Officially, Shohei Ohtani is still not a member of the Los Angeles Dodgers. Well, that said, there is no doubt that the situation will normalize in the coming days, or even hours.
Moreover, the Californian team has just completed a transaction in this direction.
Indeed, the New York Yankees are sending infield prospect Trey Sweeney to the Dodgers in exchange for left-handed pitcher Victor Gonzalez and infield prospect Jorbit Vivas, according to Alden Gonzalez of the ESPN network.
This deal is intended to open two spots on Los Angeles' 40-man roster so that the Japanese prodigy and Joe Kelly can crack the roster.
For their part, the Bombardiers got their hands on a new left-handed reliever in Gonzalez, who has a career earned run average of 3.22. The 28-year-old will replace Wandy Peralta, the Bronx's go-to left-handed reliever for the past few seasons who is currently free.
As for Vivas, he maintained a .269 batting average with 13 home runs in 135 games between the AA and AAA levels in 2023. The 22-year-old was a top-10 prospect for the Dodgers, as was Sweeney at the Yankees.
The latter, 23, was the 20th pick in the 2021 draft and posted a .252 batting average with 13 home runs in 100 games in Double-A last season.
This exchange will have no impact on the pursuit of Nippon Yoshinobu Yamamoto by the two organizations involved. But it will make Ohtani's signing official at the bottom of a $700 million pact with the Dodgers.
