Dodgers could cut ties with 25-year-old fireballer in surprise trade with Astros

Could the Los Angeles Dodgers orchestrate an early-season starting pitching shakeup in Major League Baseball?

Entering the season, the Dodgers' rotation was the envy of everyone around MLB. Superstars Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and Roki Sasaki highlight a group that eventually expects to welcome back Shohei Ohtani and Clayton Kershaw.

It's tough to break into that rotation as a young pitcher, and last season, promising righty Bobby Miller went through some prolonged struggles. After posting an 8.52 ERA in 13 big-league starts, Miller began this season at Triple-A.

Miller, who turns 26 on Saturday, still has the potential to be a productive big-league starter. The main question, at this point, is whether he'll get that chance again with the Dodgers or is instead traded to a team with more openings on their pitching depth chart.

On Thursday, Athlon's Michael Hanich proposed that the Dodgers could ship Miller to the Houston Astros, whose rotation has begun the year on a shaky note, to re-stock their farm system.

"The Dodgers need to start developing some young stars. They can start by seeing what they could get from sending Miller to the Astros," Hanich wrote.

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"Miller can get a new start with a Houston team that still has championship-contending goals despite some early-season struggles."

The Astros have excelled at getting the most from their young pitchers in years past, and Miller could meet the same fate if given the chance to hold down a rotation spot in Houston. But the Dodgers have seen how good he can be at his best, so they'd know they were risking losing out on a quality starter by making the move.

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