Reaction to the Dodgers trading for Lance Lynn & Joe Kelly

The Dodgers’ third trade before the August 1 deadline was their biggest yet, acquiring pitchers Lance Lynn and Joe Kelly from the White Sox, adding a starting pitcher and a relief pitcher to a team in search of arms.

Headed to Chicago were outfielder Trayce Thompson, who can return from the 60-day injured list next week, plus minor league pitchers Nick Nastrini and Jordan Leasure.

To make room on the 40-man roster, the Dodgers designated infielder Eddys Leonard and pitcher Justin Bruihl for assignment.

Here’s some reaction to the deal, from inside the team and elsewhere.

Lynn’s 6.47 ERA is highest among qualified pitchers is highest in the majors, but the Dodgers are confident he can turn things around.

Here’s general manager Brandon Gomes, in Bill Plunkett’s trade recap in the Orange County Register:

“A lot of the under-the-hood stuff is really strong – high strikeouts, low walks,” Gomes said.

“Outside of the batted-ball stuff, his under-the-hood stuff is not that much different than it’s been in the past. As well as doing some digging, we think there’s some suggestions we have on pitch usage that should be helpful. So getting him in our environment with our pitching guys and the energy that guys will have around him is really exciting.”

More from Gomes, on the Dodgers three trades so far, including adding right-handed hitters Kiké Hernández and Amed Rosario, from Fabian Ardaya at The Athletic:

“I think we’re always trying to figure out true talent level,” Dodgers general manager Brandon Gomes said Friday after the club’s latest deal. “Looking at the underlying numbers is helpful in that. … We feel if the players have buy-in, which the players definitely do with our staff, we’ll get the best out of them and get to that true talent level.”

Keith Law at The Athletic called the White Sox return “adequate,” saying of Nastrini, “Either way I love the upside play here and see a high-value reliever if he can’t turn that corner and stay in the rotation.”

Ben Clemens at FanGraphs thinks Lynn and Kelly are a good match for the Dodgers, saying of Lynn, “I’m not expecting a ton out of him, but bulk innings with a low-4.00s ERA seems like something the Dodgers could really use down the stretch.”

R.J. Anderson at CBS Sports thinks the Dodgers can coax better performance out of Lynn, grading the trade an A for Los Angeles in total. Says Anderson: “That’s because there’s a multilayered argument in favor of Lynn having a better finish than start to the season. It begins with a tweak to his pitch mix, extends to sustainability, and ends with aspects outside of his realm of control.”

Andy McCullogh at The Athletic graded the Lynn/Kelly trade a B for the Dodgers, opening with this line: “The Dodgers have revealed their strategy for this deadline: Acquire players who were pretty good in 2021.”