The Los Angeles Dodgers have made some shocking moves this week. They cut ties with Chris Taylor and Austin Barnes, the team’s two longest-tenured players. They could move on from another veteran soon.
Miguel Rojas has been a bench player for the Dodgers this year. He is in his 12th year in the big leagues and could be the next Dodgers veteran to be cut loose. Barnes was designated for assignment to make way for top prospect Dalton Rushing. The team designated Taylor for assignment and opted to keep Hyeseong Kim. FanSided’s Katrina Stebbins thinks the Dodgers could try to move on from Rojas to call up their No.4 prospect, Alex Freeland.
“Rojas could survive until the trade deadline if the Dodgers haven’t already shored up their bench even more, but he could also easily be the next veteran out the door,” wrote Stebbins. “He’s batting .254 with a .612 OPS in 28 games, and the Dodgers have been turning more often to Kiké Hernández in pinch-hitting and substitute scenarios.
“Just like Barnes and Taylor, he’s generally known as a solid clubhouse presence (at least with the Dodgers), but the bat isn’t up to snuff and his defense is the worst it’s been in years,” Stebbins continued. “The Dodgers even have a clear replacement for him in Triple-A in shortstop/utility infielder Alex Freeland, who could easily creep up on Rojas sooner than later.”
Freeland is slashing .279/.377/.424 in Triple-A with three home runs. He has played second base, third base and shortstop this season. The Dodgers have already shown that they are more concerned with chasing a championship than sentiment.
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Rojas has been with the Dodgers for four total seasons. The last three years have been his second stint with the organization. He has played in 255 games and has a .257/.308/.359 slash line. He has hit 12 home runs in that span as well. With Freeland waiting in Triple-A, the 36-year-old could be running out of time with the Dodgers.
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