Portland Timbers Bolster Defense, Acquire Lovel Palmer, Mike Chabala

Like any trade involving allocation money, the real winners and losers are hard to assess. The Dynamo are rumored to have received $150,000 in allocation money, nearly enough to cover the entire cost of a midseason Designated Player. If true, the trade makes a lot of sense for both parties.

The biggest asset to move in either direction is probably Palmer, although it’s unclear where he’ll play. Most of his career has been spent as a box-to-box midfielder and that’s one thing the Timbers seem to have plenty of. He has played some at center back for the Jamaican national team, and that could be where John Spencer envisions him with the Timbers.