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O's get five prospects for Machado

Dodgers send Diaz, Kremer, Bannon, Pop, Valera east
Yusniel Diaz is hitting .429/.538/.690 with two homers and seven RBIs in 11 games in July. (Shane Roper/MiLB.com)
July 18, 2018

The Orioles completed the much-anticipated Manny Machado trade with the Dodgers on Wednesday, acquiring outfielder Yusniel Díaz, right-hander Dean Kremer, third baseman Rylan Bannon and two other prospects.Also going to Baltimore for the four-time All-Star are infielder Breyvic Valera and right-handed reliever Zach Pop, according to multiple reports. Diaz, Kremer,

The Orioles completed the much-anticipated Manny Machado trade with the Dodgers on Wednesday, acquiring outfielder Yusniel Díaz, right-hander Dean Kremer, third baseman Rylan Bannon and two other prospects.
Also going to Baltimore for the four-time All-Star are infielder Breyvic Valera and right-handed reliever Zach Pop, according to multiple reports. Diaz, Kremer, Bannon and Pop were assigned to Double-A Bowie, while Valera will report to Triple-A Norfolk.
"We like the depth of the Dodgers' package, we like the quality of the Dodgers package, and we like Yusniel Diaz," Orioles executive vice president of baseball operations Dan Duquette told MLB.com.

Ranked 84th overall by MLB Pipeline, Diaz is the top prospect involved in the deal. The 21-year-old Cuban hit .314/.428/.477 with six homers, four triples, 10 doubles and 30 RBIs in 59 games with Double-A Tulsa. He ranks second in the Texas League in on-base percentage and eighth in batting.
"He stays in the middle of the field well," Drillers manager Scott Hennessey said earlier this month after Diaz homered on a four-hit night. "And when he stays in the middle of the field, that's what he is. He's a gap-to-gap hitter with power to the gaps and power to center field. For the most part all year, that's what he's done. He hasn't tried to pull balls or hook balls like last year. He's become a better hitter."
Kremer was ranked 28th among Dodgers prospects. The 22-year-old hasn't pitched since making a spectacular Double-A debut on July 5, when he tossed a seven-inning three-hit shutout and matched his career high with 11 strikeouts. He moved up a level after going 5-3 with a 3.30 ERA, 1.18 WHIP and .230 opponents' batting average in 16 starts in the hitter-friendly California League. 
The UNLV product was selected in the 14th round of the 2016 Draft.
A 2017 eighth-round pick out of Xavier, Bannon was the Dodgers' No. 27 prospect. He jumped to Class A Advanced Rancho Cucamonga to start the season and leads the California League with a .402 on-base percentage, .559 slugging percentage, 20 homers and 59 walks while ranking second with 61 RBIs and 58 runs scored.

Bannon's glove and throwing arm are his best tools, however, as he shows solid range in every direction with soft hands at the hot corner. He's also shown defensive versatility by starting 20 games at second base for the Quakes.
Pop was drafted one round earlier than Bannon and started this season with Class A Great Lakes before earning to promotion to Rancho Cucamonga in May. The 21-year-old posted a 0.33 ERA in 19 appearances out of the Quakes bullpen and struck out 23 batters against six walks in 27 innings. He was promoted to Double-A Tulsa on Monday but had yet to appear in a game for the Drillers.
The Dodgers acquired Valera from the Cardinals in April for outfielder Johan Mieses and he owned a .284/.350/.433 slash line with six homers, 25 RBIs and 36 runs scored in 56 games at Triple-A Oklahoma City. The 26-year-old second baseman has batted .172/.273/.172 during four brief stints in the Majors this season.
"Clubs have to make the hard decisions," Duquette told MLB.com, "and when you do that, you can be rewarded in the future."

Daren Smith is an editor for MiLB.com. Chris Tripodi is a producer for MiLB.com. Follow him on Twitter @christripodi.