The Los Angeles Dodgers have been a named a potential fit for right-handed pitcher Zack Littell by MLB insider Mark Feinsand.
“Tampa Bay has a history of buying and selling based on players’ contract situations, making Littell – an impending free agent at the end of the season – a potential trade chip,” Feinsand writes. “Given the number of teams looking for rotation help, Littell (6-6, 3.78 ERA in 16 starts) could bring back a solid return for Tampa Bay, a team with enough rotation depth from which to deal.”
The Dodgers have been without three staples of their starting rotation in Tyler Glasnow, Blake Snell, and Roki Sasaki for a majority of the 2025 season.
Once again, the defending champions have a depleted pitching staff as the trade deadline quickly approaches.
Last season, the Dodgers acquired two key arms in the summer. L.A. bolstered the bullpen by acquiring Michael Kopech and improved the rotation by adding Jack Flaherty.
This year, it remains to be seen which area of the roster the front office will focus on improving. President of baseball operations Andrew Friedman revealed the Dodgers are hoping to avoid trading for a starting pitcher this summer.
“I’m still optimistic,” Friedman said. “It requires guys coming back on or close to the timelines that we have penciled out. We have shown that, if we’re not in position to do that, we’ll be aggressive to add. But our strong desire is not to.”
It would be a mistake to think Friedman will sit idly by at this year’s trade deadline, but it’s still somewhat of a mystery where he will focus on improving the roster.
If the rotation becomes a need, Littell could be a cheaper option who can eat innings at the back of a depleted rotation.
