Outfielder Joc Pederson Traded to Angels

The Los Angeles Dodgers recently made very big headlines when they acquired star outfielder Mookie Betts from the Boston Red Sox in a massive trade. However, the Dodgers made another trade after acquiring Betts that was not as splashy. It was a necessary move that the Dodgers had to make under the circumstances. They sent outfielder Joc Pederson across town to the Los Angeles Angels. Pederson hit 36 home runs last year. This was the most home runs that he had ever hit in a single season in his entire career. The Dodgers are trading Pederson for two reasons. First of all, they needed to open up a spot in the outfield for Mookie Betts. Also, Joc Pederson will be a free agent after the 2020 season. Therefore, the Dodgers wanted to get something for him.

The Angels will have a very good outfield in 2020 thanks to the acquisition of Pederson. They already have Mike Trout. He is considered to be the best player in the entire sport of baseball. Justin Upton is their other outfielder. Upton had a turf toe problem last year that basically destroyed his entire season. He is hoping to rebound in 2020 and show that the Angels made a good decision to give him a long-term contract for very big money.

The Dodgers would have preferred to keep Pederson. However, there is no designated hitter in the National League. The team has a wealth of talent. That is demonstrated by the fact that a guy who hit 36 home runs last year was expendable. There are many people who are expecting the Dodgers to win the World Series this year because Betts is on their team. However, the Dodgers have had many heartbreaking playoff defeats recently. Only time will tell if Betts can help the Dodgers win their first World Series since 1988.

Joc Pederson definitely makes the Angels a better team than they were before. The team was very bad last year. That led to them firing manager Brad Ausmus after only one year at the helm. However, the team spent big money to bring in free agent third baseman Anthony Rendon. He was the top free agent position player who was available. It does not seem very likely that the Angels will be able to surpass the Houston Astros for the division title. They might be able to compete for a wild card.