That would be the Dodgers. They are going to have to get younger and I am sure the Dodger brass is thinking just that… however, it likely won’t be this year.
Andy Pages has a runway that is at least a month longer.
Max Muncy’s runway is longer.
Kike, CT3, Barnsie, and MiggyRo are not going anywhere… unless they are injured.
Alex Freeland, Dalton Rushing, et al, will likely have to wait until 2026… barring injury!
2026 is when you will start seeing some changes.
- If Max Muncy does not have a good year, the Dodgers may not pick up his option.
- Barnes could retire, as could CT3, and MiggyRo will almost certainly retire.
- Conforto will not re-sign and Teo is best in LF.
- The Dodgers could make a run at Kyle Tucker! He would look good in RF, but they won’t give him a huge deal.
What 2026 Could Look Like
- Ohtani DH
- Betts 2B
- Freeman 1B
- Hernandez LF
- Rushing C
- Smith 3B
- Edman CF
- Pages RF
- Freeland SS
Kike Hernandez and Hyeseong Kim would be a great L-R Utility Duo.
Have at it!
Discussion (16)
Disagree, not disagreeable
Mark’s speculative ’26 lineup is certainly plausible.
However…
–No position (other than pitcher) is more important than catcher. Will Smith is a top-tier performer who takes pride in his work. When he signed his long-term deal, he said his plan was to play catcher for the duration. From what I’ve read, Rushing’s bat is ahead of his defense. So to me it makes sense that (a) Barnes becomes a coach and (b) Rushing becomes more than Smith’s backup. They would share the job in a semi-platoon, as Smith bats right and Rushing left. Maybe 100 games for Smith and 62 for Rushing, who could also see action at 1B and LF. He and Smith could also take grounders at 3B, preparing for the future….
–But 3B is where Alex Freeland will be playing (unless Max gets in gear). If Mookie decides to shift to 2B or back to the OF–and I do think it’s mostly up to Mookie–then Freeland could be SS. We’ll see. (Murakami is a possibility for 3B too.)
–That means Edman stays at 2B, where he could win another gold glove. Or Kim plays 2B and Edman goes to CF.
–Will Pages take over RF? Maybe. Can he be more than a platoon guy? Maybe. But I continue to hope that the Dodgers develop a prodigy. Zyhir Hope with a bullet?
Shohei DH
Mookie SS
Freddie 1B
Teo LF
Smith/Rushing C
Edman CF
Freeland (Murakami?) 3B
Pages/ ??? RF
Kim 2B
https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6285741/2025/04/16/mets-justin-hagenman-mlb-debut-scout-stroke/?source=athletic_weeklyemail&campaign=602288&userId=147501
What an incredible article on Jonah Rosenthal, a scout for the Dodgers who had a massive stroke on Dec. 10th.
In terms of simply performance, Barnes, Taylor, and Rojas should not be on this roster. The Dodger’s bench is perhaps the weakest part of this team. But the locker room presence, leadership, and loyalty of the Dodger organization keeps them around. I get it. But, I do like seeing young guys come up through the Dodger system and help the Major League club. Fortunately, Rushing, Freeland, and Kim seem like they will be contributing at the major league level by the start of next year, if not sooner.
The Treinen injury is not surprising given his history. He was so good in the post season last year that the money they paid him during his seasons rehabbing or injured has been repaid. They are going to need the bullpen depth like they do every year. Kopech, Graterol, and maybe Henriquez are in line as the season progresses.
I don’t see Smith making the move to 3rd to make room for Rushing to catch. It makes some sense but only if Smith is willing to move. He has not given any indication that he wants to move from catcher. I wonder if his bat at third gives them simply league average offense at that position.
As for today’s loss, the offensive issues continue. Facing DeGrom and Eovaldi without Ohtani can do that to you. Phillips and Dreyer looked good. Especially encouraging given Phillips importance to the back end of the bullpen.
Shohei Ohtoni’s message on the birth of his daughter:
“Welcome to the Ohtani Family!,” the caption read. “I am so grateful to my loving wife who gave birth to our healthy beautiful daughter. To my daughter, thank you for making us very nervous yet super anxious parents. I would also like to thank the Dodgers organization, my teammates, and the fans for their constant support and kind words of encouragement.
“I would also like to express my sincere gratitude to all the medical professionals and everyone who dedicated their support to us, up until this wonderful day.”
Ohtani is expected to make his return to the Dodgers lineup for the rubber match at Globe Life Field tomorrow against the Rangers, per Bill Plunkett of the Southern California News Group:
I feel sorry for Sasaki who ptched a good game and was denied his first MLB win by Yates,but there will be many more to come as he is getting better each start.
I have never been a fan of Yates. I have seen too many Choke Jobs by him over the years.
Several times over the past 3 – 4 years, he was available, and some fans were pushing to sign him, and I was against it.
I maintain my opposition to him.
It is my opinion that he is a choke artist!
Not trying to Jinx anyone, Treinen’s forearm tightness warrants an MRI.
Not good news.
Max is pickin’ it.
The Dodgers on Saturday activated reliever Evan Phillips after the he missed the first 21 games of the season on the injured list. The right-hander swaps places in the bullpen with Blake Treinen, who was placed on the IL with right forearm tightness.
4:05 PM ET FOX
Dodgers (15-6)
Rangers (12-8)
SP Roki Sasaki R
0-1 3.29 ERA
SP Nathan Eovaldi R
1-2 2.55 ERA
Confirmed Lineup
2B Tommy Edman S
SS Mookie Betts R
1B F. Freeman L
RF T. Hernandez R
LF M. Conforto L
C Will Smith R
3B Max Muncy L
DH E. Rosario L
CF Andy Pages R
In Domed Stadium
Fridays scores
Oklahoma City 4, Tacoma 3
Tulsa 7, Wichita 6
Great Lakes 7, Dayton 2
San Jose 2, Rancho Cucamonga 0
Saturday schedule:
Dayton (Adam Serwinowski) at Great Lakes (Payton Martin) 10:05 AM PST
Wichita (Connor Prielipp) at Tulsa (Jacob Meador) 11:00 AM PST
Wichita (Darren Bowen) at Tulsa (Jerming Rosario), 30 minutes after Game 1
Tacoma (Sauryn Lao) at Oklahoma City (Justin Wrobleski) 4:05 PM PST
San Jose (Jacob Bresnahan) at Rancho Cucamonga (Christian Zazueta) 6:30 PM PST
For more detailed recaps,stats,schedules, standings and box scores for Dodger minor league teams go to the top of this page and cIick on MINOR LEAGUE AFFLIATES.
A fun personal note on Yamamoto… I coach high school football and game five of the NLDS fell on a Friday night last year. While I was focused on our game, in the back of my head I kept thinking about what might be happening at Dodger stadium a thousand miles away. My athletic director knows I am a huge Dodgers fan and came up to me as the football game was winding down and asked me if I wanted to know the score. I reluctantly agreed and when he told me 2-0 Dodgers, I exclaimed ‘ Our little Japanese guy did it!!”… Well, he has certainly continued to do it! Let’s hope our other small Japanese guy can keep the ball rolling today!
Freeland flashing the leather. He looks comfortable anywhere in the infield. I wouldn’t rule out 3b for his long-term home.
Age is undefeated. Part of the Dodgers culture is loyalty to their guys. The intangibles from the bench guys (Barnes, Kike, Taylor, Rojas) really do help the team in ways not measured by statistics. Muncy appears to be a team first guy as well, but is struggling as a starter. Would be ok being a bench guy?. Freddie won’t be around forever. Mookie may be best suited to 2nd base in the long run, but he’s hard to bet against. Conforto is probably one and done. Teoscar should be fine in corner outfield. He earns his $$ with the bat.
Murakami from Japan may want to play 3rd base in Dodger Blue in 2026.
Will Smith’s longevity may be improved playing at 1B or 3B.
Edmon is a gem. He should hold down whatever position he plays.
Kim is intriguing. If he can mirror Edmons defensive versatility and even be an average hitter, he could be a valuable player. Another LHH would be helpful.
Rushing and Freeland won’t be handed anything but they could force the issue. Pages is getting a runway. It’s worth it see what he can do.
However the future lineups shake out, I suspect they’ll look to improve defense. Any player promoted from within or added from elsewhere will probably improve the status quo with the glove, or lead to better collective defense by way of versatility. If this is an objective, shifting vets on long term deals down the defensive spectrum is inevitable.
At least the farm has some potential options up the middle!
When most teams owner are zigging to make money, Dodgers are zagging to build a Dynasty.
Mark –
Thanks so much for your explanation of OPS yesterday! I turned 79 today and your explanation of OPS will likely be the most useful birthday goft I receive because it will help me enjoy the game of baseball even more. I printed it out so I can commit it to memory like I did for BA and ERA many decades ago. I will even share it with a couple of other oldtimers so our daily discussions of Dodger baseball will be enhanced. Thanks again for LADOT….