How Important Are Bench Players?
Over the last couple of years, I have been concerned with what I have considered a lack of power off of the Dodgers bench. Players like Kike, Rojas, Taylor, do not exactly scare the opposition. The way teams are constructed now, especially the Dodgers, it seems versatility…
Over the last couple of years, I have been concerned with what I have considered a lack of power off of the Dodgers bench. Players like Kike, Rojas, Taylor, do not exactly scare the opposition. The way teams are constructed now, especially the Dodgers, it seems versatility trumps the ability to crush baseballs. Back in the day, that role was usually filled by veteran players nearing the end of their careers.
In this era, it seems more about how many positions you can play late in the game. Having an awful postseason offensively, Andy Pages was inserted for defensive purposes in game seven and made a game saving catch that kept the Jays from scoring. Pages, who hit 27 homers during the season was 4-41 in the postseason. Pages though is considered a power hitter. He normally plays every game.
So, who supplied the power? The game tying homer was hit by Rojas, one of the team’s best defensive players. At the time, Miggy had only played one game in the World Series, game six. LA was one out away from losing the series to the Blue Jays. Will Smith would win it in the 11th with his own solo shot.
During the 2025 season, Dodger pinch hitters were 21-107, a .196 BA. They had 5 homers and 14 driven in. They struck out 32 times and walked 14. Not a very good record of success. The best pinch hitter in Dodger history was Manny Mota. Not a power hitter but a very good bat to ball hitter.
The record for PH homers in a season by a Dodger is 7. Dave Hansen, a backup third baseman has that record. I doubt it will ever be matched or broken the way pinch hitters are used in this era. Since power does not seem to be the primary goal, I would think they would at least consider getting players who were pretty decent hitters along with their abilities on defense. Let us look at some of the bench candidates.
Hyeseong Kim hit .280 in his short stint with the Dodgers. Kims OBP suffers from the fact that he does not walk very much, at least he did not do so last season. He walked just 7 times and struck out 52. A guy with his speed is most valuable when he gets on base. A little more awareness of the strike zone would be a huge asset to Kim.
Miguel Rojas is a defensive whiz. He has also had some big moments with the bat. In his career, Miggy has hit .232 in pinch hitting roles. He has 1 homer and 13 runs driven in. Last season, Miggy was probably the Dodgers best pinch hitter. He hit .429 as a PH and hit 1 of the 5 PH homers LA had. His OPS was over 1.200.
Alex Call was a .260 hitter last year. He did not have many PH chances during the season. He was used more as a defensive replacement. One of his assets is his ability to get on base. His OBP was .361. It was .333 with the Dodgers. He is also a very good outfielder who can play all three positions.
Andy Ibanez, recently signed by the Dodgers as a free agent is a 32-year-old glove first infielder. He has also played the outfield a little, but most of his experience comes as a 2nd or 3rd baseman. He has no power to speak of and does not hit very well at all.
Dalton Rushing is the one current bench player who has some power. He hit double figure homers in the minors twice. He only had 142 at bats in the major’s last season. He was replaced on the postseason roster by Ben Rortvedt, who after his trade to LA suddenly found his bat. Rortvedt was placed on waivers after the season and claimed by the Reds, so the backup job falls into Rushing’s lap. How much he will give LA on offense remains to be seen.
Alex Freeland got his first taste of the major’s last season and showed some good defense but did not really get many chances to show his offensive side. Freeland played at three different levels of the minors in 24, and last year he played 106 games at OKC. He batted .268 and clubbed 16 homers, so he also has showed some power. The issue right now for Alex is roster space. With Ibanez signing a MLB deal, and Rojas being retained, there is not any room for him. The only way he makes the 26-man out of spring is if someone gets injured.
The odd man out here is Ryan Ward. The Dodgers did him a disservice by adding him to the MLB roster. He is simply injury insurance. LA attempted to find trade partners for Ward and Bobby Miller according to reports, but there were no takers. Ward is a legitimate power threat having hit 133 homers in the minors. But he turns 28 in February.
Those are the probable bench players available on the 40-man roster. There are four players currently on the roster at OKC who have appeared in the majors, Chuckie Robinson, Ryan Fitzgerald, Matt Gorski and Nick Senzel. Currently there are no outfielders listed on the OKC roster, which means we will probably see AF sign some players to minor league deals.
In my humble opinion, which means little, the Dodger bench has plenty of defense and not much offense. Maybe that will change, and maybe it won’t. How benches are used has changed dramatically from when I first started watching the game. It will probably change more over the next decade or so.
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Discussion (112)
Disagree, not disagreeable
Nobody! I never said that anyone other than the Dodgers would win the division! I just don’t believe the west is the weakest in baseball. I believe the giants , Dbacks, and padres all will be competitive teams. The central teams in both leagues will be weaker than the NLwest. And if the giants do sign Framber? Top 3 in their rotation is very good. But not enough to overtake the mighty dodgers! Dodgers should win the division by 10 games on paper. But paper isn’t where they play the game. But 10 games would be sweet. My bad Matt! I was thinking Mariners.
Unfortunately SEA has won 1.
So Dodgerdad, who challenges the Dodgers in the NL West?
NE is not great. Good yes, not great, not a SB team. Weak as water schedule and they played Stidham in the title game…..
Will not watch the Super Bowl…. Rams-Seahawks was the super Bowl. ST cant get here soon enough….
I actually think it could be a good football game. NE’s defense is underrated [Oregon dude in secondary] & Seattle is prone to choking.
Robbie Ray is their #2. Wake me up if they sign Framber.
Very cocky college coach with NO managing experience in MLB who won’t relate to Major League players in the long run. This isn’t college and let’s see how he reacts during a 162 game schedule.
I agree mark! I still say the west is no way the weakest division in baseball. It just happens to have the Dodgers in it! The giants won’t have the strongest infield defense with Arreaz. At second base and devers at first, but the left side of the infield will be just fine. I believe eventually devers may have to go back to being a full time DH. That would allow them to move. arreaz to first. I know what they promised him, but if his defense starts hurting them, well then he has no choice. Is it just me, or is anyone else not getting the fuzzies over the Super Bowl? I’m going to watch it, but I have no vested interest in it. I guess if I have to choose, I’ll pull for the Seahawks since they have never won one. I I HATE SNOW!!!!
MLB is a long way from Knoxville. Vitello is the next Kapler…..
Luis Arrzez has amazing bat-to-ball skills. His ball-to-glove skills are legendarily horrid! Still, they have Chapman and Adames at 3B and SS and Bader in CF. I think they are a sleeper. Their new manager could get them to play like wildmen this year!
The Dodgers brass must have seen something in Kim they liked before they signed him. I am willing to give him a chance his second year to see what he can do strictly against right handed pitching only. His glove and speed plays in MLB. AF and BG know more than all of us here. As far as Devers goes, his contract and attitude will not end well with the Giants. If the Giants plan on playing Arraez at second base ,good luck! The Giants will be lucky to win 86 games. The NL West stinks!!!
Dodger bleacher report/ mlb pipeline
I was traveling to Florida yesterday and I could not respond. I am not in the category of wanting to get rid of Kim, not do I want Arrizz. That said, the Giants are better with him. Wanting him and making the Giants better are not mutually exclusive. The Giants could be pretty good this year… especially if Devers and Eldridge can play to their potential. I simply do not think Kim as a bat that will play everyday.
Let’s give Rushing 4 starts a week. 2 at catcher per Mr. Perkins suggestions, 1 at 1st base to ease father time on the great Freddie Freeman, and one either in the outfield (where he has played and can’t be a worse fielder than Teo), or at 3rd to give Max a rest (if he can play there – I don’t think he has and there may be a reason).
Link?
30 game winner?
Make it two
River Ryan supposedly has his fastball sitting 98-100 ! He said he’s working on another pitch would increase his total to 7 different pitches! Some analysts are comparing him to Gerrit Cole. When, not if he joins the rotation, he may just be a # 1 or 2 starter slotted as a # 5-6 starter. The Dodgers brass may have really fleeced the friars! Can’t wait to see to see him cut it loose this upcoming season! Just think, Sheehan and Stone and Ryan! How many teams can put 3 like that on a 40 man roster? Oh , I forgot to mention Sasaki!!
What if Rushing got 3 starts a week behind the plate until September. Will Smith stays strong for the post season and Rushing gets the at bats he needs to develop. Seems like a good idea to me.
“Eugenio Suarez is returning to Cincinnati, as ESPN’s Jeff Passan reports that the slugger has signed a one-year, $15MM deal with the Reds that includes a mutual option for the 2027 season. Jon Heyman of the New York Post reports that the option is worth $16MM, though mutual options are rarely triggered by both sides. The deal will become official once the Reds clear a spot on their 40-man roster, and presumably when Suarez passes a physical. Suarez is represented by Octagon”.
With Edman probably going on the IL ,second base is wide open. Let the kids, Kim and Freeland have a chance to win a roster spot as the left handed platoon to Rojas and Ibanez both right handed. The bench will be Rushing, either Ward or Call, either Kim or Freeland, Rojas and Ibanez.
You’re being generous with his defense. Arreaz is a butcher. His offensive numbers seem to be on the decline to me. Not that he wouldn’t be a good offensive weapon in the 9-hole but $12 million is $24 million for the Dodgers. I’m good with Edman, Kim, Rojas, Ibanez, and Freeland.
Keith Law’s 8-tier minor league system is a grouping method he uses to categorize all 30 MLB farm systems based on their overall talent depth, star potential, and long-term sustainability. Instead of just a 1–30 list, Law groups teams into tiers to show where there is a significant gap in quality between organizations. Understanding the 2026 Tier Structure In his January 2026 rankings for The Athletic, Law used these tiers to distinguish between elite “powerhouse” systems and those that are either top-heavy, shallow, or in deep rebuilds. Tier 1 (The Elite): Systems with multiple top-100 prospects and significant depth across all levels. In 2026, this tier includes the Milwaukee Brewers, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Seattle Mariners. Tier 2 (Very High Quality): Systems with high-ceiling talent but slightly less depth than Tier 1. The Pittsburgh Pirates (ranked No. 4) and Cleveland Guardians (ranked No. 5) currently lead this tier. Tier 3 (Strong Depth): Systems that might lack a “marquee” superstar but possess many future big leaguers or specific development strengths (e.g., the Boston Red Sox’s newfound pitching depth). Lower Tiers (4–8): These tiers represent a gradual decline in impact talent. Tier 8 systems typically have very few top-tier prospects and lack the depth to sustain a winning MLB roster without heavy outside spending
For 2026, Keith Law of The Athletic has ranked the Milwaukee Brewers as having the top farm system in baseball. His rankings are divided into eight tiers, with the San Diego Padres currently ranked last at #30. Keith Law: 2026 MLB Farm System Rankings Rk Team Tier 1 MIL 1 2 LAD 1 3 SEA 1 4 PIT 2 5 CLE 2 6 WAS 2 7 DET 3 8 CHW 3 9 BAL 3 10 BOS 3 11 STL 3 12 NYM 4 13 SFG 4 14 MIA 4 15 PHI 4 16 TBR 5 17 CIN 5 18 MIN 5 19 KCR 6 20 NYY 6 21 ARI 6 22 OAK 6 23 TEX 7 24 TOR 7 25 CHC 7 26 ATL 7 27 HOU 8 28 COL 8 29 LAA 8 30 SDP 8