Newest Dodgers prospect's debut just made Reds look foolish all over again

The Cincinnati Reds need to stop making trades with the Los Angeles Dodgers. It almost never works out in the Reds' favor, and Adam Serwinowski's debut for the Dodgers' minor-league affiliate is just the latest example.

It should be noted, however, that the Reds did not deal directly with the Dodgers in this instance. Serwinowski was part of the trade package that brought right-hander Zack Littell to Cincinnati. The Tampa Bay Rays acquired Brian Van Belle from the Reds and shipped Serwinowski, Ben Rortvedt, and Paul Gervase to the Dodgers. LA then sent catcher Hunter Feduccia back to Tampa Bay to seal the seal.

So while technically, this trade was more of a three-team deal that Cincy could've worked out without Los Angeles' involvement, in the end, one of their prospects ended up in the Dodgers' organization. The results during his Dodgers' debut were about what you'd expect.

Adam Serwinowski's Dodgers debut just made Reds look clueless all over again

Serwinowski, pitching for the Dodgers' High-A affiliate, went 6⅓ innings and struck out nine batters while allowing just one hit. The left-hander walked four batters, but the nine punch outs were a career-best for the former Reds' southpaw.

LA is making a habit of grabbing the Reds' top prospects and turning them into something special. Mike Sirota, a player the Reds traded this past offseason as part of the Gavin Lux deal, has been stellar for the Dodgers this season.

The outfielder prospect — something the Reds could use right about now — is now among the top-100 in all of baseball according to MLB Pipeline and hitting .333/.452/.616 on the season. The Northeastern alum was the Reds' third-round draft pick last season, and is sure to become one of the next great Dodgers' stars.

Reds fans can't forget the trade the two teams pulled off back in December of 2018. Cincinnati acquired Yasiel Puig, Matt Kemp, Alex Wood, and Kyle Farmer for Homer Bailey, Jeter Downs, and Josiah Gray. Puig was traded at the 2019 deadline, Kemp was released before June, Wood only made seven starts, and Farmer became a serviceable big-league utility player.

Though Bailey was let go before throwing a single pitch for Dodgers, Downs was part of a franchise-altering trade that brought Mookie Betts to LA and Gray was a major piece of the mega-deal at the 2021 trade deadline that helped Los Angeles acquire Max Scherzer and Trea Turner.

Much like teams are told not to trade with the Rays for fear of being fleeced, perhaps it's time for the Reds to add the Dodgers to the list of organizations they no longer do business with. The last thing teams need to do is make help LA, who already has unlimited resources, better.

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