One of the perceived holes for the 2023 Dodgers is CF and LF. The Dodgers have 6 OF on the 40 man roster:
- Mookie Betts
- Chris Taylor
- Trayce Thompson
- James Outman (LAD #13 prospect)
- Andy Pages (LAD #5 and MLB #66 prospect)
- Jonny DeLuca
Mookie is a bonafide perennial All Star. CT3 is at his best when he is a true utility player. Thompson and Outman are probably more accurately considered as #4 OF. Pages and DeLuca are probably not considered as possible OF in the 2023 season with the MLB team.
Of course the Dodgers can take a couple of infielders with questionable defensive skills and stick them in LF because of their potential bats – Miguel Vargas and Michael Busch.
How did the Dodgers get here? The Dodgers have had 8 drafts in the AF era. Here are the drafted OF in the first 10 rounds:
- 2015 – Mitchell Hansen (2), Logan Landon (10).
- 2016 – DJ Peters (4), Luke Raley (7).
- 2017 – Jeren Kendall (1), Zach Reks (10).
- 2018 – James Outman (7), Josh McLain (9).
- 2019 – Ryan Ward (8)
- 2020 – Jake Vogel (3)
- 2021 – Damon Keith (18) – Not a top 10, but only drafted OF
- 2022 – Nick Biddison (4)
- Mitchell Hansen and Logan Landon are out of baseball.
- DJ Peters is no longer affiliated with a MLB team. Technically he is a FA, and will probably sign a MiLB contract with some team.
- Luke Raley is a AAAA OF with the Nationals
- Jeren Kendall has seemingly stalled out at AA, while he has never truly been considered anything more than a defensive CF.
- Zach Reks is now in Korea.
- James Outman is in line to earn a spot on the opening day 26-man roster. Whether he does or not, or what role he’ll play, depends on how he plays in ST.
- Josh McLain retired after the 2019 season.
- Ryan Ward just completed his season in AA and is available in the Rule 5 draft. If he remains in the LAD system, he will be a 25 year old OF at OKC next season. He is #30 on the MLB Pipeline LAD Top Prospects list.
- Jake Vogel is a 21 year old CF with excellent defensive skills and questionable hit skills. Remind you of some other high LAD pick? He should move to AA next year. I think he could still be considered a defensive specialist at the MLB level. Will he hit????
- Damon Keith will be a 23 year old OF who should return to High A where he got a late season promotion.
- Nick Biddison is a 22 year old who put up okay numbers at low A.
That is 11 OF draft picks in the top 10 rounds over the last 8 years. The International Free Agent signings have been equally unproductive. Yusniel Diaz, Starling Heredia, Christopher Arias, Carlos Rincon, Luis Rodriguez…Only Andy Pages remains a true prospect. I have been critical of those who write about how good the Dodger prospects are without ever seeing them play.
I remember a couple years back when I was soundly criticized because I was critical of Luis Rodriguez. The person doing the criticizing had never seen him play and was so knowledgeable of his talents that he called him JRod. Rodriguez has fallen out of the LAD top 30 prospects quicker than Jeren Kendall. He is still in the LAD organization, and can still develop. While Luis is no longer considered a top prospect, he should move to High A as a 20 year old.
Pages is the only LAD OF listed in the top 100 prospects. He is the 16th rated OF. There are 23 other OF in MLB Pipeline’s Top 100. It appears somewhat evident that the Dodgers are bereft of quality OF prospects, and with only 1 star at the MLB level, they are going to need to sign one or rely on a bevy of 4th OFers to fill out the lineup.
I thought Outman would be the CF and Thompson as the LF. Bums thought that Thompson would be the CF and Outman would be the LF. Regardless, neither Outman nor Thompson are probably the answer for LAD CF. It may be an economical option, but is it a top MLB OF? Probably not. Then again, with the dearth of plus OFers in MLB, they very well could become one.
It is difficult to develop a top OF when the team has floundered when selecting OF in the draft or international market. That is why I have been outspoken in wanting AF/BG to package a few of the 82 RHP with 45+ FV to try and get a good OF. In the meantime, it is time to get comfortable with Mookie, Trayce Thompson, James Outman, and CT3 as the LAD OF on the 26 man roster for 2023.
Seems logical to trade some of our excellent supply of pitching for an outfielder.
Maybe that’s been the plan all along. Stockpile pitching and catching and then, when appropriate, move some of those youngsters for position players.
Somewhere out there is another Sheldon Neuse, just waiting to put on Dodger Blue. Well, maybe we could aim a little higher.
In 2021, as 21 year old in AAA, Jarred Kelenic batted .320/.392/.624/1.016 and got called up. Did not go well. He started with the Mariners in 2022, again did not do well, and was optioned back to AAA. As a 22 year old in AAA, he batted .296/.366/.557/.922. In 1,288 PA he has a MiLB career strikeout rate of 20.6%. If Jarred put up those numbers with the Dodgers, most out there in the LAD blogosphere would be preparing a plaque for him at Cooperstown. Instead he is mired in a miserable quagmire with the Mariners.
Kelenic is snake bit in Seattle, and will probably never succeed there. He needs a change of scenery, and maybe LAD is a good place to land. While I do not swallow the hype that the Dodgers can develop anyone, that many out there believe, I do think the Dodgers are better equipped for development than is Seattle. He is two years younger than Gavin Lux, who did not break out until he was 24, which seems to be the age that many of the top prospects finally break out.
Another reason to bring up Lux’s name is because Kelenic is from Waukesha, WI, about 60 miles north of Kenosha, Lux’s home town. I am guessing that they know each other. They may have even played against each other in HS.
Kelenic can play CF, but like so many LAD OF prospects, he has an arm that is best suited for RF. There is no reason he could not transition to LF, which is where he would play for Seattle. Seattle has Julio Rodriguez for CF. Kelenic could play CF for LAD.
What would the Dodgers have to give up for Kelenic? Per the MLB Trade Simulator, Maddux Bruns, one for one for Kelenic would work. But MLB GMs/PBO do not consult the trade simulator when making those decisions. But it would be a chance for two questionable ML talents to make a change and see what happens.
Personally, I would rather take a chance on Kelenic than to be bogged down with an albatross contract for Christian Yelich.
Interesting post on Twitter says that AF says the Dodgers can fix Bellinger if he does re-sign with the team. Hmmm. Interesting, because if he did come back and have a stellar year, then he would just leave in free agency in 24.
Is Kelenic that much better than Outman and Pages?
Could Mookie play centerfield for a couple of years?
Is it possible to live with two 1+ WAR outfielders (Pages and Outman) and make up for it with one 5+ WAR SS (Bogaerts) and the best pitching in the league?
The Dodgers have been known for their pitching as long as I can remember. I’d like to not only keep it that way but make it even better.
Final at the Coliseum. USC 38 – Notre Dame 27. PAC 12 Championship game is next Friday in Las Vegas. Caleb Williams is now the favorite to win the Heisman Trophy. The Award is presented in NY on December 10.