If ever anyone was to think that the Los Angeles Dodgers had enough pitchers, think again. With one day to go until the 2025 MLB Trade Deadline, a new rumor attaches them to the closer of the Tampa Bay Rays, a team whose staff the Dodgers have been plundering over the last few seasons.
Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic was the first to report that the Dodgers have made enquiries with the Rays about Pete Fairbanks, a player whose name is on the market for the second consecutive summer. The 31-year-old right hander has previously been linked to both the New York Yankees and Philadelphia Phillies, amongst other teams, and with the Rays struggling to only a .500 record in their second consecutive uncompetitive season, Fairbanks is thought to be available.
If he is, the Dodgers will be ringing, as they have needed quality pitching all season.
Dodger’s Pitching Woes In 2025
The Dodgers’ season has been severely hampered by one of the more severe injury crises in recent memory. At one point, as many as 14 different Dodgers pitchers were on the disabled list – mostly the 60-day version – including former Rays starters Tyler Glasnow and Blake Snell.
Things are slightly improved, in the sense that there are now only eleven arms on the injured list – that is, if “only” is not too silly of a word. Yet with one of them being the team’s primary closer Evan Phillips being one of them – ruled out for the remainder of the season and beyond due to Timmy John surgery – there is a distinct high-leverage vacancy that the Dodgers would still like to fill.
The Dodgers previously picked up a candidate for the role when they acquired Alexis Diaz from the Cincinnati Reds as a reclamation project earlier in the season. But if Diaz is going to get back to his once-prolific best, it is going to take a while longer yet, as he has currently pitched only big league three innings for the Dodgers, while walking more than a batter per inning in the minors.
With Jhoan Duran reportedly on the move to the Phillies, one potential Fairbanks suitor is off the market. But so too is one potential bullpen target. If the Dodgers are going to make their move, they might find the price has gone up.
Rays Have Reason To Change
The Rays are awkwardly positioned. They are too good to bottom out, yet not good enough to be in the pennant race. They approach the deadline on the back of their worst month of the season by a large margin, and are trying to nibble around the edges of the market by buying low on team-controlled arms (Bryan Baker from the Baltimore Orioles, Nick Fortes from the Miami Marlins) while selling on their veterans (Danny Jansen to the Milwaukee Brewers).
Fairbanks has a $7 million contract option for next season, and thus the Rays do not have to sell him, even if they are out of contention. Furthermore, their bullpen struggles over the past six weeks might dissuade them from trading one of their only two reliable high-leverage arms (the other being former Dodger, Garrett Cleavinger).
Fairbanks, however, has also entered the back nine of his career. Turning 31 years of age before the start of next season and with his strikeout rate continuing to dwindle, the returns from him will likely diminish as the contract size continues to grow. Because they are better and richer, the Dodgers will stand to benefit from that more than the Rays, and can more easily accommodate it. It makes more sense for the Rays to move Pete Fairbanks than to keep him, and if they do, with the Phillies seemingly out of the running, the Dodgers become the next perfect fit.
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