Baltimore Orioles’ short stop Manny Machado is being traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers. Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic has said that the Machado trade to the Dodgers is finally official. MLB.com’s Brittany Ghiroli said sources have told her the same information.
In return for their superstar shortstop, the Orioles will receive a package that includes 21-year-old outfield prospect Yusniel Diaz, who’s ranked the Dodgers’ No. 4 prospect and the No. 84 overall prospect in baseball by MLB Pipeline. According to MLB Network insider Jon Heyman, the Dodgers are believed to be sending four other prospects to Baltimore in the deal, but will not receive any cash from the Orioles in exchange.
Machado notified. Deal is official.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) July 18, 2018
Machado will be a free agent after this season, but even if he ends up a half-season rental for the Dodgers, he could be a huge difference-maker in the National League West race. The Dodgers, who entered the All-Star break leading the division by a half-game over the D-backs at 53-43, lost star shortstop Corey Seager for the season due to Tommy John surgery. And Machado is having a career year offensively, hitting .315 with 24 home runs and 65 RBIs entering the second half.
The Philadelphia Phillies and Milwaukee Brewers were also among the teams that reportedly had made a strong push to acquire Machado. In the end, the Dodgers were able to persuade the Orioles to their trade offer with their package of prospects.
