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Dodgers To Promote Michael Busch

By Darragh McDonald | April 24, 2023 at 3:05pm CDT

The Dodgers are going to promote prospect Michael Busch, reports Jorge Castillo of the Los Angeles Times. Busch will take the roster spot of Max Muncy, who is going on the paternity list. Busch is already on the 40-man roster and won’t require a corresponding move in that regard. The Dodgers are off tonight but start a series in Pittsburgh tomorrow, when the move should be made official.

Busch, 25, was a first round pick of the Dodgers, getting selected 31st overall in 2019. He has since been posting excellent numbers in the minors, showing both tremendous power and patience in the box. He spent all of 2021 in Double-A, walking in 14.1% of his plate appearances and hitting 20 home runs in 107 games. Last year, he split his time between Double-A and Triple-A, hitting 32 home runs in 142 games between those two levels, walking in 11.5% of his trips to the plate. His combined .274/.365/.516 batting line translated to a 118 wRC+. Busch was added to the club’s 40-man roster in November to protect him from being selected in the Rule 5 draft. He’s off to a roaring start here in 2023, hitting .337/.461/.506 through 21 Triple-A games.

If there’s a knock on Busch, it’s on the defensive side of things. A first baseman in college, he’s spent a bit of time there recently but has seen the bulk of his action as a professional at second base. He’s also had short stints at third base and left field. Playing all of those different positions is less a reflection of versatility and more a suggestion that he’s not really a strong defender and is a work in progress as the Dodgers try to find a home for him in the field. Some evaluators have compared him to the player he’s replacing today, Muncy, as both players combine power and plate discipline with some degree of defensive versatility.

The Dodgers had a relatively modest offseason by their standards, letting notable players depart while signing various veterans to one-year deals. That’s allowed them to give some runway to various younger players, such as Miguel Vargas, James Outman, Michael Grove and Ryan Pepiot, though the latter two are now on the injured list. Busch will be latest youngster to get a crack at the big leagues.

Coming into this year, Busch was ranked around the middle of many top 100 prospect lists, including Baseball America, MLB Pipeline, FanGraphs and Baseball Prospectus. The first two of those are potentially significant, given the rules under the new collective bargaining agreement. It’s too late in the season for Busch to get to a full year of service time the traditional way, but his status as a top prospect provides him with an alternate path. Under the new CBA, players with less than 60 days of service time that are on two of the preseason top 100 lists of Baseball America, MLB Pipeline or ESPN can earn a full year of service regardless of when they were called up if they finish in the top two of Rookie of the Year voting.

That may end up being a fairly moot point in this case, as it seems possible that Busch will only get a brief stay in the bigs while Muncy is on the paternity list. But if he somehow manages to stick around and perform well enough to get some decent Rookie of the Year votes, he could get himself to that full year. He didn’t crack the top 100 at ESPN but the BA and MLB Pipeline ranks are enough to get that on the table.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

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Los Angeles Dodgers Newsstand Top Prospect Promotions Transactions Max Muncy Michael Busch

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View Comments (53)

Comments

  1. Ace_

    1 month ago

    Congratulations and the Dodgers have around 4 billion reasons to move the team if the city/state of Los Angeles doesn’t build/pay for a new stadium for them by 2032.

    Reply
    • riffraff

      1 month ago

      Muncy has about 259 million reasons to test free agency….did I do that right ace?

      Reply
      • Longtimecoming

        1 month ago

        Just gotta love the Ace man. He can be my wingman anytime – LOL. No, seriously if anyone ever figures out what this guy is taking about let me know.

        Reply
    • chasecrane888

      1 month ago

      So everyone needs a new stadium?

      Reply
    • amk1920

      1 month ago

      Dodger Stadium isn’t a dump like the Oakland Co.

      Reply
  2. deGrom Texas Ranger

    1 month ago

    Now, all he needs to do is face MacKenzie Gore. With pitchers no longer hitting, there won’t ever be a true Bush vs Gore matchup for quite a while now.

    Reply
    • pt57

      1 month ago

      Terrance Gore v. Matt Bush?

      Reply
      • deGrom Texas Ranger

        1 month ago

        I don’t see any stats for him in 2023, though. https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/g/gorete01.shtml
        Did this matchup ever happen, though?

        Reply
        • is83

          1 month ago

          There were the epic Dave Bush v Tom Gor(zaleny) battles of a decade ago.

    • phillyphan81

      1 month ago

      Well played sir

      Reply
    • acoss13

      1 month ago

      Gore is too busy chasing ManBearPig. Excelsior!

      Reply
      • sfes

        1 month ago

        I’m thuper therial you guys

        Reply
    • StreakingBlue

      1 month ago

      You mean Busch

      Reply
  3. Oldguy58

    1 month ago

    They are going absolutely nowhere. The thought they would float the “we will move” threat will never happen and is laughable. Their ownership group has well over $325 billion, build your own stadium. Hey Oakland will be looking for a team maybe they can go there

    Reply
    • larry48

      1 month ago

      la Dodgers own their own stadium already and all concessions.

      Reply
  4. Monkey’s Uncle

    1 month ago

    Busch should be a Cardinal.

    Reply
    • Fernando Ringworm Jr.

      1 month ago

      National*

      Reply
    • Zerbs63

      1 month ago

      Busch the beer company should be boycotted

      Reply
      • deGrom Texas Ranger

        1 month ago

        What did they do?

        Reply
        • kdevry

          1 month ago

          Got weird

        • deGrom Texas Ranger

          1 month ago

          Ah! The man who decided life is better as a woman… Tbh, I don’t blame this individual for thinking that.

    • acoss13

      1 month ago

      He’d make good money in St. Louis with that last name, lots of advertising ideas lol

      Reply
  5. HalosHeavenJJ

    1 month ago

    First Mookie now Muncy.

    Must be something in the water in the wives section up there ha ha.

    Reply
    • FarhanFan22

      1 month ago

      Brusdar Graterol is going on the paternity list too. 9 months ago is around the all-star break. Timelines checkout

      Reply
    • BlueSkies_LA

      1 month ago

      Yeah these players sure aren’t planning their families around the baseball season. What’s up with that?

      Reply
      • HalosHeavenJJ

        1 month ago

        Exactly. February and March, guys.

        Reply
        • BlueSkies_LA

          1 month ago

          November, December, January too!

    • lamars

      1 month ago

      You forgot Evan Phillips, he will be activated today.

      Reply
  6. FarhanFan22

    1 month ago

    Max Muncy is having another baby? That means Madison Bumgarner gets a sibling.

    Reply
    • acoss13

      1 month ago

      Bumgarner’s too busy planning his rodeo side hustle, well not really a side hustle now, but now he does not have to use a pseudonym for cover!

      Reply
    • Terry B

      1 month ago

      Underwater birth in the Bay??

      Reply
    • Terry B

      1 month ago

      Glad Busch getting a shot, albeit it may be a short stint but I’m very anxious to see him at the big league level, he’s shown he’s outgrown the minors, he belongs with the big boys, if nothing else Dodgers can showcase him for possible trade.

      Reply
  7. Just Bob

    1 month ago

    Phillips is also on paternity leave too

    Reply
    • differentbears

      1 month ago

      And going on bereavement leave after that. I do hope it’s that his great grandfather died at 107, and not something more tragic.

      Reply
  8. Sourbob 3

    1 month ago

    See, this is what you’re supposed to do when a guy destroys AAA two years in a row, even if he is a 25 year old first baseman: promote him.

    coughMERVIScoughcough

    Reply
    • acoss13

      1 month ago

      Nah, let’s keep running Hosmer at first, that’s more sensible.

      Reply
  9. SODOMOJO

    1 month ago

    Muncys got 11 already? What is this, ‘98?

    Reply
    • Dorothy_Mantooth

      1 month ago

      Muncy has 11.5M this year. Should be more than enough money to support their second child.

      Reply
      • SODOMOJO

        1 month ago

        That’s a lot of money, and a lot of home runs. Are his children goblins too?

        Reply
        • Macbeth

          1 month ago

          I love reading about things that I saw in motion at 9am this morning at work.

          In my business we interact with the teams regularly and it’s cool tobsee the ripple effects.

          Last year I was there to watch Josh Hader stomp to his transportation 3 hours after he was shipped to SD.

        • SODOMOJO

          1 month ago

          Flight industry? Travel agent?

        • acoss13

          1 month ago

          11 home runs and we’re not even done with April. Well, he might not get another in April seeing how he’s going on the paternity list. What is that like 7 days?

        • Macbeth

          1 month ago

          Hospitality.

        • Macbeth

          1 month ago

          Like I will literally see every single team this year. It’s the best part of my job.

  10. RodBecksBurnerAccount

    1 month ago

    Nice to see this kid finally get a shot

    Reply
    • SODOMOJO

      1 month ago

      One of those kids who basically lost a year of development in 2020.

      Reply
      • RodBecksBurnerAccount

        1 month ago

        That and he has done nothing but hit since being drafted. The logjam in front of him is finally clearing up.

        Reply
  11. niel.marshal

    1 month ago

    What happen with Kody Hoese? Drafted by the Dodgers before Busch (25th overall)

    Reply
    • differentbears

      1 month ago

      In 142 games of AA ball, he’s got a .549 OPS. The bat hasn’t come along at all.

      Reply
      • SeñorTortas

        1 month ago

        Yep. Hindsight is 2020 but imagine if the Dodgers drafted Shane McClanahan with the 30th overall pick in 2018 instead of Ginn, then used their 25th overall pick on Busch in 2019 instead of Hoese. Woof.

        Reply
  12. standuptriple

    1 month ago

    Busch should stay and hang around with the team and give trayce his walking papers we got too many outfielders anyway

    Reply
    • Terry B

      1 month ago

      Exactly, Trayce should’ve be gone along time ago! The hour glass on Thompson is about to run out…Please and thank you!

      Reply
  13. yogineely

    1 month ago

    I saw this kid in the cape cod league and happy to see him make it to the dodgers

    Reply

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