Details on Dodgers and Phillies’ pursuit of Garrett Crochet

The July 30 trade deadline has come and gone without a hitch. Garrett Crochet The deal was completed despite several teams reportedly being interested in the White Sox left-hander. The Dodgers and Phillies were two of the clubs involved in the trade for Crochet, and while Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reported that both National League contenders made “attractive” offers to the Sox, the bidding didn’t go any further.

Starting with the Phillies, they were unwilling to include Andrew Painter, who remains a top-34 prospect according to Baseball America (No. 20) and MLB Pipeline (No. 34) despite not pitching since September 2022. A sprained ACL sidelined Painter through spring training in 2023 and he underwent Tommy John surgery in July 2023, allowing the highly touted right-hander to be ready to start the 2025 campaign.

The 13th overall pick in the 2021 draft, Painter has pitched just 109 2/3 professional innings, including 28 1/3 innings at the Double-A level. He could start the 2025 season in Double-A if the Phillies want to ease him back into action after his long hiatus, but if all goes well, Painter could move up the ranks fairly quickly and become an option for Philadelphia’s major league staff before the end of next season. Given that Painter is only 21, it’s understandable that even a team that has already won and has a fairly deep pitching staff would be reluctant to move a top prospect with top-tier potential.

Rather than making a big splash with a Crochet trade, Philadelphia instead made a series of smaller moves before the deadline. The Phillies’ discussions with the White Sox over Crochet may have led to the trade that brought Tanner Banks in Philadelphia, and the Fightins’ deadline additions also include players like Carlos Estevez And Austin Hays.

Negotiations between Chicago and Los Angeles were still ongoing in the final hour before the deadline, before the Dodgers apparently pivoted and landed the deal instead. Jack Flaherty With Flaherty a free agent after the season and his trade market possibly affected by injury issues, the Tigers’ ask for the right-hander was understandably much lower than what the White Sox were seeking for Crochet, who is arbitration-controlled through the 2026 season.

Top receiver prospect Dalton rushes was not included in the Dodgers’ offers for Crochet, but Ryan River was, though Rosenthal notes that “the White Sox had concerns about Ryan’s health.” Chicago focused on the shoulder issue that cost Ryan the first two months of the minor league season, but Ryan has since been sidelined by Tommy John surgery that will likely keep him out of action for the entire 2025 campaign.

The Dodgers were so desperate for pitching that Ryan was given a major league berth after his shoulder injury, as Ryan only pitched 24 1/3 minor league innings (16 1/3 at Triple-A) this season before being called up for his MLB debut. In that context, moving a major league-ready starting pitcher for Crochet probably wasn’t an ideal scenario for an LA team that needs every arm it can get at this point, but the Dodgers were obviously going to have to give up a lot to pry Crochet away from the White Sox.

Rushing’s name has been involved in trade speculation before Will Smith signed his big contract extension with Los Angeles in March. Smith’s status as the Dodgers’ catcher for the foreseeable future could make Rushing or his fellow catcher a prospect Diego Cartaya It’s possible Rushing isn’t a replacement player, but it could be that LA didn’t want to move Rushing until they had some experience with him at another position. Rushing has only played left field since being promoted to Triple-A earlier this month, and he’s maintained his hitting level even while adjusting to a new position and facing higher-caliber pitchers, so it’s not out of the question that Rushing could make his major league debut before the end of 2024.

In another note on Crochet’s trade negotiations, Rosenthal writes that “the White Sox also considered offers in which they would have received lower (prospect) packages but would have gotten salary relief.” Those particular discussions reportedly involved André BenintendiSo in that scenario, an unknown team would have eaten all or most of Benintendi’s remaining contract to get Crochet. Rosenthal didn’t specify which teams made such offers, though the Dodgers and Phillies both seem less likely candidates, as adding Benintendi’s contract would have come at an even higher cost to two teams deep in luxury tax territory.

On the one hand, Benintendi’s five-year, $75 million contract already appears to be a bust after less than two seasons, so bundling him with Crochet might be the only reasonable method for Chicago to offload Benintendi. That being said, Crochet is also the team’s best trade asset, and moving him for a package of maximum-value prospects is an obvious way for the Sox to bring more talent to the organization. Diluting that return just to save money doesn’t seem very prudent, especially since the White Sox cut payroll in other trades at the deadline. Benintendi is owed $47.5 million over the 2025-27 seasons, but the Sox have committed just under $41 million across their entire 2025 payroll, according to RosterResource.