Trade Central: Ailing Dodgers Add Norris

THE DEAL

Within hours of placing ace Clayton Kershaw on the 15-day disabled list Thursday, the Dodgers acquired righthander Bud Norris from the Braves to fill Kershaw’s vacated rotation spot.

Norris, an eight-year veteran, posted a 4.22 ERA in 22 games, 10 starts, for the Braves this season. The Dodgers also acquired Cuban minor league outfielder Dian Toscano.

In return the Braves acquired minor league relievers Caleb Dirks and Philip Pfeifer. Dirks was originally drafted by the Braves and traded to the Dodgers last summer. Pfeifer is a native of the South, growing up in Tennessee and pitching collegiately at Vanderbilt.

BRAVES ACQUIRE
Caleb Dirks, rhp
Age: 23

The Braves drafted Dirks out of Division II California Baptist in the 15th round in 2014 but traded him a year later to the Dodgers along with outfielder Jordan Paroubeck in exchange for an international bonus slot valued at $249,000. Dirks, a big-bodied, 6-foot-3, 220-pound righthander, took off when he joined the Dodgers organization, posting a 1.41 ERA, 1.01 WHIP, 10.5 strikeouts per nine innings and 2.6 walks per nine the past two seasons at Double-A Tulsa. Dirks features a 93-95 mph fastball that plays up because of a deceptive delivery that features a high leg kick and powerful push toward the plate, and mixes in a slider and changeup as his secondary pitches. He profiles as a back-end, high-leverage reliever with his swing-and-miss stuff, and has shown he can close in a pinch with six saves in seven opportunities this season.

Club (League)	Class	W	L	ERA	G	SV	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO
Tulsa (TL)	AA	3	2	1.44	28	6	31	25	10	5	3	7	35

Philip Pfeifer, lhp
Age: 23

The Dodgers drafted Pfeifer in the third round, No. 101 overall, last year out of Vanderbilt, where posted a 3.55 ERA in 27 appearances, nine starts, to help the Commodores reach the College World Series final. He’s been a reliever exclusively since entering pro ball and posted a 3.33 ERA with 12.2 strikeouts per nine innings with high class A Rancho Cucamonga. Control has been an issue however, with Pfeifer also averaging 6.3 walk with the Quakes and a 5.9 BB/9 rate in his pro career overall. He’s been better against lefthanded hitters (.200 opponents’ average) than righthanders (.263) this season, and projects as a possible lefthanded relief specialist with a low-90s fastball, curveball and changeup in his arsenal.

Club (League)	Class	W	L	ERA	G	GS	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO
Great Lakes (MWL)	LoA	1	0	0.00	3	0	6	2	1	0	0	1	9
R. Cucamonga (CAL)	HiA	2	1	3.33	14	0	24	21	9	9	1	17	33

DODGERS ACQUIRE
Bud Norris, rhp
Age: 32

The California native was an above-average starter as recently as 2014, when he went 15-8, 3.65 with the Orioles and won the clinching Game 3 of the AL Division Series with 6 1/3 shutout innings. Since then it’s been a rocky road for Norris, who bounced back and forth between the rotation and the bullpen and posted a 5.58 ERA with the Orioles, Padres and Braves. He began 2016 in Atlanta’s rotation and lost his spot, but regained it in June and since then is 2-1, 2.15 in five starts. Increased usage of his 89-91 mph cutter has been the biggest change marking his recent turnaround. Opponents are batting just .194 against Norris in June, when he increased his cutter usage from 3.86 percent to 16.67 percent, per Brooks Baseball. If Norris can maintain his recent cutter-fueled success, he will provide much-needed rotation depth for the Dodgers, who currently have starters Kershaw, Alex Wood, Brett Anderson, and Brandon McCarthy all on the disabled list.

Club (League)	Class	W	L	ERA	G	GS	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO
Atlanta (NL)	MAJ	3	7	4.22	22	10	70	68	34	33	6	28	60

Dian Toscano, of
Age: 27

The Braves signed the Cuban defector to a four-year, $6 million contract in November off of Toscano’s success in Cuba’s Serie Nacional, where posted a .300/.403/.427 in five seasons with Naranjas de Villa Clara. However, Toscano hadn’t played competitively for three years at the time he signed, and the rust showed badly in Double-A Mississippi, where he hit .226/.310/.271 in 203 plate appearances. Defensively Toscano has played right field in every game but one for Mississippi. Toscano was pegged as a potential fourth outfielder when he signed, and the Dodgers will watch closely for a turnaround once he gets back in the rhythm of playing a full season of competitive baseball after three years away.