The Dodgers have a tough decision to make
4 players battling for 2 spots
The Dodgers just won the World Series. They enter the 2025 campaign with a record-breaking payroll. Their lineup features numerous Hall of Famers and their rotation features a number of Cy Young caliber pitchers.
All seems well, right?
Almost.
Despite having arguably the best lineup, rotation and bullpen in baseball, the Dodgers still have to make some pretty important decisions in regards to their bench.
As of right now, the Dodgers have 11 players who have a roster spot locked up, at least that is the way I see it. With two open roster spots, here is who is competing for a spot on the Opening Day roster.
Hyseong Kim
Chris Taylor
I don’t have Chris Taylor as a lock, but I have a hard time not seeing CT3 on the roster when the season begins. The Dodgers won’t be able to trade his contract unless they pay 95 percent of it. Even then, would a team be willing to add Taylor? Barring a shocking DFA, CT3 will remain with the Dodgers.
As you all know, Taylor was terrible last year. He barely hit above the Mendoza Line and finished his season with a .598 OPS and 74 wRC+. He was 26 percent worse than the league average hitter.
In a small sample size, Taylor has gone 3-for-11 (.273 AVG, .697 OPS) this spring. You can’t read a whole lot into that, but hey it’s better than going 0-for-11!
With the way the team is currently constructed, I just don’t see how there is any spot on this team for Taylor. You have essentially the same player in Kiké Hernández, who is a better player. You have outfield and infield depth and I just don’t see a need for Taylor anymore.
I know service time is a big deal in the majors and CT3 could hit the 10-year threshold in 2025. The Dodgers could very well be keeping him around for that very reason. We know money isn’t an object for LA. While flat out releasing him and eating his remaining salary would suck, the Dodgers could easily do that.
Hell, the Dodgers DFA’d Carl Crawford in 2016, and he had nearly $35 million left on his contract. This is nothing!
Unless there are players who clearly need to be on the roster ahead of Taylor, the Dodgers will continue to keep him on the active roster. With the way things have gone so far in spring, it’s not like there are any players that are proving they’re more deserving of a roster spot at the moment.
Hyeseong Kim
The Dodgers made a pretty surprising move this offseason when they signed Hyeseong Kim to a three-year contract. They essentially traded away Gavin Lux to open a roster spot for him, so clearly they saw something they liked.
I’ve been pretty vocal about this move and how I have my worries. Kim is fantastic defensively, as he can play Gold Glove caliber defense at shortstop and second base. He also offers a lot of speed on the bases. His bat, however…. that’s a different story.
He hit for average in the KBO but had essentially no power. Coming over to the majors terrifies me. I wrote recently that him finishing the 2025 season with a wRC+ of 70 would honestly shock me. When I say shock, I mean I’d be surprised if it’s that high. I just think it’s going to be a major struggle at the plate for him.
Another small sample size, but Kim is 1-for-12 at the plate this spring with five strikeouts. His lone hit was essentially a swinging bunt that he beat out with his speed. He has looked outmatched and flat out terrible. Again, it’s such a small sample size and he has to get accumulated to the league.
There have been rumblings that Kim could begin the season in the minors, should his struggles continue. Unless other players flat out win the job this spring, I can’t really see that happening. The Dodgers signed Kim because of his defense and his speed. He’s going to be hitting ninth in the lineup. Any offensive production they get will be a bonus.
Now obviously if he continues to look terrible at the plate they might have to strongly consider that option. As things stand right now, I think Kim will be there on Opening Day.
Andy Pages
If you would have asked me a month ago, I would have said Andy Pages is a lock to make the roster. Now, I have my doubts.
Of the players we’re talking about in today’s article, Pages’ bat is clearly the best. There is no close second. As a rookie in 2024, Pages showed a lot of flashes at the plate. He hit 13 home runs and posted a 100 wRC+, exactly league average.
So far this spring he’s 2-for-9 with a home run. Again, another small sample size. The issue for Pages is his glove… and it’s a pretty big one.
Ideally, Pages would play right field for the Dodgers. He has the arm for it and defensively he’d be just fine out there. The issue is that both corner outfield spots are occupied, meaning Pages’ only route towards playing time with the Dodgers is in center field. That’s not ideal, considering Pages is terrible out there.
If you saw any games of Pages playing center field last year, you’d know it was a major struggle for him. To put it as kindly as I can, he was horrible out there. So far in spring, he’s looked just as bad.
Despite having a great bat, Pages’ inability to play center field might cost him a spot. I wish there was another way, but this is the only path barring an injury to Teoscar Hernandez or Michael Conforto.
Personally, I don’t really care how bad Pages’ defense is in center field. His bat is legit and he crushed left-handed pitching last year. He owned a .917 OPS and 157 wRC+ against left-landed pitching in 2024. Keep him on the roster and start him against LHP. Have him in center field with Tommy Edman at second base.
The Dodgers are going to be good enough where they can afford terrible center field defense a few times a week.
James Outman
This one pains me. For my Substack readers who have been in the Twitter chat for a few years, we’ve had a soft spot for James Outman going all the way back to 2022. We’ve been on his bandwagon for years.
Sadly, he just may be a lost cause at the plate.
Early sample size, but so far this spring Outman is 2-for-13 with nine strikeouts. In 53 games with the Dodgers in 2024, Outman hit .154 with a 54 wRC+. He was one of the worst hitters across all of baseball.
In an ideal world, we could combine Pages’ bat with Outman’s glove. Unfortunately, we can’t do that.
If Outman were to make the roster it would be solely because of his defense in center field. He’s great out there and would be a valuable asset. Maybe he could turn things around at the plate? The early reports aren’t encouraging, though.
He doesn’t have to be the bat that finished 3rd in Rookie of the Year voting in 2023. He doesn’t have to hit 23 homers while posting a 118 wRC+. Now, those would be really nice, but the Dodgers don’t need that. If Outman could literally just be league average at the plate (100 wRC+) the team would gladly take that.
So…. what do the Dodgers decide?
Your guess is as good as mine.
As you can see, the options aren’t all that encouraging at the moment. All four players have been pretty terrible this spring. There isn’t a player who has earned it up to this point, let alone two players.
What SHOULD the Dodgers do? Well, they should DFA Chris Taylor and put Andy Pages and Hyeseong Kim on the Opening Day roster. That would be what is best for the team.
I just can’t see the Dodgers DFA’ing Taylor, so here’s what I think they will do.
I think they’re going to open the season with Taylor and Pages on the active roster, while Kim begins the season in the minor leagues working on his swing. If Kim looks good in OKC, he’ll eventually get called up. At that point, I would guess he’d get called up for Pages unless there is an injury.
It’ll be interesting to see what the Dodgers decide to do in a couple of weeks. Maybe two of these players really take off and make the decision easy. I guess we’ll have to wait and see.
Firstly, great write-up.
Do options factor into the decision-making here? If Pages needs to be optioned (since he ended the season on the BL roster last year), I'd suspect he gets a spot for now and then is optioned when Kim is ready.
If that doesn't matter, my guess is Taylor/Kim for the opening day in Tokyo, and I would not be surprised if Kim is sent down after that series. Pleasing KBO fans and showing Kim the respect that they believe in him.
Every game\inning Pages doesn't figure it out in Center Field are innings off of Starter’s elbows or shoulders. Outman may still be working on getting his swing back; but he won't be dropping or miss reading ball routes. Causing an easy single or pop fly become a triple. Those turn into ERAs…