Dodgers' Updated Prospect Rankings, Farm System After Tarik Skubal Epic Trade Before MLB Deadline

One of the deepest farm systems in MLB has taken a hit now that the Los Angeles Dodgers have acquired star pitcher Tarik Skubal.

The Tigers' return in the trade included three top-20 Dodgers prospects in outfielder Zyhir Hope, right-hander River Ryan and right-hander Brady Smith, according to ESPN's Jeff Passan.

Hope was ranked as the No. 5 prospect in the Dodgers' pipeline and No. 25 in baseball by MLB Pipeline prior to the trade.

Ryan was ranked as No. 7 in the Dodgers system and No. 68 overall, while Smith was the No. 17 prospect in Los Angeles, per MLB Pipeline.

Here's a look at the Dodgers' updated top 20 prospect rankings following the trade, courtesy of MLB Pipeline.

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1. Josue De Paula, OF
2. Mike Sirota, OF
3. Eduardo Quintero, OF
4. Emil Morales, SS/3B
5. Christian Zazueta, RHP
6. Charles Davalan, OF
7. James Tibbs III, 1B/OF
8. Zach Root, LHP
9. Jackson Ferris, LHP
10. Adam Serwinowski, LHP
11. Kendall George, OF
12. Ching-Hsien Ko, OF
13. Kellon Lindsey, 2B/SS
14. Chase Harlan, 3B
15. Zach Ehrhard, OF
16. Marlon Nieves, RHP
17. Ryan Ward, OF/1B
18. Joendry Vargas, SS/2B
19. Cam Leiter, RHP
20. Sterling Patick, LHP

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The Dodgers' top-ranked prospect remains outfielder Josue De Paula, a 2022 signing out of the Dominican Republic.

The 21-year-old is batting .316 with 19 home runs in 93 games of Double-A action so far this season. MLB Pipeline describes him as "the most advanced young hitter Los Angeles has had since Corey Seager."

Just behind De Paula in the pipeline is outfielder Mike Sirota, acquired from the Cincinnati Reds ahead of the 2025 season as part of the trade for Gavin Lux. Sirota has been batting .320 with nine home runs in 54 Double-A games this season.

Both De Paula and Sirota are projected by MLB Pipeline to make it to MLB in the 2027 season.

The Tigers are getting two other players close to a potential jump to the next level in Hope, who has starred alongside De Paula and Sirota in Tulsa while batting .293 with 23 home runs in 94 Double-A games.

Ryan is also poised to make the jump after make his MLB debut by pitching 20.1 innings with the Dodgers before undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2024.

He was initially expected to get a shot at the Dodgers rotation this season, but his return to MLB has been delayed amid his recovery from a hamstring injury.

The Tigers could be hoping to see Hope join the batting lineup while Ryan helps fill in for Skubal's absence from the rotation from the near future.

The Dodgers still have plenty of batting depth left in their farm system, but their pitching took a hit after losing Ryan. The Athletic's Katie Woo recently described the Dodgers' pitching pipeline as "thin in the upper minors" other than Ryan and Jackson Ferris.

According to Woo, the Dodgers are interested in improving that depth ahead of the Aug. 3 trade deadline. The club is reportedly willing to consider trading top outfield prospects outside of De Paula in order to address other prospect needs, according to Woo.