Dodgers Should Consider Willy Adames Deal with Brewers Amid MLB Trade Rumors

The Los Angeles Dodgers are going to need a new shortstop for the 2023 Major League Baseball season.

Instead of shelling out a massive free-agent contract to Dansby Swanson, Carlos Correa or Xander Bogaerts, the Dodgers could find their new shortstop on the trade market.

According to MLB.com's Juan Toribio, "the Dodgers have shown interest" in Milwaukee Brewers shortstop Willy Adames.

Adames is coming off his most powerful season at the plate. He had 31 home runs and 98 RBIs for the Brewers in his first full season with the franchise. He was traded in 2021 from the Tampa Bay Rays to Milwaukee.

Adames has two years of club control left on his current contract. He will not become a free agent until after the 2024 season.

The contract, the Dodgers' need for a shortstop and Milwaukee's willingness to make trades could set up the perfect situation for the National League West champion.

Trea Turner has not signed anywhere yet, but the assumption is that he will leave the Dodgers for a team on the east coast. That leaves one of the three other top free-agent shortstops, Gavin Lux or a trade as the options for the Dodgers in the offseason.

Adames hit for more power than any of the available shortstops on the free-agent market. He ranked second in home runs and third in RBIs among players at his position in 2022.

Turner only had two more RBIs batting in the loaded Dodgers lineup than Adames had in a weaker Milwaukee batting order.

Adames ranked well outside of the top 10 in batting average and stolen bases among shortstops. The Dodgers have to make up the gap in those stats somehow, but it is also worth pointing out there are few all-around players like Turner in the current game.

The Dodgers will have to trade Turner's speed and on-base percentage for other qualities that the available shortstops possess. In Adames' case, he would bring more power to the top of the order around Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman.

Betts would serve as the tone-setter in the lineup and may have to steal more bases to set up Adames, Freeman and others behind him.

A trade with another contender in the National League seems unlikely on the surface, but this is the Brewers we are talking about and not one of the National League East teams or the San Diego Padres.

Milwaukee has had the willingness to deal top-tier players. The most notable recent deal sent Josh Hader to the San Diego Padres. After that trade, the Brewers dropped out of the National League Central race and failed to qualify for the postseason.

The Brewers got a few major-league caliber players in return for Hader and they could look for younger, major-league ready players if they make a deal for Adames.

Milwaukee already shipped Hunter Renfroe to the Los Angeles Angels this offseason, so that may be a sign that they are willing to offload some assets to get younger, and more importantly for the Dodgers in this case, that the Hader trade did not deter the Brewers from dealing their high-profile stars.

The Dodgers, who are no strangers to making big deals of their own, would likely have to send a few players back to the Brewers because of the two years left on Adames' contract.

Los Angeles would immediately upgrade the power in its already impressive batting order, and it would find a top-tier replacement for Turner. That would allow the Dodgers to not drop a bit in the NL West arms race with the Padres.

Spending money is not a problem for the Dodgers, but they would likely save some cash if they traded for Adames instead of investing in a long-term contract for Swanson, Correa or Bogaerts.

A move for Adames makes sense from all angles for the Dodgers, and it would weaken one of their National League competitors. If the Brewers are open to a trade, the two sides should try to make it happen.