Shane Victorino is returning to the organization that drafted him in 1999. The Dodgers acquired Victorino from the Phillies today for starting pitching prospect Ethan Martin and reliever Josh Lindblom, according to Yahoo's Tim Brown (Twitter link). The deal has been officially announced by both teams, and the Phillies also received a player to be named later or cash considerations. It's been another active summer for Dodgers GM Ned Colletti, who also acquired Hanley Ramirez, Randy Choate, and Brandon League this month.
Victorino, 31, has $3.3MM remaining on his contract and will be eligible for free agency after the season. The center fielder has a .261/.324/.401 line in 431 plate appearances for the Phillies this year. It seems likely he'll play left field for the Dodgers, despite less than 200 career innings at that position. For the Phillies, Domonic Brown will come up to play left field with John Mayberry Jr. becoming the regular center fielder.
The Flyin' Hawaiian was drafted by the Dodgers in the sixth round in 1999. Former Dodgers GMs Dan Evans and Paul DePodesta let him go twice in the Rule 5 draft, claiming him back from the Padres the first time in '03 but not from the Phillies in '05. Victorino went on to become a star for the Phils, snagging three Gold Gloves, two All-Star appearances, and even some MVP votes in his time with the club. With the team's surprising last place performance this season, Victorino was dealt to a contender a few months prior to free agency. The Reds, Orioles, and Giants had also reportedly been in the mix. The Dodgers announced they've designated lefty Michael Antonini to open a 40-man roster spot for Victorino.
Martin, the Dodgers' first-round draft pick from 2008, owns a 3.58 ERA, 8.5 K/9, 4.7 BB/9, and 0.38 HR/9 in 118 Double-A innings this year. Drafted as a raw high schooler, Baseball America ranked Martin 17th on their Dodgers prospect list prior to the season. They wrote that Martin "maintains the ceiling of a No. 2 starter but has a long way to go."
Lindblom, 25, has a 3.02 ERA, 8.1 K/9, 3.4 BB/9, 1.70 HR/9, and 38% groundball rate in 47 2/3 relief innings this year, so he's had some issues with the longball. He doesn't have much big league service time, and is technically under team control through 2017. Drafted in the second round in '08, Lindblom was once considered one of the team's top prospects. Lindblom was made more expendable by the Dodgers' acquisition of League from the Mariners last night.
Photo courtesy of US Presswire/Robert Mayer. Jon Heyman first reported a deal was very likely.
Seems like an overpay! -.- But a good player. Solidifies left field.
Pretty solid move for the Phillies considering Victorino was a strict rental.
Vic is only 31, and was in the top10 for NL MVP last year. Some say his bat speed is down, but he may just be out of shape and having an off year. Some have also said that he had a nagging hand injury. But he’s worth a shot for a team looking to get into the playoffs. Phillies have no CF now, and maybe the worst OF in baseball.
Goodness gracious Dodgers
Dodgers, Get the Demp Deal Done!
Dempster and Soriano to play first.
That would be strange platoon, but okay.
Martin Can’t throw strikes, two relievers essentially for Victorino.
took all of six minutes for the dodgers fans to turn on the prospects traded away. gotta love it
I have never liked martin, I’m just glad it wasn’t our castellanos.
That’s always the case.
Lindblom and Martin? I’d say the Dodgers and their fans forgot them long before this trade.
I for one am sad to see Martin included. He may not have lived up to the hype, but he is still young.
overpay easy, good for the Phillies.
As a Dodger fan, this feels weird. I was there when he took the life out of the stadium in the 08′ playoffs. It will be an upgrade for sure but it will be hard to not call him The Cryin’ Hawaiian.
Haha…I’m sure you’ll get over it. You might even get to view his attitude differently. He’s tenacious. Enjoy, best of luck this year.
Definitely. He’s certainly hard nosed and I respect that. Thanks man, I appreciate it. It’s weird being on this side of the fence for once and not having a fire sale every deadline.
Nice trade for Philly…depending on how much salary they’re picking up.
Overpay….
Nevermind martin numbers arent that great, he just has potential.
I don’t think this is an overpay. League will be better than Lindbloom was, or one can hope. Anyway, Martin in my eyes and many others is a complete utter bust.
League will not be better than Lindblom. Lindblom is already the superior pitcher and has far more upside.
League has been better in the past. Hoping pitches closer to his peripherals.
File Bankruptcy->Erase Debt->Sell Team->Spend Wildly->Reach Post Season->Reach WS->???.
See: Rangers, Dodgers
Hopefully the Mets are next.
when did the dodgers reach the post season?
I think he means that is the next step, as right now they are spending wildly
Gonna be weird to see Victorino torturing the Braves only 2 times a year rather than 6
Weird? Did you mean to spell awesome!!! I know you are being sarcastic but as a Braves fan this is exciting.
oh absolutely awesome but I misspoke anyway. I forgot that Vic is a free agent after this year and that we don’t play the Dodgers again in 2012. So I guess I mean that we don’t have to deal with him at all unless it’s the playoffs…but playoffs? Don’t talk about playoffs 😉
what u said…..im glad hes gone….
Giving Ehier an Extension…
Getting Kemp back from injury…
Acquiring Hanley and Choate..
Trading for League…
Bringing in Victorino…
I’m jealous. Nice deadline for the Dodgers.
still more to come, has to be, need a real number 2 pitcher.
Dempster probably on the way. It’s good for baseball when other large market teams start to straighten out their act. Mets and Cubs are making smart moves for the future, and obviously Dodgers are looking good with a talented young core.
and then they are going to get the Dempster deal done
Very good deadline for the Dodgers. What I like about it is besides the Hanley trade they really didn’t have to give up much. 25 YO reliever is something, but it isn’t the end of the world. And guy that was drafted in 2008 and has a ways to go, rule 5 eligible in 1-2 years.
farewell, farewell. you’ll always be remembered.
Dodgers have been involved in EVERY Victorino transaction. Interesting.
Nice observation. So that means the Dodgers have to sign him this winter?
New ownership really looking to make a statement this year. Between Hanley and Victorino they’ve really shored up their lineup for a possible postseason run without giving up too too much.
the core of ethier, hanley, victorino and lily would have been dominant in 2009…
Well Rube got his young setup man. I don’t really know anything about this Ethan Martin kid but I assume he’s just a throw in? Hopefully Lindblom blossoms into a dominate setup guy for Papelbon. Although I hear he gives up a lot of homers he’s still young.
Now lets see rube trade Blanton, Pence and Cliff Lee and get us a young 3B, 2B, OF and a number three starter.
I don’t think he’s a setup guy at this point. I think the Phillies will bring in someone else with more experience for that role. If not, other candidates include Bastardo and DeFratus.
He’s their #7 prospect according to MLB’s website (don’t want to link it since my post will get flagged).
He’s a raw high school arm with solid numbers. At first glance, he kind of reminds me of May.
I thought the same exact thing.
I mean, at the least with him, we might have a guy who profiles as a back end of the bullpen kind of guy if he can’t figure his command out to be a starter given his plus stuff.
A decent return for a pure rental player. Cheap Middle Reliever and high upside pitcher.
Yeah I see the same projection, although I hate guys out of the pen who don’t throw strikes … J.C. Romero rings a bell
Sweet, I can actually cheer for him now. I always liked the guy but well… I’m a Nats fan.
Some of you homies just have to let things go….08 playoffs are in the past, this is business, he is for sure an upgrade to what was being put out day in and day out in left field. definitely makes the blue krew more dangerous. Need to get a pitcher and we good for the season, Dodgers will become a deep squad.
Love it as a Phillies fan. Lindblom has always had swing and miss stuff and it seems like he’s put it together in the last year or two. Same with Martin actually.
Victorino was great here and will always own CC. Best of luck to him.
CC got his revenge in 2009 with the Yanks.
Lindblom is a fly ball pitcher, and may not be a good fit in the Phillies band box. He gave up lots of long balls this season.
Excited to see an outfield of Victorino, Kemp, and Ethier. It’s nice to be a Dodger fan for once
That has to be the top outfield in the NL, quite possibly all of baseball.
Trout, Trumbo, Hunter
Granderson, Swisher, Gardner (when healthy)
Crawford, Ellsbury, Ross (on a healthy year)
are all better
I’m not a big ethier fan. He gets on base, but he has no power from leftfield. He is on pace for what 15 Hr. And they overpaid him by a large margin. Kemp is the only good one in this outfield, but he is that good.
You could have just said Ichiro instead of Gardner. Also, I think there are several others on par with those:
Harper, Werth, Morse (plus Moore and Bernadina)
Prado, Heyward, Bourn
Maybe even:
Hamilton, Cruz, Murphy
Jennings, Upton, Joyce
Upton, Young, Kubel
Markakis, Jones, Young
Beltran, Holliday, Jay
Prado, Bourn, Heyward?
I think own oldfield and theres a 1 a & 1 b
While the Giants stand pat and do absolutely nothing on the field and off the field..At least teams trying to win are doing something..
Heh you were two minutes early (literally) from the announcement of the Pence deal.
Victorino is an upgrade because of the bums we’ve been playing, not because Victorino is good. Overpay.
Overall, Hanley was a good trade. League is whatever. Decent job by Ned. I expected worse.
Steep price for the Dodgers to pay. Lindbloom is a young stud… Looking forward to seeing the flying Hawaiin back in Dodger blue.
thanks for a starting pitching prospect. we’ll wish you best luck, shane.
Oh how the mighty have fallen…AAAA player Dom Brown on his way…
Dom Brown was rushed to the majors, now he had time to mature and will be playing on a team that doesn’t have high expectations for the rest of the year. We can now see if he is the guy everyone said he was. Oh and you keep waiting on those Mets…
The same Mets that are ahead of the Phillies? lol
Go ahead and celebrate mediocrity if you want to…Mets aren’t any closer to the postseason. Well, technically they are, but neither of them are going this year.
I’m a Yankees fan. Celebrating mediocrity is against our religion. Mets are looking good for the future. Two bright young arms on the way up, and they are capable of retaining Wright and adding a big name this off season, or definitely after 2013. And if it wasn’t for the horrendous slide after the ASG, they’d be a lot closer to the wild card this year.
The same Mets that won’t contend next year too? lol
No. lol
Really? How will they contend? Please share this with me
If it weren’t for our horrendous bullpen, we would likely be close to 10 games over .500 now. That is a fact. Call them poor and offensively challenged all you want, but facts are facts. If Wheeler and Harvey are able to pitch up to expectations, we should have arguably one of the best rotations in baseball.
And just because our lineup doesn’t have names like “Utley” or “Howard” (Lol) doesn’t mean our offense is nonexistent (have you looked at where we stands in run scored this year?). Wright isn’t going anywhere.
Wright isn’t going anywhere just like Reyes? Weren’t the Mets supposed to make him a competitive offer? Also I wasn’t talking about Utkey and Howard who have been hurt all season. It’s names like Rollins, one of the best defensive SS in MLB, Chooch, a great guy behind the plate and hitting out of his mind, then we had Victorino and Pence who were both all star caliber OFs. Also maybe you should wait and see what they can do before you put that kind of expectations on two kids. It took guys like Halladay and Lee a few years to become great.
“Could” is the key word there. And “had” is the other key word. Also, that’s not counting on either to have a terrific year. Santana and Dickey are both near-aces, and Niese, Harvey, and Wheeler could make a very nice 3-4-5. But fair enough.
I never thought Reyes was staying with the Mets, nor did I, along with many fans, want him returning on a long term and expensive deal. I’m happy with the way things played out with Reyes. Wright is the face of the franchise and is having one of the great years in franchise history. More importantly, he’s drastically cut down on his strikeouts, maintained his power stroke, and his game doesn’t rely on his legs. If he isn’t resigned, the Wilpons will run out of town.
The problem is that with them gone, you’re relying on two aging and injury prone (well, mostly Utley) players to supply a lot of your offense. If they don’t produce that much or get hurt, then what? Ruiz probably isn’t going to have another career year. Rollins is also getting older Just sayin’, even with that rotation, the offense is a huge question mark.
Where did I write “could”? Also Victorino will not be missed. His .250 avg and 20 sb are replaced by Juan Pierre. Rollins is older yes but that doesn’t diminish what he does on defense. He may not even be there by the start of next season because I expect Amaro to attempt to trade him and Lee for younger players. Ruiz, I do not expect to hit .350 next year but it does seem like he has found his swing, so .280-.300 isn’t out of the question, which is the type of production Pence gave us. Howard and Utley will not be entirely relied on next year. Do I expect 90-120 RBIs for Howard? Yes if he can stay healthy. It also doesn’t hurt having Dom Brown playing 1/3 of the season and getting a chance to face MLB pitchers without any pressure and Nate getting to play more than he did in SF. This could help both flourish into very good hitters going into next season. The Phillies can also sign FAs like a Bourn to finally get a true lead off hitter. Now all they would need is a 3B who they could get in a trade that could include Lee or Rollins as stated above. A possible line up could be:
Bourn (Possible FA)
Utley
Nate/Brown
Howard
Ruiz
Nate/Brown
Wigginton (As of right now)
Galvis
Pitcher
That’s not too far-fetched and could potentially be a very dangerous line up if Nate and Brown prove they can hit on a consistent level. It also leaves Utley to just get on base which he does very well.
The problem with that line of thinking, and I’ve learned this because I am a Mets fan (lol), is that relying on a “potentially” dangerous lineup almost never works out. Well, at least for Mets fans it doesn’t. Someone always gets hurt or misses significant time, and unless you have top prospects or very good bench pieces to fill in, your offense will take a big hit.And when that lineup is filled with older and injury prone players, that likelihood almost becomes a certainty.
I’m not 100% sure of the Phillies payroll situation, but I think by extending Hamels they don’t won’t a lot of payroll flexibilty. Bourn will probably be out of the question, as he’s played himself into a pretty big contract next year. They’ll get a few guys I’m sure though. I do think Brown will become a pretty good player. He just hasn’t gotten a shot at enough playing time yet. Utley and Howard are like our 2009 versions of Beltran and Delgado (Beltran with the knees and Delgado the aging slugger). I actually hope they don’t suffer similar fates lol, it’s no fun when your best players are always out, even if you shouldn’t be relying on them.
Oh and could was referring to what I said about our rotation having great potential.
Shea, I just want to apologize if I was coming off arrogant. I see your points and they are vry true. I hope the best to your Mets because it was alot more fun when the Phillies and Mets had that heated rivalry. I don’t want to be nown as “that” Phillies fan because there’s already enough of them. i’m sorry.
Matt Harvey and Zack Wheeler will be awesome.
Where’s your offense going to come from once Wright leaves next year? Yes this was a bad year for the Phillies but they can fix their problems with their pockets, I don’t think the Mets can say the same.
Right. The team from New York, the biggest market in baseball, can’t contend with the Phillies, who are in the midst of unloading payroll at the deadline because too much of it is locked up on aging “stars.”
Plus, all indications lead to the Mets making a competitive offer to retain Wright.
And yes, @Blue387:disqus Wheeler and Harvey will be awesome!
Oh really the Mets have money? Where is it? Or are you confusing yourself with the Yankees? Do you look at your starting line up? I see a small budget baseball team, not one that competes with the Phillies payroll that’s close to the luxury tax.
I think what Sandy is doing is spot on. Yeah, the roster looks bad, but after 2013, when Bay and Johan’s combined salary of about 40m comes off the books, and their prospects start to pan out, the team should be poised to compete again.
Makes no sense to fool yourself into thinking you can actually compete this year. They over achieved. Everybody knows that.
Keep in mind, they’re one year removed from a 140m+ payroll.
I understand and are you a Yankees or Mets fan? Haha a few posts down you said you were a Yankess fan, shouldn’t you hate the Mets?
Yankees fan. Unlike my brethren, I don’t “hate” the Mets. I’m sympathetic towards their plight and honestly hope they can turn it around. Baseball is more fun in this town when both teams are doing well.
Will Brown be in a corner spot or CF? I know the article says he will play right, but I heard the organization moved him to Center and that Dominic loves playing there…so whats the true scoop Phillie fans?
He’s been playing center for the better part of this year (when healthy) but all reports I’ve read say he will be in left and Mayberry in center.
Ya good thing the mets never have failed prospects, it’s not like calling fernado martinez a AAAA would be a compliment.
I will miss Josh Lindblom as a Dodger. It will be weird seeing him in another uniform. I still harbor bitter feelings at Victorino running his mouth in the NLCS a couple of years ago, but I guess I haven’t a choice but to get over it now. I wish Lindblom much success in Philly. At least now I’ll have someone to root for over there.
I wouldn’t be surprised if the Dodgers sign a extension for Victorino now.
Doubt they do that now without pursuing Josh Hamilton first this winter.
depends. if Victornio has a few good weeks, Ned will be all over it. Still think it’s worth pursuing Upton, Swisher etc. over Victorino in the off season
Dodgers and Rangers in the WS hmmmm..Being bankrupt isn’t so bad
Now the Dodgers got Shane Victorino who got playoff experience yea
I love it how sources say that the Phillies are more concerned with trading Hunter Pence than they are with Victorino then Victorino is the first one traded.
Doesnt matter who is traded first just means the deal was agreed upon before the other GEEZ
Brilliant moves by the Dodgers. They get veteran insurance in League for Jansen and a pro bat that can also play CF in Victorino… and they’re not even done yet. They are clearly going for it, and any fan has to respect that.
This is just a rental isn’t it???? I hope they don’t sign him to an extension
Not too thrilled about this move. Of the potential targets of Pence, Choo, Soriano, Hart, Morneau, Willingham, and Victorino… I’d have to say Victorino was last on my list. I think Soriano could have come much cheaper (in terms of prospects).
Perhaps, but Soriano really doesn’t provide anything Victorino doesn’t. Plus he has a longer contract (regardless of the money). Personally, I would have preferred Pence, Choo or Morneau given our issues at 1B, but I have to wonder what the price would be for those folks. Still haven’t seen what the Giants gave up for Pence, so it may have been too much for the Dodgers to pay.
It is interesting though, despite a weak farm this team has made some very aggressive and beneficial moves.
Soriano provides far more power than Victorino. Not saying he’s a better player or better option for the Dodgers, just saying there is something he does markedly better than Victorino
LA needed a lead off hitter. Vic can still steal bases, play very good defense, and get some extra base hits. I’m sure they’re hoping that Ramirez supplies some of the needed power.
Are the Dodgers a winner here or did Amaro actually do a good job on this return for a player like Victorino?
For a 2 month rental, I’d say you did good. Both Lindblom and Martin have a lot of potential, Lindblom on his way to reaching it. Before the emergence of Jansen, Lindblom was regarded as the Dodgers future closer.
btw I got a concern. lindblom’s fip is freakin’ creepy. 3.02 ERA but 5.05 FIP (…)
He’s still only 25 and now he has the next half of the year to learn CBP since there will be barely any expectations.
I wonder if this opens the door for the Phils to go after Bourn to play CF for the Phils next yr.
Anybody think Morneau will get traded?
I actually smell an expanded deal with the Cubs for Dempster and LaHair, with LaHair taking over at 1B for the Dodgers.
I hope so! Without a solid #2 SP behind Kershaw, we’ll need all the offense we can get. Morneau would be a nice upgrade over Loney.
Hmm, I wonder where all the “Fire Colletti” folks are? I mean we still have Uribe and we gave up Santana and a bunch of other “great” prospects the last time the team was in contention.
Uribe isn’t going anywhere, unless they bite the bullet and DFA him. He is one of many bad deals that Ned has made. I never faulted him for the Santana / Blake trade considering we had the best catcher in baseball at the time, and he was 25 years old.
It was well known in LA that Colletti had a trade in place with Cleveland to get Sabathia without giving up Santana, but McCourt turned the deal down because he didn’t want to take on Sabathia’s salary. As for Uribe, he was not Ned’s first choice. McCourt really tied his hands.
Thanks for that. So true. Like I said at the beginning of the season, let’s see how Colletti does with a major market budget. Seems like he’s doing pretty well. Uribe could still be dealt. He is defensively competent or better at three infield positions. If the roster wasn’t so crowded now I’d say the Dodgers would do well to hang onto him as a utility player.
Good luck Vic. Classy guy and one of my favorite Phillies, now my favorite Dodger. It will be weird seeing him play LF considering he has one error in a season and a half of baseball in CF. Not to mention the Gold Gloves. Looks like a good deal though since we weren’t planning on signing him. Mayberry in center? Hopefully we address 3B and CF with all this GM activity.
I think he’ll go into right and Ethier moves to left. We will find out tonight assuming Victorino got on an airplane this morning. I will be in the seats listening to Vin explain it all…
Vin is awesome! The only announcer that I would actually prefer to listen to over my hometown Philly announcers. I might have to check out the Dodger game tonight to help with the moving on process.
Favorite Victorino moment: the dive into the stands for a foul ball in ’07 during a bases loaded two out situation. That’s when I knew he wanted to win at all costs.
Back to free agency Abreu
? He just turned into one of the better LH hitters off the bench in MLB….
Flyin’ Hawaiian is now the Cryin’ Hawaiian all kiding aside I wish you sucess is L.A. plus during interleague my Red Sox won’t face you as likely. Just do me a favor and double your homer total from 9 to 18.
Best of Luck,
Jack
The Giants Will be out for Competition in the next Weeks this will be a Dbacks vs Dodgers season i hope so
You’re funny.