D-Backs Trade Alek Thomas To Dodgers
The Diamondbacks and Dodgers announced a trade sending center fielder Alek Thomas to L.A. for minor league outfielder Jose Requena. The Dodgers will assume the approximate $1.4MM remaining on Thomas’ $1.9625MM arbitration salary. He’ll reportedly be optioned to Triple-A Oklahoma City, while the Dodgers designated fellow outfielder Michael Siani for assignment last night to open a 40-man roster spot.
Arizona designated Thomas for assignment last week when they called up top outfield prospect Ryan Waldschmidt. The Dodgers take a flier on the 26-year-old, a former second-round pick who was one of the better prospects in MLB when he debuted in 2022. He’s a highly-regarded center fielder who had hit at every stop in his minor league career. That hasn’t carried over against MLB pitching, as Thomas has been a well below-average hitter over his four-plus seasons in the big leagues.
Thomas is an extremely aggressive hitter, ranking in the top 15 this season in both overall swing rate and chases off the plate. He has particularly struggled against secondary stuff as a result, and the very low walk rates have consistently tamped down his on-base percentage. Thomas has a career .230/.273/.361 batting line in just shy of 1500 plate appearances. It’s the ninth-lowest OBP among hitters who have tallied at least 1000 trips since the start of the ’22 season.
While he hasn’t developed offensively, Thomas has a strong reputation with the glove. His sprint speed and defensive grades have dipped slightly since he suffered a left hamstring strain early in 2024, but he still rates as an above-average defender and baserunner.
The D-Backs have considered trades of both Thomas and Jake McCarthy for a few seasons. They’re now both gone to division rivals, as they shipped McCarthy to Colorado over the offseason. Waldschmidt and Jorge Barrosa are manning center field between Corbin Carroll and Lourdes Gurriel Jr.
Thomas still has a minor league option remaining, so he’ll begin his time in the L.A. organization in Triple-A. The Dodgers are operating without a true backup center fielder behind Andy Pages, but they can’t option Santiago Espinal or Miguel Rojas. Although fourth outfielder Alex Call is a better fit in a corner spot and has a couple options remaining, he’s hitting well in a limited role as a right-handed platoon player. The Dodgers should also get Kiké Hernández back from the injured list two weeks from now.
The Dodgers spend a couple million dollars to swap in Thomas for Siani as a fifth outfielder. In addition to the salary obligations, they’ll also pay just over $1.5MM in luxury tax commitments. That’s of little concern for the Dodgers, who can retain Thomas via arbitration for at least two more seasons. He needs to spend another 20 days on the MLB roster in 2026 to surpass four years of service time, which would keep him on track for free agency after the ’28 campaign. If he spends at least 20 days in the minors, he’ll be out of options next year.
Siani is also a speed and defense center fielder. He bounced around the league via waivers over the offseason, twice being claimed by the Dodgers. He has been on optional assignment all season, batting .225/.355/.303 without a home run while striking out 30 times in 107 plate appearances in Oklahoma City. He’s also in his final option year and will be traded or placed back on waivers within the next five days.
Requena is a 17-year-old who hasn’t played a professional game. Listed at 6’3″ and close to 230 pounds, he’s a right-handed hitter who signed as an amateur out of Venezuela in January. Ben Badler of Baseball America unsurprisingly wrote at the time that Requena is a corner outfielder whose profile is built on raw power and plus arm strength. He’ll likely make his professional debut in the Dominican Summer League.
MLBTR’s Steve Adams first reported that Thomas was being traded to the Dodgers. Fracys Romero confirmed that Requena was the return. Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic reported that the Dodgers were assuming Thomas’ salary, while Jack Harris of The California Post confirmed he’d be optioned to Triple-A. Image courtesy of Mark J. Rebilas, Imagn Images.
Dodgers Activate Mookie Betts
May 11th: Betts has now been officially reinstated, with Freeland optioned as the corresponding move. Jack Harris of the California Post reported earlier today that Freeland would be sent down for Betts.
May 10th, 10:55pm: The Dodgers and Espinal renegotiated the 45-day deadline attached to the advanced consent clause in Espinal’s contract, Katie Woo writes. Under the previous clause, the Dodgers could have released Espinal within the first 45 days of his contract and owed the infielder only the prorated portion of Espinal’s $2.5MM guaranteed salary. The reworked clause pushed forward that 45-day deadline, which Woo views as a sign that Espinal will be kept on the active roster, so Kim or Freeland will be optioned upon Betts’ return.
3:34pm: Mookie Betts has been out for over a month with a right oblique strain, but he is now on the cusp of returning to the Dodgers. After two rehab games, Betts is returning to Los Angeles today and is expected to be activated from the 10-day injured list tomorrow, according to Katie Woo of The Athletic.
Betts only made 32 plate appearances with a 99 wRC+ before landing on the 10-day injured list on April 5. That’s a negligible sample size on its own, though it also mirrors Betts’ diminished offensive output in 2025. In 150 games, he batted .258/.326/.406 with a 104 wRC+. That still made Betts an above-average hitter, but not to the heights he has set in his career. Betts won the AL MVP award with the Red Sox in 2018 and was at least 31% better than average by wRC+ in every season from 2019-24. It’s hard to criticize a hitter for merely being slightly above average, of course, and Betts’ track record gives the Dodgers plenty of confidence that he can return to normal as he distances himself from this injury.
There is also reason to believe Betts was unlucky last year. For one thing, he batted just .258 on balls in play, well below his career BABIP of .299. While Betts’ 89.1 MPH average exit velocity and 35.8% hard-hit rate were both lower than in 2024, his batting average, slugging percentage, and wOBA were all 9-16 points lower than their expected values.
Betts’ relative lack of offensive pop was offset by his superb defensive work at shortstop, and of course he was still a big contributor to the Dodgers’ second consecutive World Series victory. Even this year, losing Betts for over a month hasn’t slowed Los Angeles down, as the 24-15 Dodgers are again atop the NL West.
The duo of Hyeseong Kim and Miguel Rojas have capably filled in at shortstop during Betts’ absence, and Kim in particular has performed well, hitting .301/.366/.411 over 82 PA this season. Rojas will return to backup infield duty once Betts is back at shortstop, leaving the Dodgers to decide between Kim, Santiago Espinal and Alex Freeland at second base. Kim and Freeland have minor league options remaining, while Espinal (who has only a .438 OPS over 34 PA) would have to be designated for assignment if removed from the 26-man roster.
Braves Activate Ha-Seong Kim For Season Debut
The Braves announced this morning that shortstop Ha-Seong Kim has been activated from the injured list. He’s been out all season thus far after suffering a torn tendon in his hand when he fell on some ice in the offseason. Atlanta is off today, but Kim will make his 2026 debut in tomorrow’s game. Outfielder Eli White has been placed on the 7-day concussion list in a corresponding move. White made an outstanding catch to rob the Dodgers’ Max Muncy of a bases-clearing double yesterday but crashed face-first into the right field wall upon making the grab (video link).
The 30-year-old Kim is in his first full season with Atlanta. He finished the 2025 season in a Braves uniform after coming over via an August waiver claim out of the Rays organization. Kim hit .253/.316/.368 in 98 plate appearances down the stretch and did enough to convince the club’s front office to reinvest in a one-year, $20MM deal as a free agent this winter. Kim signed that deal in mid-December, reportedly spurning a four-year, $48MM offer from the A’s in order to bet on himself. He suffered the hand injury a month later.
Kim originally jumped from the Korea Baseball Organization to MLB on a four-year, $28MM deal with the Padres, spanning the 2021-24 seasons. He played all over the infield during his time in San Diego but was primarily a shortstop. Kim has plus speed, a strong glove and a roughly league-average bat. He slashed .242/.326/.380 in 540 games as a Padre (101 wRC+).
Kim’s high floor and solid-if-unspectacular performance in the batter’s box might have netted him a long-term deal in his first trip through free agency were it not for a late shoulder injury in 2024 that required surgery. He signed for two years and $29MM with the Rays but had an opt-out after year one. The Rays waived him in August in hopes of saving some cash, and Atlanta obliged, picking up the remaining $2MM or so on last year’s salary. They’d also have been on the hook for his 2026 salary had Kim forgone the opt-out. Instead, he triggered that clause, returned to free agency, and came out ahead with regard to that option. Clearly, based on the reported A’s offer, he had a good bit more earning power. However, if he has a strong five months to close out the year, he should be able to comfortably top that $28MM he left on the table.
Braves shortstops rank 21st in MLB with a .266/.305/.378 batting line and 92 wRC+ on the season. Nearly all that production has come from Jorge Mateo, but his .309/.345/.455 slash comes in spite of a 32.8% strikeout rate and has been propped up by a colossal .441 average on balls in play that he can’t sustain over a larger sample. Mauricio Dubón has slashed a sharp .271/.331/.410, but he’s struggled while playing shortstop and been more productive when he’s in the lineup as an outfielder. That likely comes down to pure happenstance, however.
Kim’s return will cut into the playing time for both Mateo and Dubón — the former in particular. Mateo hasn’t played anywhere on the field besides shortstop this season. Dubón has logged 134 innings in the outfield (64 in left, 70 in center), 205 at short and another six at the hot corner.
Dodgers Select Wyatt Mills, Transfer Edwin Díaz To 60-Day Injured List
The Dodgers are planning to select the contract of right-hander Wyatt Mills, according to Sonja Chen of MLB.com. Paul Gervase is being optioned to clear space on the active roster. Closer Edwin Díaz is being transferred to the 60-day injured list to make room on the 40-man roster, according to Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register.
Mills has thrown a total of 42 innings in the Majors, all from 2021-22 with the Mariners and Royals. He has a 6.21 ERA in that time, as well as a 19.3% strikeout rate and a 10.4% walk rate. Those results are unspectacular and four years old at this point. Mills missed 2023-24 owing to July 2023 Tommy John surgery, finally returning to pitch for the Red Sox’ Triple-A affiliate in 2025. In 52 innings across 32 appearances (seven starts), Mills had a solid 3.12 ERA but less encouraging peripherals, including a 13.3% walk rate. He has been better in 2026 for the Dodgers’ top affiliate, with a 3.26 ERA and a 2.05 FIP in 19 1/3 innings.
Mills’ promotion gives the Dodgers a fresh arm in exchange for Gervase, who threw 50 pitches in three relief innings yesterday against the Braves. Gervase, who was recalled on May 8th, has only made the one appearance in the Majors this year. Mills figures to fill a similar role as a low-leverage, long-relief option. It’s possible he is being selected only for a short run, at which point he’d be designated for assignment and offered up to other teams on waivers. Mills also has one option year remaining if the Dodgers want to shuffle him down without exposing him to waivers.
As for Díaz, his move to the 60-day injured list was expected. The closer landed on the 15-day injured list on April 20 with loose bodies in his right elbow, and he underwent surgery to remove them shortly afterwards. Díaz is not expected to return until the second half of the season, so it’s unsurprising to see him transferred to the 60-day IL now that a 40-man spot is needed. This is the second time Díaz has been on the 60-day IL in his career, the first being in 2023 when he injured the patellar tendon in his right knee during that year’s World Baseball Classic.
Photo courtesy of Chris Tilley, Imagn Images
Dodgers Reinstate Blake Snell Saturday
May 9: Snell was officially activated to start against Atlanta. He’ll take the roster spot of right-hander Brock Stewart, who’s heading back to the injured list, this time with a bone spur in his foot. Stewart began the season on the IL as he recovered from shoulder surgery. The reliever made just two appearances with the big-league club.
May 8: The Dodgers are going to reinstate left-hander Blake Snell from the 15-day injured list to start tomorrow’s game, reports Jack Harris of The California Post. He’ll be making his season debut, as he’s been on the IL with shoulder fatigue until now.
It’s a notable change of plans. Snell has been on a rehab assignment of late, getting to four innings his last time out. As of two days ago, the plan was for him to make one more rehab outing this Saturday. Instead, he’s going to be making that start at the big league level.
As noted by Katie Woo of The Athletic, the Dodgers have repeatedly said that they prefer Snell to build up to more than five innings before being reinstated. That they are pivoting from that stance perhaps bodes poorly for right-hander Tyler Glasnow, who departed his most recent start due to a back spasm. At this point, it’s still not confirmed if Glasnow is going on the IL or is perhaps just going to skip a start. One way or another, it seems the Dodgers are changing up the rotation outlook they had in place just a few days ago.
The Dodgers have been using a six-man rotation consisting of Glasnow, Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Emmet Sheehan, Justin Wrobleski and Roki Sasaki. As Snell has been rehabbing of late, it has led to discussions about who should be bumped out when he returns. Glasnow, Ohtani and Yamamoto were obviously not going anywhere.
Sasaki has been struggling, with a 5.97 ERA this year. Sheehan hasn’t been much better, currently sitting on a 5.23 ERA. Wrobleski has a 1.25 ERA but not in any kid of way that feels sustainable. He is only striking out 10.7% of batters faced and is getting assistance from a .222 batting average on balls in play and 86.5% strand rate. All three have options and could have been sent down, or perhaps moved to the bullpen. Perhaps the decision can now be kicked down the road if Glasnow is going to miss some time. The Dodgers will likely provide more info as tonight’s game gets closer.
Photo courtesy of Jayne Kamin-Oncea, Imagn Images
Dodgers Claim Charlie Barnes
The Dodgers announced the claim of left-hander Charlie Barnes off the Cubs’ waiver wire. Chicago designated Barnes for assignment earlier this week. To create room on the 40-man roster, Los Angeles shifted Tommy Edman to the 60-day injured list.
Barnes had been up and down a couple of times with the Cubs. He’s made one big-league appearance this season, covering the final three innings of a blowout loss against the Phillies in early April. It marked his first MLB outing in five years.
The 30-year-old Barnes didn’t stick long after debuting with the Twins in 2021, but he put together several solid seasons in the Korea Baseball Organization. Barnes delivered 25+ starts of a low to mid-3.00s ERA in three consecutive seasons with the Lotte Giants from 2022 to 2024. The 2025 campaign didn’t go as smoothly, as Barnes made just eight starts. He posted a 5.32 ERA with his worst strikeout rate and highest walk rate during his time in the KBO.
Barnes showed a slightly different arsenal in his return to the majors. He was sinker-first during his stint with the Twins, followed by a changeup and slider. Barnes only threw a handful of four-seamers during his 38 innings in Minnesota. This time around, he led with the heater. Barnes’ fastball averages under 90 mph, but he used it more than 40% of the time in his outing against Philadelphia. He also mixed in the sinker/changeup/slider trio, while debuting a sweeper.
Edman is working his way back from offseason ankle surgery. He faced live pitching for the first time in early April, stepping into the box against teammate Blake Snell during a simulated game. Manager Dave Roberts has maintained that the club doesn’t expect Edman back until the end of May. The move to the 60-day IL doesn’t come as a surprise.
Dodgers Place Tyler Glasnow On Injured List
The Dodgers placed Tyler Glasnow on the 15-day injured list with lower back spasms. Righty Paul Gervase has been recalled from Triple-A Oklahoma City and will be available out of the bullpen for tonight’s series opener against the Braves.
Glasnow exited Wednesday’s start against the Astros after one inning. He tweaked his lower back while warming up for the second frame. Glasnow downplayed the issue postgame, noting it’s a minor problem with which he has dealt throughout his career. The Dodgers nevertheless opted to shelve him for a couple weeks to allow the issue to subside.
The All-Star righty has worked to a 2.72 earned run average in his first seven turns through the rotation. He’s tied with Chris Sale for sixth in the National League with 49 strikeouts. Glasnow continues to perform at a top-of-the-rotation level when he’s healthy. The durability is the ever present caveat. Glasnow has yet to reach 140 innings in an MLB season. Aside from the shortened 2020 schedule, he has gone on the injured list at least once in each year since 2018.
There’s no indication this will be more than a minimal IL stay. The Dodgers were off yesterday but will play 13 in a row and 19 of the next 20 days. Glasnow will miss at least two starts. Los Angeles will welcome Blake Snell from the injured list to make his season debut tomorrow. Emmet Sheehan is taking the ball tonight in the series opener, while Justin Wrobleski is lined up for the weekend finale.
Skipper Dave Roberts said Roki Sasaki is likely to go on Monday for the series opener against the Giants (via Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic). That’d set up Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Shohei Ohtani for the final two games of the San Francisco series. Glasnow’s injury means the Dodgers can delay a decision on whether to bump Sasaki or Sheehan from the six-man rotation. They’ll play with a nine-man bullpen tonight but will need to option a pitcher tomorrow to activate Snell, so it’s likely to be a one-day stint for Gervase.
The Dodgers’ Lineup Depth Is Shining
The Dodgers have raced to a 23-14 start that has them narrowly above the Padres in the NL West. They're the two-time defending champions and entered the season as near locks to make the playoffs. Everyone knew they'd be good, but they're thriving right now despite generally underwhelming starts from their biggest bats.
Mookie Betts has been out since April 5 with a right oblique strain. Freddie Freeman, Kyle Tucker and Will Smith are all hitting below their career levels, largely because of drops in power. Even Shohei Ohtani hasn't made his usual level of offensive impact. He's still getting on base at a huge .389 clip but is on a 26-homer pace after topping 50 in each of his first two seasons with the team. Ohtani's first full season back on the mound has been exceptional -- he was just named the league's Pitcher of the Month for the first time in his career -- but he has yet to fire on all cylinders at the plate.
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Dodgers Notes: Glasnow, Snell, Hernández
The Dodgers are sending Tyler Glasnow for a precautionary MRI after his early exit on Wednesday afternoon, manager Dave Roberts tells reporters (including Maddie Lee of The Los Angeles Times). The big righty felt a back spasm while warming up in the second inning of today’s start in Houston. The Dodgers got him out of the game at that point.
Roberts said the team doesn’t believe Glasnow will need a stint on the injured list. The pitcher said it’s a recurring issue which he battles a couple times per season. Glasnow had a minimal IL stint in 2024 due to lower back tightness and was scratched from a start last September with the same issue.
Glasnow allowed a leadoff home run to Brice Matthews before rebounding with strikeouts of Yordan Alvarez and Isaac Paredes. He became the 45th active pitcher to reach 1000 career punchouts in the process. Glasnow has fanned just under a third of opponents en route to a 2.72 earned run average over his first seven starts.
The early exit forced the Dodgers to lean heavily on their bullpen. Jack Dreyer, Edgardo Henriquez, Kyle Hurt, Blake Treinen, Tanner Scott and the just activated Brock Stewart all pitched in what turned out to be a blowout 12-2 win. Los Angeles is off tomorrow and none of their relievers topped 27 pitches, so they may not need to make any changes to the staff heading into a weekend series against the NL-leading Braves.
L.A. entered play on Wednesday as one of the two teams (along with the Yankees) whose rotation had a sub-3.00 earned run average. Shohei Ohtani was the National League’s Pitcher of the Month for April. Justin Wrobleski is second in MLB behind Ohtani in ERA. Glasnow and Yoshinobu Yamamoto have each pitched very well. Roki Sasaki and Emmet Sheehan are the two of L.A.’s season-opening starters who have struggled.
That sextet has accounted for all of the Dodgers’ starts so far. That’ll likely change within the next 10 days. Blake Snell, out all season after offseason shoulder fatigue, is set for his final rehab appearance on Saturday with Low-A Ontario (via the MLB.com injury tracker). He’s expected to rejoin the MLB rotation after that, so he should make his season debut in the middle of next week.
The Dodgers have firmly maintained they view Sasaki as a starter even as the former NPB star struggled with walks and home runs throughout Spring Training and the early part of the regular season. They might be more willing to move Sheehan to the bullpen, though he has a much better strikeout and walk profile than Sasaki does. If Glasnow does require an IL stint, that’d take the decision out of the club’s hands.
In other injury news, utilityman Kiké Hernández began a rehab assignment with Triple-A Oklahoma City last night. Hernández began the season on the 60-day injured list after last fall’s elbow surgery. That officially rules him out until at least May 24. Position players can spend up to 20 days on a rehab assignment, so the Dodgers clearly anticipate Hernández being ready to go when he’s first eligible.
Barring a setback, he’ll return to the MLB roster on either May 24 or 25. The Dodgers have used Alex Freeland and Hyeseong Kim as their middle infield tandem with Mookie Betts and Tommy Edman both on the injured list. Santiago Espinal and fourth outfielder Alex Call occupy the final two spots on the bench. Call has a couple minor league options remaining but has been a productive short side platoon bat for the past couple seasons. Espinal, who broke camp after an offseason minor league deal, has more than five years of MLB service and can refuse an assignment to the minors.
Brusdar Graterol Begins Rehab Assignment
Dodgers reliever Brusdar Graterol has been excellent in his career when healthy, but that has unfortunately never been a guarantee for him. The righty went on the injured list five times from 2022-24, most often for shoulder inflammation. That culminated in shoulder surgery in November 2024, and Graterol missed the entire 2025 season as a result. He may finally be making progress toward his return. According to the transactions log at MLB.com, Graterol has begun a rehab assignment at Triple-A.
Manager Dave Roberts confirmed back in February that Graterol would not be ready for the start of the season. The Dodgers aimed to “slow play” him as he worked back from his surgery and placed him on the 15-day injured list on March 23rd to give him more time. The move was somewhat discouraging given that Graterol had previously aimed to return for the second half of 2025 and did not achieve that. When viewed from that lens, his starting a rehab assignment is especially welcome news for both Graterol and the team.
The 27-year-old’s last healthy season came in 2023, and it was easily his most productive. Graterol had a shiny 1.20 ERA in 67 1/3 innings across 68 appearances that year and walked just 4.7% of opposing hitters. His 18.7% strikeout rate was lower than usual for such a hard-throwing pitcher, but Graterol nonetheless dominated by racking up groundballs an astonishing 64.4% of the time. Injuries limited him in 2024, although Graterol returned for 7 1/3 innings at the end of the year and made appeared in three games in that year’s World Series, including two scoreless appearances. Time will tell if Graterol can retain his high velocity and groundball tendencies after such a long layoff.
As was the case when they placed him on the IL, the Dodgers can afford to take it slow with Graterol’s rehab. After having a shaky bullpen for much of 2025, this year’s group is performing better. Dodgers relievers rank 13th in the league with a 3.94 ERA, and their 16.7% K-BB rate ranks second behind only the Blue Jays’ bullpen. Tanner Scott is rebounding nicely with a 2.03 ERA in 13 1/3 innings. Jack Dreyer, Will Klein, and Alex Vesia are also doing well, helping to lengthen a bullpen that is missing Edwin Diaz until the second half. The eventual return of Graterol will add a groundball specialist to the mix for the middle to late innings. Graterol is in his final year of club control and will be a free agent in 2027.
Photo courtesy of Wendell Cruz, Imagn Images