Making Sense of the Michael Busch Trade, Why Didn’t the Dodgers Get More?

To clear room on the 40-man roster for Teoscar Hernández, the Los Angeles Dodgers traded top prospect Michael Busch and right-handed reliever Yency Almonte to the Chicago Cubs for a pair of young prospects, Jackson Ferris and Zyhir Hope. Busch ranked second in the Dodgers’ farm system and top 50 in all of MLB. So, why couldn’t the Dodgers get more in return for such a highly-rated prospect?

The Rational Reason

To put it plainly, the Dodgers just did not have room for Busch in their system and everyone knew it. Busch, 26, is older than most prospects at this point. By taking up a valuable spot on the 40-man roster at his age, he’s blocking other prospects from being elevated to that very roster.

He cannot prove anything more at the minor-league level. In 2023, Busch slashed .323/.431/.618 with 27 home runs in Triple-A. He earned the chance to take everyday at-bats, but the Dodgers could not offer him that opportunity.

When the Dodgers drafted Busch, he played shortstop. However, they moved him over to first base just to get his bat in the lineup. Then, as he made his way to Triple-A, he started playing both second base and third base. Unfortunately for him, Gavin Lux, Freddie Freeman, Mookie Betts, and Max Muncy occupy all of those positions, and they are unlikely to move from them.

So, as he aged, the Dodgers faced the reality that they either had to trade him or play him. Without a position and Shohei Ohtani locked up as the team’s designated hitter, they needed to trade him.

With each move Andrew Friedman made this offseason, the likelihood of moving Busch went up. This gave other teams leverage against the Dodgers. They knew the Dodgers had to either trade Busch or release him, and that drove his market down.

That being said, Friedman did well considering the situation. He got back two prospects with enormous upside that you can read about here. In doing so, the Dodgers freed up two spots on the 40-man roster and added players that they won’t have to put on it for several years.

The Fun, Speculative Reason

This theory may require a tinfoil hat, but nothing is impossible. Friedman could have traded Busch away for prospects that other teams want. So, we could see one, or both, of these prospects moved again this offseason.

Example: The Dodgers have been linked to Dylan Cease all offseason. Maybe the White Sox did not want a trade package headlined by Busch, but they did want more pitching. With this trade, the Dodgers could approach the White Sox with a new trade package that involves Ferris to possibly land Cease.

While not entirely realistic, this is not at all outside the realm of possibilities for Friedman. However, if the Dodgers do stick with Ferris and Hope, they could make their way to MLB in the next few years — and Ferris is already getting talked about as a future ace.

Photo Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Have you subscribed to our YouTube Channel? Subscribe and hit that notification bell to stay up to date on all the latest Dodgers news, rumors, interviews, livestreams, and more!