The second deal was announced after time was up. The Dodgers traded a power-hitting prospect with rising stock to Tampa Bay and for him, they got a reliever they hope will fill the shoes of players that never have been and never will be Dodgers. Adam Kolarek will have to be what Vazquez, Will Smith and Greene can’t be: a stable reliever for a team that needs bullpen stability.
Acquiring Kolarek is a deal typical of this time of year. The Dodgers have pursued smaller name bullpen arms at the deadline in the past and Kolarek, a former pawn in the Rays’ intricate bullpen usage system, has been reliable for Tampa Bay enough so that the trade, which had the Dodgers sending just one prospect to Tampa, was well worth it.