If Elly De La Cruz is traded this offseason, the Los Angeles Dodgers should be one of the first teams picking up the phone.

While it seems like the Dodgers already spend the most money, already have the most stacked roster, and everything in between, that clearly wasn't enough to win a third consecutive World Series.

The Cincinnati Reds were always hesitant about moving on from De La Cruz, and for good reason, but suddenly, The Athletic's Jim Bowden believes his name is on the chopping block.

During a recent interview with 97.1 The Fan's Doug McKain, Bowden proposed a blockbuster that would see the Reds making a move with the Dodgers this offseason.

Remember, this is only the superstar's first year of arbitration. De La Cruz is a guy with three more years of team control, so that would further extend the Dodgers' window if they'd be able to pull off a move like this.

To no surprise, Scott Boras is De La Cruz's agent, and Bowden mentioned the fact that they already turned down a deal with the Reds that would've topped Joey Votto's 10-year, $225 million contract.

"If you're not going to sign Elly De La Cruz, then trade him and get a huge package back and build and do what Milwaukee and Tampa Bay do," Bowden suggested. He talked about the reigning World Series champions, the Milwaukee Brewers, and how they aren't afraid to move on from superstars like Corbin Burnes or Freddy Peralta.

Bowden said this is a trade that "makes sense" for the Dodgers as they need to be thinking about their next "young, superstar player."

He then called De La Cruz "a level ahead" of Josue De Paula, but that makes perfect sense as De Paula is only 21 years old and just made his MLB debut this past season.

De La Cruz has been around the block already, having played almost four years with 100+ games. The shortstop has tremendous defensive upside, and he's been a 5.0+ WAR player in two of his last three seasons.

One of the main things with the Dodgers has been their signing veteran free agents in the offseason, and while that helps, no doubt, they don't really have that young core to build around once all of these other contracts expire.

With the 2027 season looming, a dynamic duo of De Paula and De La Cruz could wreak havoc on the league.