitching to the tune of a .273/.395/.596 slash in his last 250 trips to the plate. It doesn’t hurt that he’s still capable of manning center field, giving an alternative to Pederson. It’s worth noting that, like Pederson, the new addition has been far more effective this year (and over his career) when hitting with the platoon advantage. The Dodgers will surely continue to mix and match heavily.Best of all, Curtis understands the importance of being Blue. Per his twitter.
BTW, I took all four images shares by Granderson above to make four fantasy Baseball cards of him. You can check those out above and below. Below is his personal message to Dodger fans, via twitter:Each game, I wear my socks high in honor of #JackieRobinson. Today I did it in a @dodgers uniform -and it felt really special #LetsGoDodgers pic.twitter.com/x9xTWcpldp— Curtis Granderson (@cgrand3) August 19, 2017
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) August 19, 2017
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