Bob Nightengale of USA Today lets this little nugget drop about the recently-passed waiver trade deadline:
Nightengale says that the Dodgers would’ve taken Braun and his full contract in exchange for Puig, Brandon McCarthy and prospects. He also says that the clubs “vowed to revisit the talks again this winter.”
He goes so far as to say that “in 2017, Braun will likely don the traditional blue and white colors of the Los Angeles Dodgers.” He’s a bit more guarded, however, about where Puig will play, saying “the next uniform Dodgers embattled outfielder Yasiel Puig might be wearing next season are the blue and gold colors of the Brewers.”
It makes me suspect that the Dodgers wanted Braun but were balking, perhaps worrying that they were selling Puig too low. Maybe they pry Braun away because the Brewers would love to be rid of his contract, but it may take a lesser or, at the very least, a different package, to get him.
Puig is 5-for-14 with three homers, six RBI and four walks since coming back up from his stint in the minors, where he totally raked. He is being praised in the pages of the Los Angeles Times as well for his maturity and approach. For the first time since June, Puig is batting cleanup in tonight’s game.
The Dodgers may still wish to be rid of Puig, at least assuming he doesn’t help carry them to a World Series title. If they do, however, they’ll probably demand more from him than a veteran on the wrong side of 30 with a big contact.
