A lot of little LAD transactions may not look extraordinary, but could prove to be very impactful with the team.
First for me is signing RHRP Evan Phillips, for a cool $6.5MM for August/September/Playoffs. I have zero problem with signing Phillips or the $$$. What I was dismayed about was the timing of the deal. They could have waited two days until the LAD pitchers and catchers reported, and then put Brock Stewart on the 60 day IL giving them an open 40 man spot. Instead the Dodgers decided to DFA Ben Rortvedt.
Rortvedt has subsequently been picked up off waivers by the Mets. Now the Dodgers best option for emergency catcher is Chuckie Robinson, Seby Zavala, or Eliezer Alfonzo. I assume they are counting on Will Smith and Dalton Rushing not getting injured. Who knows, maybe the Padres will get tired of Luis Campusano.
When Rortvedt was picked up off waivers by the Dodgers, the Dodgers designated Anthony Banda for assignment. Banda was a very useful middle inning reliever who had two good years with LAD. At least the Dodgers were able to get $500K international bonus pool $$$ in a trade with Minnesota for Banda.
The net result of signing Evan Phillips on February 11 instead of February 13 was the loss of Anthony Banda and the gain of $500K in international bonus pool $$$. I am okay with that. The Dodgers have multiple competent relievers including multiple LHRP options.
Next, the signing of 34 year old super utility player, Kiké Hernández, for $4.5MM. It was not surprising that the Dodgers signed Kiké, although perhaps it should have. Last year his OPS by month were as follows:
- March/April – .691 in 72 PA
- May – .824 in 55 PA
- June – .439 in 50 PA
- July – .000 in 9 PA
- August – .485 in 17 PA
- September – .650 in 53 PA
For the year he hit .203/.253/.366/.621, with a career worst K% of 26.6%. And while he is known as the LAD version of Mr. October, his post season was not very good. After a sterling wild card series he had a poor NLDS, a respectable NLCS, and a horrid WS. In 29 WS PA, Kiké hit .179/.172/.286/.458. He did hit a meaningless solo HR in the 6-1 loss in WS Game 5, but he struck out 15 times in those 29 PA, and no walks. He did have a SF.
Now that he is signed, what could the Dodgers expect? First, he is not expected to be available until mid-season, per Brandon Gomes. Nut when he does arrive, the Dodgers will get a plus defender in multiple positions and an occasional big hit. He is a great clubhouse guy, and will be a good bench/role player. He only needs to get hot in October, so maybe he could become a David Freese. It seems like a reasonable risk. He needs one big fly in a critical time in a WS game. Could happen.
If anyone had any doubts that Max Muncy was going to finish his career with the Dodgers, AF.BG dashed those when Max got a one year extension for $7MM with a $10MM club option for 2028 with a $3MM buyout, making it a true $10MM one year extension. At the end of this year, Max becomes a 10-5 guy so he cannot be traded without his approval. This is what Max has been underselling his talents for…to finish his career with the Dodgers.
From a baseball viewpoint this is still an outstanding signing. Last year with limited PA (388), he still put up excellent numbers: .243/.376/.470/.846, 19 HR, 64 RBI, 138 OPS+, and a 3.6 bWAR. He still has slug and an outstanding OBP. LAD has more than enough infielders to take Max out for the late innings. He is the longest tenured Dodger on the roster. Kiké and Brock Stewart were both on the 2018 roster with Max, but there tenure was interrupted via FA and trade. To have a veteran like Max who will eventually give way more and more to father time, what a fantastic bench player.
If the Dodgers had a worthy prospect capable of matching what Max is capable of putting up, he would be on the roster. I am still hopeful for Alex Freeland, but with the extension, really how does LAD management feel?
We have now learned that Tommy Edman will start the season on the IL. Edman was penciled in as the regular 2B, where he does have a GG, and showed it off in the WS.
Roberts mentioned Miguel Rojas, Alex Freeland, and Hyeseong Kim as candidates to pick up work at second base. They also signed light hitting, good to excellent glove utility infielder, 31 year old Santiago Espinal to a MiLB contract. I assume he will be with Ryan Fitzgerald and Austin Gauthier on the OKC roster. Yes, still another utility infielder. You can add Noah Miller to that list.
When asked specifically who would be at 2B in Edman’s absence, Doc responded;
“I think Hyeseong’s in the mix, we’ve got [Santiago] Espinal, obviously Miggy Ro is going to do some things over there, Freeland certainly in the mix, so we’re got some nice options,” Roberts said.
One has to figure that Kim has the inside track on 2B, but it will probably come down to who has the better ST, Kim or Freeland. Roberts noted that Kim and Freeland are essentially competing for the same role on the 26-man roster to start the season. As it stands, as long as Edman is out, there is a place on the roster for both Kim and Freeland. Or is there?
Many consider Edman to be the backup CF for Pages, especially late in the game when Pages can be moved to LF for Teo. Are the Dodgers convinced that Kim can play CF? Hopefully Kim will get a chance to play CF once he returns from the WBC. But others are not convinced and that is why some are speculating that Mike Siani has a chance to break camp as a 5th OF, capable of elite CF defense late in the game. That would necessarily mean that either Kim or Freeland has a ticket back to OKC.
I am not one who follows that logic because I still believe that Alex Call can play a competent CF. I may be alone with that thought, but I do have it. We know that Doc is comfortable putting Call in LF for defensive purposes late in the game. Will he put him in CF?
With Edman healthy, there is room for only Kim or Freeland on the 26-man. I am an unapologetic fan of Alex Freeland, and am pulling for him, I do acknowledge that he is an underdog for that role. So what should LAD do with Freeland? It was January 11, 2024 when AF/BG traded Michael Busch to the Cubs for LHP Jackson Ferris and OF Zyhir Hope. Both advanced prospects for their age. Might they do the same for Freeland? He is a top 100 prospect as was Busch, but with a different skill set. Busch always had pop and he is displaying that with the Cubs. Freeland may not be as hyped as Matt Shaw, but he is not far behind. He is a good defensive infielder, and sure he could go back to OKC and work on 3B defense rather than SS/2B. But as a fan, I would like to see him get a chance at MLB.
Another player I am going to watch a lot in ST is Tanner Scott. He was trashed by the media and fans in 2025, and not undeserved. But I have stated that I still believe he is a talented LHRP and IMO he will be shutting up his critics this year.
“Tanner Scott looked fantastic,” Roberts said. “It’s one day, but the stuff, the delivery was as good as I’ve seen from him and that includes all of last year.”
“…He had a lot of stuff going on internally, with his body, that we addressed at the end of the season, so I think that might have bled into some cleaning up of some mechanics, but the ball was coming out differently than I remember it.”
One other pitching matchup that I am interested in following is Gavin Stone vs. River Ryan. As a SP, Ryan has the higher ceiling, but Stone has the higher floor. Ryan picks up more ceiling with his perceived ability to be a legit late inning high leverage reliever. Stone threw live BP and apparently looked good. It is going to be how his shoulder responds in the days following the live BP. Ryan threw a bullpen session with AF and BG monitoring.
We do not know where the rotation will be coming out of ST. It is clear that Blake Snell may not be able to start the season in the rotation, but he does not have the same statement about starting the season on the IL that Edman got. We also do not know how much Yoshinobu Yamamoto will be curtailed at the beginning of the season.
Pure speculation on my part, but I have to believe that LHP Justin Wrobleski will assume Snell’s spot in the rotation, at least in the beginning. The Dodgers can monitor Ryan’s and Stone’s innings at OKC. But they will not be facing MLB hitters or throwing to MLB catchers.
Espinal is not the only recently signed player to a MiLB contract. One of the players the Dodgers were keying in on at the 2017 draft was Keston Hiura who was a terrific hitter at UC Irvine. But Hiura was drafted by the Brewers in the first round (9th overall), and the Dodgers shifted their sights to Jeren Kendall (23rd overall). Hiura has had a MLB career, such as it is, while Kendall flamed out in AA. Keston is a local product, playing his high school at Valencia High School in Valencia. I assume that Hiura is now playing for his hometown team, and becomes the favorite to playing 1B at OKC. Outside of pitching, there is not a lot of true MLB prospect talent at OKC. With all candor, the same is true at AA with the exception of the five OF and less pitching.
I was happy to see that CT3 got a MiLB deal with LAA, and I hope he is able to make the most of it.
The Mets now have two former LAD catchers vying against Kevin Parada for playing time with the Mets AAA team, Ben Rortvedt and Austin Barnes. That is two excellent game management catchers at AAA for NYM.
Finally, I am first and foremost a Dodgers fan. But I am also a baseball fan (professional and amateur). I have always been that way. Growing up, I read everything I could find on baseball and the players. I became a Baltimore Orioles fan because of Brooks Robinson. I wore #5 wherever I could, and quickly became a Jim Lefebvre, Ken McMullin, and Ted Sizemore fans as they wore #5 for LAD from 1965 to 1976.
The other non-Dodger player I grew up idolizing was Roberto Clemente, and I became a huge Pirates fan. From Vernon Law, Bob Friend, Bob Veale, Al McBean, Bill Mazeroski, Dick Groat, Smokey Burgess, Bob Skinner, Bill Virdon, Donn Clendenon…and of course one of the best relievers of his time, Elroy Face. I can still remember Vin Sculley telling us the Bullpen Baron was coming in to relieve Vernon Law, Bob Friend,,, I was reminded of my early baseball collection of Pirates when I read of the passing of Face. He was 8 days shy of his 98th birthday. I am convinced that the character of Elroy Jetson was aptly named because one of William Hanna or Joseph Barbera was a Pirates fan.
Elroy Face will forever be a favorite of mine. RIP Elroy.
Watched a video of Vesia striking out Ohtani, he just simply overpowered him. He looked really good. Of course, I have gotten very used to seeing Ohtani strike out;…….a lot.
he sux
No, he doesn’t suck, he just strikes out way too much for my taste. LA has a bunch of guys that do that. I dislike strikeouts period.
It’s not the total, it’s when he misses the ball by 2 feet that bothers me the most
Yes, that is extremely hard to watch.
I am with you on the strikeouts. They suck. Players these days don’t change their approach with 2 strikes. Still swinging for the fence every pitch.
I could see Espinal making the team over Freeland and Kim. More MLB experience, good glove, bat is ok.
So much for getting younger with the roster. With Espinal at 31 and Kike at 34 that would slow play Kim at 27 and Freeland at 24.
How many utility guys do you need?
My point exactly plus the fact that neither Kike nor Edman is expected back before May, with Kike most likely not back before the All-Star break. Kike turns 35in August.
He slugged .282 last year and his bat is ok?
.262 career hitter. He is not a homer guy. .262 is very respectable.
Keekay did end Game 6 with a defensive gem.
Yes he did, but most left fielders could have made that play. Call is certainly capable of that.
Yes, most could have IF they’d been coached to play shallow enough but reports were that Kiké just had a feeling and did it on his own. If that’s true that can’t be coached, it is post season experience.
Not true, Call is a very experienced outfielder who would know you don’t play a lefty hitter like Giminez deep. Call is speedier than Kike so he could have easily made that play. Instinct is not always right, Kike playing shallow almost cost them the series. Pages saved his butt with a great catch. Kike would not have made that catch.
I am an Alex Call fan, and I am not certain that Call makes the play that Kiké made. Regardless, Kiké made it. It was a stupid base running error by Addison Barger that made the play possible.
We can play that game with other defensive gems. Does Miggy Ro make those plays at 2B that Edman made? Or does Edman make the throw to the plate that Miggy Ro did? Would Edman have made the pick at 2B on the Kiké DP throw that Miggy Ro did? We do not have to guess what might have happened. We know what did happen.
As far as the Pages catch over Kiké, I am not as certain as you that Kiké does not catch that ball. Kiké’s glove was underneath the ball before he got posterized (his word) by Pages. Here is what Kiké had to say about the play.
“I thought we lost. I took a bad jump because Ernie Clement took that half-swing thing, and it looked, from left field, like it was going to bounce. So I figured he’s going to dump another one in front of me like he did seven times. So I half-step in and then I’m like, ‘Oh, no. This ball is really far away from me.’
“So I’m running full speed, World Series on the line, and I’m like, ‘I need to catch this. If I’ve got to run through a wall, I’ll run through a wall.’ And then I’m like, ‘Alright, I got it.’ I’m slowing down and I’m about to pull a Willie Mays catch, and out of nowhere I got posterized.
“My first thought was I had it, he jumped over me, now we lost. So I’m on the ground and I hear silence. But I think it’s because my brain is protecting me from heartbreak and we had just lost the World Series. Then Pages came and asked me, ‘Are you OK?’ I was like, ‘Forget about me. Did you catch it?’ He goes, ‘Yeah,’ and I was like, ‘Oh, yeah! Let’s go!’”
People can say he would not have made the catch, while I believe he would have. But we will never know if Kiké makes that catch, because we know that Pages did. Kiké is a Dodger, and he will play excellent defense in LF, 2B, 3B, and 1B. Maybe not so much at P. He may not always come through, but I am not betting against Kiké in the clutch. At $4.5MM, I am down with that contract, even if his season starts after the All Star Break.
Call may be experienced but given he was new to the team, I seriously doubt he would have disregarded where the club told him to play.
As for the Pages catch, Hernandez was in line to catch the ball. Whether he would have held onto it after running head on into the wall is another matter.
I know you’re on record as feeling Hernandez’s time has come and gone. Clearly, the Dodgers’s front office feels differently. We’ll all see when he returns whether or not it was a good move.
Yes, we will. Kike is who he is. Sometimes I just call em as I see em, and I do not like the idea of a guy with his skills blocking the kids.
Great early morning read Jeff. Thank you.
“His boy Elroy”. I made that connection as a kid. 18-1 as a reliever. Who does that? Nobody, thats who. 5’8”, 155 pounds. His signature pitch was a fork ball. I experimented with that pitch as a 12 year old because of him. Couldn’t do it. I too was a fan of Elroy Face.
I look forward to seeing how the depth of this 40 man plays out in the early stages of the season. Spring Training will be especially watchable this year. I’m sorry I won’t be able to attend. I very much enjoyed watching back field drills the years I was able to get down there.
I have my preferences in how it might shake out. It’s no secret I am a Hyeseong Kim fan. Speed and defense is something I have always admired. I also believe there is untapped power in bat, but, for now, just get on base Comet.
When can you see the backfield drills? Are they after that days game? When I have been at ST they run out take bp and leave. Then a little later there is the game, then?
In Vero Beach, I would stay after the game to watch fielding drills. Most of the players would leave for the showers but some stayed for additional drills. There were hitters that couldn’t read fly balls and weaker hitters who were there because they were good gloves. Watching them take turns really showed how bad many hit first players were at fielding in comparison
There are multiple back fields where players work on fundamentals. I have memories of fungo drills involving minor leaguers and first stringers taking both infield and outfield. I watched Rafael Furcal, Dee Gordon and Juan Castro field ground balls, They were amazing. I saw Manny Ramirez, Matt Kemp and Puig work cut off drills. Manny was better than I thought he would be. I watched Matt Kemp attack the center field batter’s eye. He was trying to hit the ball over it. Came close. I watched Andre Ethier and Yasiel Puig have a home run contest going left, right, center and back again. They went at for a while then finally they both actually did it, and were jumping around laughing high fiving each other. It was quite a show.I believe Timmons might have been there with me watching it.
To watch Major League (and minor league players) work on skills, over and over for several minutes at a time when hardly anyone is around was a real joy for me. They are the best in the world. I loved watching them move. I miss it.
I’m with you Badger. Last year I had the passes that allowed me to get into more restricted areas at Camelback Ranch where the infielders were taking “live fungoes” at game speed and turning double plays. It was a treat.
It also is way easier to see the little mechanical differences between average infielders and ones with those special skills. Graduate level hands and feet with unflappable confidence..
Not to be obsessed with Miggy Ro, but that’s where I really fell in love with his actions. His great feet get him into a position to get throws off quickly and his hands and transfer are a thing of beauty. I have watched him work with Lux and later Mookie. His work on catch and transfer helped Lux’s throwing and Mookie isn’t shy about praising Miggy for he’s improvements.
It’s just a treat to watch the best practice their craft.
I used to love watching batting practice when I went to Dodger Stadium. They do it now before the gates are open.
They are before the games. You usually can see them in the mornings.
Walker’s found a new home down in SD. Minor League though. Surprising.
He has a slight chance of sticking, they are really short on quality starting pitching and Darvish will miss the entire season and is considering retirement,
Bueler to the Padres. Seems like a good low cost risk for the Puds.
Is Julio Urias next???
You know the old saying, put a fork in it, Elroy did it. Funny how many old Pirate teams we enjoyed compared to what the franchise gives us now
So True!!!
Pablo Lopez of the Twins has a torn UCL and will most likely miss the rest of the year. Mike Trout prefers to move back to CF.
For Phil. A few minutes of Miggy Ro doing drills at ST.
Can I watch it?
It just got harder for MLB and MLBPA to get an agreement on salary cap. Tony Clark just stepped down as MLBPA Executive Director, and Bruce Meyer is expected to assume the role at least in the interim. Meyer is cut from the same cloth as Donald Fehr and Marvin Miller. He will not back down. With Machado and Harper voicing their positive opinions on LAD spending, the players are setting up for a long fight. MLB is going to have to find another way of trying to improve competitive balance.
The players would be foolish to agree to anything other than a 2 year extension of the current contract. With Manfred trying to combine the television rights into one package. The players have no idea what kind of revenue the broadcast rights are going to generate and should not get locked into a long term deal without that information.