After a playoff exit, the Los Angeles Dodgers are already being linked to a massive offseason swing - one that would bring two of the Washington Nationals’ brightest young bats to Chavez Ravine.
Former MLB general manager Jim Bowden proposed a blockbuster in which the Dodgers land shortstop CJ Abrams and outfielder James Wood. Abrams still has two years of arbitration control left, while Wood is not scheduled to reach free agency until 2031. Even so, Bowden believes Washington could choose to move them now for the kind of return it got in 2022 when it sent Juan Soto to the San Diego Padres and came away with Abrams, Wood and more.
"The Nationals have been unable or unwilling to sign James Wood and CJ Abrams to long-term contracts, although they've tried," Bowden noted on GM Territory. "If they're not going to sign them to long-term contracts, they can't let them go to free agency. And instead, like they did with Juan Soto, they need to make a blockbuster trade with one or both of them."
For the Dodgers, the appeal is obvious. Bowden sees the deal as a way to inject even more youth, athleticism, speed and power into a roster already built around Freddie Freeman, Mookie Betts and Shohei Ohtani.
"If the Dodgers can get Abrams or Wood, that would completely change this franchise," Bowden said. "It would be younger.
It would be more athletic. The speed and power speaks for itself.
And imagine these two guys with future Hall of Famers Freddie Freeman, Mookie Betts, and Shohei Ohtani."
The price tag would be steep. In Bowden’s proposal, Los Angeles would part with starting pitchers Emmet Sheehan and Justin Wrobleski, catcher Dalton Rushing, and outfield prospects Josue De Paula and Mike Sirota.
That package would give the Nationals immediate help. Sheehan and Wrobleski could step into the rotation right away, with Wrobleski described by Bowden as a 2026 All-Star. Rushing posted a .788 OPS in 80 games this season, and De Paula reached base 21 times in 11 games during his September call-up.
"This is a huge pay by the Dodgers, but they're getting two young players in their prime that they can keep long-term," Bowden explained. "So when Freddie Freeman and Mookie Betts move on, they're the next two guys to kind of take their place. In the meantime, they get to make a run with them."
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