The Matt Kemp discussions have reportedly come to a close with Dennis Lin and Kirk D Kenny of the San Diego Union-Tribune reporting that Kemp has been traded to the San Diego Padres, along with $30 million dollars towards Kemp’s contract. In return, the Los Angels Dodgers will receive catcher Yasmani Grandal, along with two pitching prospects not yet identified. The deal is still pending physicals and approval from the commissioner’s office, Lin states. He expects it to be finalized sometime Thursday. The report is also still waiting to be confirmed.
The Dodgers have been very active this week, making trades with the Miami Marlins, Philadelphia Phillies, and the Los Angeles Angels, as well as sign free agent starting pitcher Brandon McCarthy.
There was speculation that with an over crowded outfield in Los Angeles, an outfielder would be moved. Kemp, who signed an 8-year, $160-million extension after the 2011 season, is a two-time All-Star, and finished second in the NL MVP voting in 2011. The Oklahoma product has seen his production fall off from his 2011 campaign in which he hit .324 with 39 home runs and 126 RBI. Since then, Kemp has hit over .300 once, and has been plagued by injury, playing in 179 total games in 2012 and 2013.
In return, the Dodgers are receiving what is presumed to be their starting everyday catcher in Yasmani Grandal. The 26-year-old Cuban catcher has also seen his stats regress in recent years, most recently batting .225 in 2014, but also had a career high in home runs (15) and RBI (49). In his three-year career, Grandal has played a total of 216 games due to knee injuries and inconsistency.
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