veteran infielder Santiago Espinal Although he is in Dodgers camp as a non-roster invitee, he already appears to have established himself as a leading candidate to break camp with the club. “It’s hard to imagine (Espinal) not being on the team,” coach Dave Roberts said this morning (via Jack Harris of the California Post). A lot can change in the final few weeks of camp, but it’s still notable that Espinal has already caught the attention of his new skipper. Roberts spoke highly of Espinal when the players reported to camp, and the veteran infielder subsequently went 8-for-14 with a double and a stolen base in his first Cactus League at-bat.
Espinal is a versatile right-handed pitching infielder with significant experience at both third base (1,794 MLB innings) and second base (1,621 innings). He also recorded 343 major league frames at shortstop (most of them back in 2020), 114 innings at an outfield corner, and 16 additional innings at first base. This is the kind of defensive flexibility the Dodgers tend to prioritize with their bench players.
Espinal, 31, spent the last two seasons in Cincinnati and struggled at the plate in both. He hit .245/.294/.322 in 719 plate appearances for the Reds, but showed solid defensive ability, especially at the hot corner. He’s more of a second base option for the Dodgers. In other words, it will be a potential complement to right-handed hitters for left-handed hitters. Kim Hye-seongHe is entering the second season of a three-year contract.
Byung-Hyun Kim played the best defense as a second baseman last season, but was mostly protected by left-handed pitchers. Although he has hit well in the 21 left-to-left at-bats the Dodgers have allowed (8-for-21, a double and a home run), Byung-Hyun Kim has also hit nearly 31 percent of his 170 at-bats overall and posted poor batting metrics. Espinal is a .291/.344/.409 hitter against left-handed pitchers. In 2021-22, he slashed .282/.340/.382 in all 737 plate appearances for the Blue Jays.
Second base ultimately goes to a versatile player. tommy edmanHowever, he is expected to start the season on the injured list as he continues to recover from ankle surgery in November. Byung-Hyun Kim’s excellent defense gives him a strong chance to secure a full-time job as an interim second baseman despite being a veteran. Miguel Rojas As with any well-known prospect, alternatives are available. Alex Freeland.
Having Espinal on the roster to break camp will make it easier for the Dodgers to get Freeland’s daily at-bats back in Triple-A. The switch-hitting 24-year-old was a third-round draft pick by Los Angeles in 2022 and is a year removed from Baseball America and MLB.com’s rankings of baseball’s top 100 prospects. He hit a respectable .263/.384/.451 (115 wRC+) in Triple-A last season, but hit .190/.292/.310 with 35 strikeouts in 97 MLB games.
