It seems Austin Barnes time as a player for the Dodgers has come to an end. Barnes was DFAd Wednesday to make room for L.A.’s top prospect, Dalton Rushing. But he does not leave without having had some seminal moments on the field for the Dodgers. Austin was obtained in a trade with Miami that included Kike, Andrew Heaney, and Chris Hatcher. L.A. sent Miguel Rojas, Dee Gordon, Dan Haren and cash to Miami in the trade. 
Heaney was immediately flipped to the Angels in the Howie Kendrick trade. Barnes went to Oklahoma City to open the 2015 season and appeared in 81 games for them. He was called up to the Dodgers later in the season and got into 20 games. A. J. Ellis and Grandal were the Dodgers 1-2 behind the plate until Ellis was traded to the Phillies in August of 2016 for Carrlos Ruiz. While Barnes did not impress at the major league level in 2016, he had an excellent 81 games for OKC batting .315 with 9 homers and 42 driven in. He also swiped 12 bags and was caught just twice. His OPS was .869, and he struck out just 1 more time than he walked, 36-35. 
In 2017, he was installed as Grandal’s backup. In his first full season in the majors, Barnes batted a very respectable .289, he slugged 8 homers and drove in 38 runs in 102 games. He stole 4 bases and was caught once. He also played second base in 21 games and third in 1. He replaced Grandal as the starting catcher in the postseason, hitting .500 against Arizona in the LDS with a homer and 3 driven in. He did not fare as well in the LCS or World Series.
He was Grandal’s caddy again in 2018. His BA dropped to .205. He appeared in 5 of the 7 playoff games against the Brewers and made an appearance in all 5 World Series games against Boston. In 2019 his BA was .204, but he hit 5 homers and drove in 25. He was now Will Smith’s caddy. He did not appear in any of the playoff games with the Nats. In 2020, Barnes hit .244 in 29 games. He caught one game in the win over Milwaukee, going 2-3. He caught one game in the win over the Padres going 2-2. He was in three games against the Braves going 2-7. In the World Series, He played in 5 games, he had 2 hits, and both were important. He had a clutch sac bunt in game three and then hit a 2-run homer. In game six, he knocked Blake Snell out of the game with a single. He then scored on Bett’s double.
Oct 27, 2020; Arlington, Texas, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers relief pitcher Julio Urias (7) and catcher Austin Barnes (15) celebrate defeating the Tampa Bay Rays in game six of the 2020 World Series at Globe Life Field.
He caught the entire game and threw his hands in the air as Urias struck out Willy Adames. In the ensuing years, he has had little opportunity to contribute to the postseason with Roberts using Smith for the bulk of the catching. He had zero at bats and appeared in just one game in last year’s World Series. He went 2-3 in the 23 LDS against the Padres; those were his last postseason hits.
That does not mean he has not had some big moments during the season. In August of 23, Barnes hit his first homer of the year in the 8th inning, giving the Dodgers a 1-0 win over Milwaukee. It was their 11th win in a row. Barnes has been a valuable member of the Dodgers for the last 11 years. It will take a little while to get used to not seeing him on the field in Dodger Blue. But thanks for the memory’s Barnsey, we enjoyed the ride, and you will forever have that World Series clinching memory.
MiLB GAME SUMMARY REPORTS
Round Rock Express (Texas) 6 – OKC Comets 5
The Round Rock Express scored twice in the bottom of the 10th inning to beat the Oklahoma City Comets, 6-5. The Comets trailed, 4-0, entering the sixth inning before scoring the game’s next five runs. Justin Dean and Michael Chavis both homered in the sixth inning to total three runs and cut the Express lead to 4-3. Nick Senzel led off the seventh inning with another homer to even the score.
Justin Dean breaks the team's drought with a homer to center field! pic.twitter.com/Wo0WlzEnYO
— Oklahoma City Comets (@OKC_comets) May 16, 2025
When Michael Chavis hits 'em, there's usually little doubt. pic.twitter.com/BLrnMsHbvq
— Oklahoma City Comets (@OKC_comets) May 16, 2025
Nick Senzel sends one out for Triple-A Oklahoma City! pic.twitter.com/v3EF5dEjMo
— Vols in Pro Baseball (@ProBaseVols) May 16, 2025
The Comets went ahead on an error in the top of the 10th inning. Round Rock then took advantage of defensive miscues by the Comets to win. The Express scored the tying run on a throwing error with one out and later won the game on a two-out single by Alex De Goti off the glove of second baseman Austin Gauthier.
For the first time this season, the Comets have lost consecutive road games. OKC is also 1-3 over the last four games and 4-7 in the last 11 games. Of those seven losses, the Comets have led in the eighth inning or later in four of them. Lack of high leverage late inning relievers???
Michael Chavis went 1-for-4 with a two-run homer and is now 12-for-36 (.333) with six extra-base hits over his last nine games.
Justin Dean connected on his second homer of the season. Over his last three starts, Dean is 6-for-13.
Alex Freeland hit two more doubles, giving him four in the last three games. He leads OKC and ranks second in the PCL with 16 doubles this season.
- Alex Freeland – 2-4,1 run, 2 doubles (16)
- Justin Dean – 1-4, 1 run, 1 RBI
- Michael Chavis – 1-4, 1 run , 2 RBI, HR (7)
- Nick Senzel – 1-4, 1 run, 1 RBI, HR (1)
Tulsa Drillers 13 – Northwest Arkansas Naturals (KC) 10
The Tulsa Drillers won their second straight game over the Northwest Arkansas Naturals on Thursday night thanks to one of their biggest offensive performances of the season. Tulsa set multiple offensive, season highs and was led by Damon Keith who blasted two home runs and drove in seven runs in the Drillers 13-10 win.
The win did not come easily, as Tulsa had to dig out of an early hole. The high-scoring night began with the Naturals scoring three runs in the first inning. Jac Caglianone drove in the first run with his double and scored on Gavin Cross’ two-run homer.
Tulsa answered with three runs in the bottom of the first on Keith’s two-run triple and John Rhodes’ sacrifice fly.
After Northwest Arkansas scored two more in the second inning to retake the lead, but the Drillers responded to take the lead 6-5 on Keith’s three-run blast in the bottom of the second.
An RBI double and an RBI single allowed the Naturals to go back in front 7-6 in the third inning, but the bottom of the third was Tulsa’s biggest inning of the night.
The inning’s scoring began with a throwing error on a double steal that allowed Rhodes to score. Sean McLain’s RBI double put the Drillers back in front 8-7. McLain eventually scored by stealing home and Keith capped the inning with his second home run of the night to put the Drillers up 11-7.
A run-scoring ground out in the fourth inning and a force out at second base in the seventh allowed the Naturals to bring the score within two at 11-9.
The Drillers added to important insurance runs in the eighth on RBI singles from newcomer Kole Myers and McLain.
With a four-lead, reliever Kelvin Ramirez came on for the ninth and promptly walked the first three Naturals batters to bring the potential game-tying run to the plate in Caglianone.
Ramirez recovered to induce a ground ball from the dangerous Caglianone that turned into a force out that plated one run. The game ended promptly when Spencer Nivens followed and lined into a double play.
Keith finished with seven runs batted in which was the most since Austin Beck drove in seven on June 5, 2024. The two home run game was Keith’s third of his professional career. His other two came in 2022, once with Rancho Cucamonga and once with Great Lakes.
The Drillers set a new season high by stealing five bases in the game. Taylor Young led the team with two and now has 12 for the season, which is tied for the fifth most in the Texas League.
Young finished with four hits and increased his on-base streak to 17 straight games and his hitting streak to six games.
Tulsa set new season highs with the 13 runs and with 17 hits.
- Taylor Young – 4-6, 3 runs, double (7)
- Yeiner Fernandez – 2-4, 1 BB, 2 runs, double (7)
- Damon Keith – 3-5, 3 runs, 7 RBI, triple (2), 2 HR (6)
- John Rhodes – 2-3, 1 BB, 2 runs, 1 RBI
- Kole Myers – 3-5, 1 run, 1 RBI
- Sean McLain – 2-5, 1 run, 2 RBI, double (4)
Lake County Captains (Cleveland) 9 – Great Lakes Loons 1 – Game 1
The Great Lakes Loons scored one run across two games against the Lake County Captains losing game one 9-1 and game two 2-0.
The Captains had three multi-run innings: two in the third inning, two in the fifth inning, and five in the seventh inning.
Wyatt Crowell walked six batters over three innings, two pushed across Lake County’s first two tallies. A 5-3 double play ended the frame.
The Captains scored two, aided by two doubles in the fifth. In the seventh, Lake County got a leadoff homer from Jacob Cozart. After a groundout, the next five reached. Midwest League OPS leader Christian Knapczyk had a two-run double to make it 9-1.
Great Lakes added a run in the sixth. Dodgers No. 3 prospect Zyhir Hope roped an RBI single to centerfield. The Loons would then leave the bases loaded.
- Nelson Quiroz – 2-3, 1 run
Lake County Captains (Cleveland) 2 – Great Lakes Loons 0 – Game 2
Cam Day pitched 4.2 innings in his first start of 2025. The right-hander struck out two. Both runs against were gained with two outs.
Captains’ third baseman Juan Benjamin notched an RBI single in the second, and Johnny Tincher added a sacrifice fly in the fourth.
The Great Lakes offense went 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position. The fourth was their best opportunity with Logan Wagner and Zyhir Hope lining balls to right field, 108 mph and 111 mph exit velocity, respectively. Captains’ starter Yorman Gomez induced a flyout and earned two strikeouts to escape two on with no outs.
Robinson Ortiz extended his scoreless inning streak to five innings, dating back to April 27th.
- Doubles – Kendall George (2) and Carlos Rojas (4)
Rancho Cucamonga Quakes 9 – Inland Empire 66ers (LAA) 5
The Rancho offense continued to put up solid numbers against Inland Empire, as the Quakes took down the 66ers on Thursday night by a final of 9-5.
The win for Rancho is their third straight in the series over Inland Empire and their fifth straight overall, as they’ve now scored 45 runs over the first three games of the six-game set.
Jaron Elkins drove in a game-high four and Myles Caba fired 2.1 innings of scoreless relief for the win, as the Quakes stretched their lead in the South to ten full games.
Elkins drove in three of the first four runs, as the Quakes took a 4-0 lead after just three innings.
That lead didn’t last though, as Inland roared back in the fourth, scoring five times against Rancho starter Hyun-Seok Jang to take a 5-4 advantage.
The Quakes tied it in the bottom of the inning though and Elkins gave the Quakes the lead for good in the fifth, as his second sac-fly of the game scored Roger Lasso for a 6-5 advantage.
Samuel Munoz homered as part of a three-run seventh, his third of the year, as Rancho took a 9-5 lead.
Connor Godwin gave the Quakes two innings of scoreless relief behind Caba (2-0), before Shawn Oduber worked around three walks, using three strikeouts in the ninth to end the game.
The Quakes (26-10) will send Aidan Foeller to the mound on Friday night, as he’ll take on Inland Empire’s Francis Texido at 6:30pm.
- Joendry Vargas – 2-5, 1 run, 1 RBI
- Samuel Munoz – 2-4, 1 BB, 3 runs, 1 RBI, HR (3)
- Roger Lasso – 3-3,1 BB, 3 runs, 1 RBI, 2 doubles (3)
- Jaron Elkins – 1-2, 4 RBI, 2 Sac Fly, double (7)
- Eduardo Quintana – 1-5, double (6)
- Eduardo Guerrero – 1-4, double (4)
ACL Dodgers 4 – ACL D-backs 3
Though his doorway is blocked to move up with the Dodgers, Alex Freeland is nonetheless ready to try his hand in the majors now.
I realize it’s just one game, but with Rushing and Kim in the line-up the Dodger offense is more athletic with speed a real offensive weapon. Stolen bases and the ability to go from first to third on an outfield base hit adds such a unique dynamic that wasn’t in play with Barnes and not so much with Rojas and CT3. Wait until Edman comes back and wow the Dodger offense will even be better.
Read some Dodger blogs last night where it is speculated CT3 might be the next DFA. It doesn’t seem Kim is going to be sent down and while injuries seem to be a daily occurrence, I would like to see the Dodger brass hold onto CT3 for at least another month or so. Perhaps when Edman is activated CT3 comes down with a nagging/balky hamstring that requires an IL stint while the FO continues to evaluate Kim and see if he is for real at the big league level.
Would like to see the Padres go on a eight game losing streak but that that doesn’t appear likely. Get well Snell, Glasnow, Edman and Teo and welcome to the show Rushing. Great win last night!
I love Barnes but it was time. You just can’t keep someone with DR’s talent in the minors THAT long. I know if we traded him we would regret it. I know we have Will but we absolutely have to find a place for him. I’m not sure why LA feels the need to pick up guys like Conforto when you have DR waiting in the wings. I know he is a catcher first, but I’m pretty sure he can play LF too. Look at what Lux is doing.
Anyhow….19 runs…oh my…..Kim, Muncy, Ohtani, Rushing, Freddie…..I can go on, can’t I?
it’s always great to beat up pitchers with high ERAs….isnt that what you are supposed to do?
I always defended Barnes. He was an outstanding back-up catcher and a crucial part to our success.
Bear, thanks for the nice article on Austin Barnes. He should have no regrets. Austin did what was expected of him throughout his years with the Dodgers. A few memorable moments for him. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him hired for some minor league coaching position in the future.
Pages, Kim, and now Rushing. The youth movement has FINALLY begun! It adds some excitement to the Dodger games. I would imagine the vets enjoy watching Pages developing into a solid player. And Kim turning things around offensively and adding some exciting athleticism to the team. Rushing’s debut was encouraging. Will Smith is hoping DR will prove to be a solid backup so Will can get some additional time off during the season.
I would think there could be one or two additions in 2026. That will be most likely happen with pitching prospects alone. It looks like the Dodgers, with what has happened the past two seasons, will need 30-40 pitchers to get through the regular and post seasons.
Carry on.
Barnsy had a good run. He would make a great bench coach. Hope the Dodgers keep him in the family.
Bear, nice post on Barnes. He was a valuable piece and a good teammate. He did his job with no aspirations of being a starting catcher and brought a lot to the table But it was time to move on.
Nice start for Rushing. I really like his bat. I do think his target for the pitcher is a touch odd. But maybe that’s how they teach it now days. One is on that knee, which I hate but that’s what they teach these days. The second is his target. He sets the target then quickly drops the mitt well before the pitcher releases the pitch. Then he brings the mitt back up to catch the ball. Lots of mitt movement that’s unnecessary and doesn’t give the pitcher a solid target throughout his wind up and release. I would prefer a steady target for the pitcher to focus on throughout his delivery.
But maybe that’s what they teach now?
But I like the kid and I’m glad he’s getting a chance.
LHRP Alec Gamboa was released by LAD and has signed with the Lotte Giants of the KBO. Gamboa was the 9th round draft choice in the 2019 draft out of Fresno City College.
Good luck Alec with the KBO.
https://twitter.com/KBO_ENG/status/1922461378008264755
Posted this in the wrong place:
Dodgers teaching Sasaki a new pitch? Sinker or two-seamer, it’s all synonymous.
https://x.com/Baseball_Namiki/status/1923147704965693465
This is so cool.
Two former Dodgers in the baseball news today, Jacob Amaya DFAd by the White Sox and the other Chicago team, Cubs, signed Kenta Maeda to a minor league deal.
I thanked Bear privately, and now I am doing so publicly on his tribute to Austin Barnes. Most everyone knows how much of a fan of Barnsey that I have been. When Barnsey was at his baseball worst and fans were clamoring for his dismissal, I wrote countless posts on the value of Barnes as a backup catcher.
For those that judge players based on the back of their baseball card, I readily acknowledge he would not have been a player you would have wanted on your roster. But Barnsey was more than that.
Yes, he was Clayton Kershaw’s personal catcher, but Kersh was not the only one. Walker Buehler loved pitching to Barnes. He credited Barnes for Walker’s 2020 NLDS Game 6 win. Most of his work was done behind the scenes. Kersh said that nobody competed harder than Austin. Max Muncy summed it up very well on the value of Barnes:
“I feel like when you look at some of the pillars in this clubhouse, he would be one of them,” Muncy said to The Athletic. “Just a guy who brought so much to this team off the field that you can’t really quantify that. It’s something that’s hard to really put into words how much he meant to this team, in this clubhouse, on the plane, in the dugout, on the road at the hotel. Just who he was to everybody.”
It is easy to have respect for Mookie, Freddie, Clayton, and Shohei because they are on their way to Cooperstown. But when you have a backup catcher referred to as The Captain by his teammates, that summarized the respect Austin Barnes had on this LAD team.
Kersh will miss Barnes, but he has already acknowledged that Dalton belongs on the 26 man, and he is a catcher. Something had to give. Dalton was done learning in MiLB and needed the MLB platform to get the most out of his skills, and to properly learn how to call and manage a MLB game behind the dish. As much of a supporter of Austin Barnes that I am, it was time.
Contrary to what Bluto may believe, Austin Barnes is setup perfectly to become a coach and probably a manager someday, after his playing days are done. I do not believe they are.
I think I remember a few Dodgers saying it they could choose any teammate to be with them when they were in a threatening situation it would be Barnes.
Thoughts about Rushing:
I don’t see how he can retain his batting eye by playing catcher a couple times a week and then getting 2 or 3 pinch hit opportunities for the rest of the week.
I think he needs to start a minimum of 4 times a week at some position or another in order to fulfill his potential.
We’ve all put in our two cents as to where he might play but I haven’t seen anyone (not even Bums) ask if he might be a possibility at third base a couple times a week? Granted, they aren’t going to ask him to learn that position in the majors but I wonder if that would be worth looking into during the upcoming off season?
Or do we already know that he’d make a poor third baseman for one reason or another. Who is considered to have the stronger arm between Smith and Rushing?
Any thought of not having Sho DH on the days he pitches, so that he can totally concentrate on pitching for that day?
The Dodgers added RHP Ryan Loutos and sent LHP Justin Wrobleski back to OKC. Loutos was acquired for cash considerations from Cardinals earlier this monthDodgers traded for Lout from the Cardinals a couple weeks back after he was DFA’d.
Obviously this is why he was acquired, he will be DFA’d to make room for Kershaw to take his spot tomorrow.
Sinker/sweeper lead the arsenal. Has pitched in 3 games for OKC, didn’t allow a hit or a run in 3.1 IP.
DBacks lost Eduardo Rodriguez to shoulder inflammation. The Dbacks do not have a lot of depth.
3 double plays in 5 innings, not really a great night for the offense. Muncy stays hot.