The Dodgers placed Jason Heyward on the 10-day injured list prior to yesterday’s game, as an MRI revealed that the veteran outfielder is dealing with a left knee bone bruise. Manager Dave Roberts told reporters (including Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times) that no structural damage was found in Heyward’s knee, so the IL stint might not be too lengthy. This is the second IL visit of the season for Heyward, who already missed about six weeks due to back tightness. Heyward has hit .203/.299/.398 over 137 plate appearances, which translates to exactly league-average (100 wRC+) offense while almost exclusively facing right-handed pitching, plus Heyward has contributed his usual strong defense as a regular right fielder and part-time center fielder.
James Outman was called up from Triple-A to take Heyward’s spot on the roster and his overall role in the Los Angeles outfield mix. After finishing third in NL Rookie of the Year voting last season, Outman got off to such a cold start (.516 OPS in 124 PA) that the Dodgers optioned him to Triple-A in mid-May. With the caveat that the Pacific Coast League is very hitter-friendly, Outman has hit .279/.393/.531 with nine homers in 179 PA with Triple-A Oklahoma City, providing some hope that he has gotten himself back on track. A resurgent Outman would be a big boost for the Dodgers, and if Outman is productive and Heyward doesn’t miss much time, this internal help might factor into whatever plans the club has about adding outfield help at the deadline.
More health news from around the NL West…
- The Padres activated catcher Luis Campusano from the 10-day IL prior to yesterday’s game, and optioned infielder Eguy Rosario to Triple-A in the corresponding move. A left thumb contusion sent Campusano to the IL on June 21, and as expected at the time of the placement, Campusano didn’t miss much beyond the 10-day minimum. The catcher has hit an underwhelming .234/.282/.371 over 220 PA and defensive metrics have painted a rough picture of his glovework, even though Campusano remains in line for the majority of playing time over Kyle Higashioka.
- Ketel Marte is day-to-day with back tightness, as the Diamondbacks announced after the second baseman made an early exit from yesterday’s 10-8 loss to the Padres. Manager Torey Lovullo explained to reporters (including MLB.com’s Steve Gilbert) that Marte has been bothered by his back for a few days, and still played eight innings on Friday before requiring a pinch-hitter in the ninth. The 43-45 D’Backs can only hope that Marte’s back problem doesn’t continue to linger, as the star second baseman has been a big reason why Arizona continues to linger in the wild card race. Marte is hitting .284/.353/.506 with 17 home runs over 380 PA, and while fans recognized this performance by voting Marte into the NL’s starting lineup for the All-Star Game, this back problem might also raise concerns that he could miss the Midsummer Classic.
Let’s go Outman!
No ranting about the Diamondbacks today?
LGDB
Why would I ever rant about the DBacks?
I assume you’re actually talking about me pointing out people’s inability to understand probabilities and to use logic. Which, you are demonstrating here.
White Sox have Erick Fedde and his 3.13 era very available. Jackson Ferris and Payton Martin from the Dodgers farm system gets this deal done today.
When are people going to realize that Fedde is just a roster change away from choking under the pressure of expectations… again
Cbeisbol obviously knows nothing about the game of baseball… adios
What do teams, year after year, expect to get from Heyward?
League-average hitting built around solid defense.
Outman’s a good option, although as the article implies, a .279/.393/.531 slash in the PCL isn’t stellar, especially factoring in he’s 27, repeating AAA sandwiched around a full year of MLB experience. He should be slaughtering pitching at that level.
It always amazes me how Hayward has over 40 bWAR, and yet had so many mediocre seasons with the Cubs. It just shows how good his defense has always been, I’d expect his defense has been solid with the Dodgers. I haven’t seen enough of his time with the Dodgers so I’ll defer to the fanbase.
He isn’t an every day guy anymore (nor has he been for years tbh) but if you put him in the right spots, he is a very effective platoon hitter who plays above average defense
With Heyward’s defensive skills, it’s like replacing an Out Man with an Outman.
Trevor is waiting for Roki Sasaki to come to mlb?
Has he finally given up on trying to be a relevant pitcher again and become an MLB ambassador? That is so nice of him. Does this mean all the trevor people will go away too?
Nice to see Higgy doing well
“Heyward has hit .203/.299/.398 over 137 plate appearances, which translates to exactly league-average (100 wRC+) offense…..”
If that’s league average, then the hitting in the league has become pitiful.
Have you not noticed the pronounced drop in offense across MLB.
Get off your knees and clean your chin.
I imagine Padres are going more with an equal timeshare behind the plate for Higgy and Campusano. He’s still young (for a catcher), but Campusano’s defense is awful, the bat is inconsistent, and he can’t stay healthy.
Both are about equal in my view. Not a bad 1, 2
If Campusano can grow into a better offensive floor, his defensive shortcomings won’t be quite so galling. No need to move off from him yet, and Higashioka won’t keep up this power output.
Higgy has been light years better than campy. Higgy has been crushing.
Higgy is the big surprise of the 2nd Soto trade.
You Padres fans are funny. At the end of May when he was hitting .128 all of you were calling for Higashioka to be cut. Then he has a hot 20 game stretch and he is suddenly the 2nd coming of Johhny Bench.
Higashioka is a good defensive catcher who had a really nice June but it’s doubtful it changes the Padres approach. Campusano’s ceiling with the bat is just too much higher than Higashioka’s.
Maybe but you ride the hot bat and campy’s bat has been ice cold to go along with his terrible defense. I wouldn’t be shocked to see campy traded this deadline.
Why would Preller be stupid enough to trade his only young catcher when the alternatives are career minor leagues or a 34 year old that is a FA at the end of the season? Especially after what they got from Campusano’s bat last season.
Good organizations don’t make decisions based on a one month good or bad stretch. Are you trying to say the Padres are not a good organization?
Another fake injury by Doyers sending someone to IL due to poor play. Dishonest.
sniff sniff sniff
To say Campy is gonna get more playing time over Higgy tells me you haven’t been paying attention to the Padres the last month. Higgy has been on fire. Gonna be 50/50 playing time, if not more towards Higgy.
8 homeruns in 17 games in June and already tying his career highest in a season at 10 HRs in only 37 games. I’d say Padres will be better off giving Higgy more playing time.
Higgy’s bat has been better than Campy’s ever was. And, he’s thrown out 37% of runners attempting steals, while Campy has only thrown out 15%.
Campusano had a 131 OPS+ last season. That is better than Higashioka.
Campusano has a stronger arm and faster pop time. That could be why he only had 37 attempts against him in 53 starts and 495 baserunners vs 31 for Higashioka in 35 starts and 296 baserunners.
Wipe your lips
In sum, these injury updates underscore the thin margins within which teams operate. The ability to manage player health and maintain performance amidst such challenges often separates contenders from pretenders as the season progresses.
I was on the Campo bandwagon to start the year. I’ve since fallen off it. Higashioka continues to be quietly an excellent starting C option – and in my opinion, Friars pitchers throw better to him too. Campo can take backseat.
Trevor Noah?
Trevor Noah is busy doing stand-up for baseball but that Trevor has a better shot at an MLB job than Trevor Bauer.
“…Campusano remains in line for the majority of playing time over Kyle Higashioka.”
Not true. The reporting has indicated the two catchers will have an equal timeshare going forward. Higashioka has played too well not to play him.
You are not really a schmuck. You are more of a shmendrik.
LOL