Dodgers insider Pedro Moura thinks Los Angeles will head into 2023 with Gavin Lux as their starting second baseman, not shortstop.
Perhaps the biggest question surrounding the Dodgers this offseason is who will play shortstop for them in 2023. Trea Turner, who made the All-Star team and won the Silver Slugger as L.A.’s shortstop in 2022, signed a monster deal to play short for Philadelphia for the next 47 years or something. Xander Bogaerts signed with San Diego, and rumor has it Los Angeles isn’t in the market for Carlos Correa, which leaves just Dansby Swanson among the big-name free agents on the market.
There are other options, though. Internally, the Dodgers have Gavin Lux and Chris Taylor, both of whom came up as shortstops but moved to other positions because of Seager. They also have Jacob Amaya, a slick-fielding minor-league shortstop with questions about his bat.
If the season started today, Lux would likely be the team’s starting shortstop. But the season doesn’t start today, and in a conversation with Dodgers Nation last week at the Winter Meetings, Dodgers insider Pedro Moura cast some doubt on whether they’d really go with Lux at short.
“My bet would be that the Dodgers don’t use Gavin Lux as their everyday shortstop in 2023. I don’t foresee that being their play. I just think they’re going to want to have some insurance at shortstop, and so I doubt that. I don’t know if it’ll be one of the top three. [Note: This conversation took place before Bogaerts signed with the Padres.] I can see Willy Adames making a lot of sense for them. Andrew Friedman and him have a longstanding relationship dating back to their days at Tampa. So, I don’t know. There are trade options. I think, my bet would be that Gavin Lux is the Opening Day second baseman, and not the shortstop. As far as projecting who that shortstop will be, I don’t know.”
There’s plenty of skepticism about Lux at shortstop, even though it’s his natural position. There was talk in the minors that he might have to move positions because of his struggles with the throws from short, but he cut his errors in half from 2018 to 2019 to allay some of those concerns. Lux was L.A.’s starting shortstop while Seager was hurt in 2021 and did fine defensively.
The bigger question if Lux plays shortstop would be who will play second. With the shift being banned, second base will require more range than it has in the past, and Lux’s athleticism is well-suited to that position.
One way or the other, someone will start at shortstop for the Dodgers next year. We think.
