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The Los Angeles Dodgers are in first place but that doesn’t mean the team is content with the roster.
Despite a winning record, the Dodgers made a pair of dramatic moves last week by cutting a pair of long-tenured veterans who had played roles in both of the team’s recent World Series championships.
On Wednesday, the team cut catcher Austin Barnes to make room for top prospect Dalton Rushing to be called up. And then on Sunday it cut Chris Taylor, who had played more than 1,000 games as a Dodger, to make room for infielder Hyeseong Kim to stick on the roster.
Following that pair of moves, Dodgers president of baseball operation Andrew Friedman addressed the media.
“This has been a very emotional week for all of us,” he said, per The Athletic’s Fabian Ardaya.
The moves might have been a long time coming, given the team’s relentless pursuit of another championship and depth of talent. Barnes has posted a -0.3 WAR mark in 42 at-bats so far this season while Taylor has a -0.5 WAR figure in 35 at-bats.
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Friedman noted that the Dodgers might not have necessarily planned to cut ties with this pair of veterans as the season started but that it became clear the roster could improve by doing so shortly after.
“We didn’t feel like coming into the season, this was something that we would necessarily be doing in May,” he said. “But you learn things and things change and things evolve and play out. We just have a lot more information at this point in May than we did before the season.”
The Dodgers are sure to adjust their roster in some more surprising ways between now and the end of the season. But making room for Rushing and Kim on the roster seemed to prioritize winning over any kind of nostalgic loyalty to the pair of veterans.
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Peter Chawaga is a veteran journalist covering Major League Baseball for The Sporting News. His MLB reporting has included feature interviews with commissioner Rob Manfred and Hall of Fame slugger David Ortiz, salary analysis, player rankings and more. He has covered baseball for Forbes, Yardbarker, Pitcher List, Athlon and other outlets.
With over ten years of newsroom experience, he has previously covered finance, technology, arts, and culture for newspapers, magazines, and websites nationwide. He graduated from Wake Forest University with a degree in English and journalism.
English (US)