The Dodgers once had a glut in their outfield, now they could be parting ways with yet another piece of that unit.
Yasiel Puig has been a polarizing figure during his time in Los Angeles, but come the Aug. 1 non-waiver MLB trade deadline, he could be on the move.
Los Angeles is reportedly open to moving the outfielder if the right deal takes shape prior to the deadline, according to Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports.
Puig, 25, has battled through an up-and-down season and has slashed .256/.318/.376 through 76 games entering Wednesday with seven homers and 32 RBIs. Puig was signed by the Dodgers in 2012 and owns a .287/.362/.467 slash line through four seasons with the club with 53 homers and 181 RBIs.
There has been plenty of controversy surrounding Puig during his tenure with the Dodgers, which could be one of the reasons the club is looking to move on from him. Los Angeles already cut ties with one outfielder, Carl Crawford, who was released back in June despite having $35 million left on his deal, due to abysmal production, which includes a .185 batting average.
If the Dodgers were to move Puig, they would certainly need to replace him despite formerly having a surplus of talent in the outfield. Andre Ethier (fractured tibia), Trayce Thompson (lower-back) and Enrique Hernandez (ribs) remain on the diabled list.
The Dodgers (53-42) enter Wednesday 4.5 games behind the first-place Giants (57-37) in the NL West and own a one-game lead over the Marlins (51-42) for the top NL Wild Card spot. Los Angeles sustained some bad news for its playoff push when it opted to shut down Clayton Kershaw amid back issues.
Rosenthal noted that the Dodgers could plan to trade for Reds outfieler Jay Bruce or A's outfielder Josh Reddick if they decide to move Puig. Cincinnati (35-59) and Oakland (42-52) are both currently last in their respective divisions.
Bruce, 29, is slashing .263/.315/.553 this season with 19 homers and 66 RBIs in 88 games. He's under contract through this season, but has a team option for 2017. Reddick, 29, will hit free agency at the end of the season, and is hitting .298/.378/.439 with six homers and 23 RBIs in 58 games.
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