Their roster isn’t exactly ready for Opening Day yet.
The Dodgers roster is almost set and ready for Opening Day — emphasis on the word almost.
The Dodgers currently have six outfielders on the 40-man roster: Mookie Betts, Chris Taylor, Trayce Thompson, James Outman, Andy Pages and Jonny DeLuca.
You know what you’re getting with Betts — he’s set to play another big role in 2023. Then there’s Taylor, who’s hoping to have a bounce back year after he struggled in 2022, but may spend some time in the infield (which has a ton of question marks, too). Then, it gets tricky.
Thompson had a breakout 2022 season, but came back down to earth in the postseason. He’s likely to get the first crack as an everyday outfielder, mainly because there aren’t a lot of other great options. Outman should play a platoon role in 2022, and Miguel Vargas may even play some outfield. But clearly, they could use another reliable guy who can play outfield — especially center field.
That’s why, it was no surprise that when The Athletic‘s Jim Bowden spoke to a decision-maker in the Dodgers’ front office about what’s next for LA, he said they’re still targeting an outfielder.
“The Dodgers’ top priority right now is to acquire an outfielder — ideally a center fielder, but it could be a corner outfielder instead. They’d prefer to trade for one and are one of the many teams that have been involved in trade talks with the Pirates regarding Bryan Reynolds.”
The idea that they’d prefer to trade for one makes a ton of sense, considering there aren’t very good options left in the free agent pool. But it sounds like the Pirates want a king’s ransom for OF Bryan Reynolds, which may be tough for the Dodgers to give up. I do think Reynolds would be a perfect fit in LA, but I don’t see them shelling out multiple top prospects for the soon-to-be 28-year-old with one All-Star appearance in his career. If the asking price goes down, Reynolds would be the ideal trade target for LA.
Outside of Reynolds, there hasn’t been a lot of talk about other outfielders potentially on the market. The Dodgers generally like to move in silence, so maybe they’re waiting to strike a big deal when everyone else gets quiet.
It does sound like they’re planning on making a move in the outfield this offseason, so Dodger fans should be excited for what the team may have in store.
