Syndergaard is a 30-year-old righty who the Dodgers acquired in free agency last offseason. Once upon a time, Syndergaard was considered one of the best young pitchers in baseball. In recent years, Syndergaard has struggled with injuries and posted a 1-4 record with a 7.16 ERA, 1.45 WHIP, and 38 strikeouts in 55.1 innings pitched.
Rosario struggled offensively through the early parts of this season, but he started to find his lane, batting .309 in June and .291 through July. He batted .265 with three jacks and 40 ribbies but is one of the worst-graded defensive shortstops in the American League.
Trade Analysis
Manager Terry Francona has had to do a juggling act this season as injuries have decimated Cleveland’s starting rotation. This is what Francona has dealt with this season;
- Shane Bieber was just moved to the 60-day IL and won’t pitch again this season.
- Tristan McKenzie has missed most of the season and will miss at least three more weeks.
- Rookie Peyton Battenfield looked great early, hurt his shoulder, and just pitched 5.1 innings in a rehab start for AAA Columbus.
- Cal Quantrill is on the 15-day IL with a shoulder injury without a timetable for return.
Syndergaard is on the IL with a finger injury, and Dodgers manager Dave Roberts stated that if Syndergaard can get MLB hitters out, there would be a spot on the team. The reason for the statement was that Syndergaard struggled mightily getting outs with Los Angeles, and we really won’t know if this move was a good one until we see the former fireballer pitch again at the MLB level.
Rosario is in the last year of his contract, so at least Cleveland got something for him. He’s been hitting the ball much better over the past two months but was a liability on defense. Trading Rosario now allows Cleveland to play some of their minor-league infield prospects and maybe find their shortstop for the future.
How the Trade Affects the Guardians’ Betting Odds
The Guardians are two games behind in the AL Central standings. These are the current Futures odds and available bets at DraftKings Ohio.
- Cleveland Guardians to Make the Playoffs: Yes (+240), No (-295)
- Cleveland Guardians to win the AL Central: +245
Despite all of the injuries, the Guardians are still in the hunt for an AL Central title and 5.5 games behind the Houston Astros for the second AL Wild Card.
The problem is that we have no idea if Cleveland are going to be sellers at the August 1 trade deadline and look towards next season or look for another pitching upgrade and make a push for the playoffs.
Cleveland will only make the playoffs if they win their division. If Syndergaard can contribute to the starting rotation right away, and that’s a pretty big if, then the Guardians, with its present roster, could still win the Central. Battenfield might give them a boost when he returns, and if McKenzie and Quantrill can somehow find their form, the rotation would be solid enough to give the Minnesota Twins a run for their money.
Finally, +240 to make the playoffs and +245 to win the Central is too much of a gamble. Cleveland still has the same batting lineup ranked 12th in the American League in runs scored, and losing Rosario didn’t improve that lineup. Laying -295 is too much juice to lay on an MLB Futures bet, so I would just wait and see what Cleveland does next before placing any future bet on the Cleveland Guardians.
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