The on-going saga of Los Angeles Dodgers star Yasiel Puig added another chapter on Tuesday when according to MLB Network Insider Jon Heyman, an unidentified team claimed the outfielder off waivers.
sources: puig has been claimed on waivers. dodgers can try to work out a deal with that team, if they can. — Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) August 30, 2016
According to multiple reports, the mystery team that claimed the mercurial outfielder is the Boston Red Sox, but neither the Dodgers nor the Sox have confirmed the reports as of yet.
Yasiel Puig claimed by Red Sox (Not officially confirmed) — Antonio Puesán (@antoniopuesan) August 30, 2016
If it's true that it is indeed the Red Sox that claimed Puig off revocable trade waivers, then the two trade partners will have a little under 48 hours to negotiate a deal that would send Puig to Boston in exchange for minor leaguers.
However, the Dodgers can also give Puig to the Red Sox provided they pay all of his salary, or they can pull him off waivers and keep him in-house until the end of the season. At that time, the front office can negotiate with any of the 29 other teams in MLB.
Many believe that the Red Sox put a claim in on Puig to simply block him from going to another contending team in the AL East like the Toronto Blue Jays or Baltimore Orioles. President of Baseball Operations Andrew Friedman would not disclose any information on Puig, but he did tell Ken Gurnick of MLB.com that the move was commonplace and simply procedural in nature.
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"Virtually all players in August go through waivers," Friedman said. "It's a confidential process, and if and when a trade is announced, that's when the news becomes public. Otherwise, it's a formality, all players go through it and it rarely results in a trade."
Friedman and the Dodgers tried to trade Puig at the Aug. 1 deadline, but were unable to find a suitable offer. The following day, the outfielder was demoted to the minors where he has excelled in Triple-A.
Puig is batting .369 with four homers and 12 RBI in just 18 games with the Oklahoma City Dodgers as he helped lead the team to their second consecutive Pacific Coast League title.
Friedman and the team find themselves in between a rock and hard place as rosters are set to expand on Thursday, Sept. 1, with Puig a prime candidate to be called up.
Puig's right-field replacement, Josh Reddick, has struggled with the Dodgers since he was traded from the Oakland Athletics. He has yet to knock in a run and touted for his defense, Reddick has misplayed numerous balls in the outfield as he adjusts to his new team.
A month ago, we would have said it was highly doubtful that Puig would be part of the Sept. 1 callups, but if he continues to perform at a high level in Triple-A, and Reddick continues to struggle, the Dodgers might have their hand forced.
"The conversations that we had with him in the beginning of August really resonated with him, and there's been a very conscious effort to listen to what was said and apply it to his daily work," Friedman told Gurnick on Tuesday. "The reports from OKC manager Bill Haselman have been really good. I was there a couple weeks ago, and it's obviously a short blip of time, but he's done everything we've asked in this process."
Within 48 hours the world will know whether or not Yasiel Puig remains with the Dodgers organization, returns to the big leagues, or joins the Red Sox. Stay tuned.
