The Dodgers released Jason Heyward, per the MLB.com transaction log. It was very likely that Heyward would become a free agent after L.A. designated him for assignment on Thursday.
Heyward’s DFA came as a surprise even for a team that had already jettisoned deadline pickup Amed Rosario. While Heyward hasn’t had a great season, he was an above-average contributor in a platoon capacity a year ago. The veteran outfielder hit .269/.340/.473 with 15 homers in 377 plate appearances in 2023. His numbers are down this year, as he carries a .208/.289/.393 mark across 197 trips to the plate.
Most of that downturn is attributable to a career-low .224 average on balls in play. Heyward’s strikeout and walk profile is essentially the same as it was a year ago. His hard contact percentage is up more than six points relative to last season. The higher exit velocities have come with a spike in ground-balls, though, which isn’t an ideal trend for a pull hitter in his mid-30s.
Heyward is no longer a Gold Glove caliber outfielder, but he remains a solid defender in right field. Statcast has graded him at league average in 434 innings. Defensive Runs Saved has him three runs above par. Another team could view Heyward as a complementary platoon bat who can step directly onto their big league roster.
The Dodgers are on the hook for what remains of Heyward’s $9MM salary for this season. A signing team would only be responsible for the prorated portion of the $740K league minimum. It stands to reason that Heyward’s camp will look for a deal quickly now that he’s on the open market. He’d need to sign elsewhere by the end of the month (on either an MLB or minor league contract) to be eligible for the postseason with a new team.
I thought this was just a procedural move, let him have a few days off “at OKC” and then bring him back on 9/1 when rosters expand.
Does this mean that they will bring Rushing up as the 3rd catcher?
Pages is the likely call up. I think they want a RH bat. Rushing is playing LF now.
A long shot but it could still work out that way. The Dodgers gave him a window to sign a major league contract. If that doesn’t happen he’ll have to shop for a minor league deal, potentially putting the Dodgers back in the frame. It might not make all the difference, but you have to know Freeman would be pestering Friedman about giving his best buddy another chance.
He will simply stay home with his kids and keep receiving his nine million dollar salary paychecks. No way he signs a minor league deal this year.
He said, with zero evidence.
Rushing hasn’t caught since he was promoted to AAA. All left field & a few games at DH
I know Heyward was having a tough year, save for the occassional big hits… but man I wish they would have just faked a knee injury till 9/1 and let him play as the 14th. I don’t really need Andy Pages… he doesn’t move the needle for me entertainment wise and he won’t be on the postseason roster anyways.
Well, I highly doubt they factored in whether or not you need Pages and how he moves the needle for you entertainment-wise haha
Really, you don’t say? I figured they cared about that. LOL… I’m just saying there is nobody important to bring up for September so they could have delayed this and upset fans less.
They may want to give Pages a longer look in case they feel they’ll need to rely on him more in 2025. Or maybe they simply think it’s gotten to the point where he’ll be more helpful in the present than Heyward.
Pages got a really long look this season already. Definitely a work in progress on both sides of the ball. No matter what happens for the rest of this season I have a feeling he’s been penciled in for LF next year.
Wording was bad on my part. My intention in saying a “longer” look was more so to suggest he needed to continue being evaluated in the bigs. 394 PA isn’t nothing but given his performance level and expectations, I don’t think it was enough to make a determination on him.
The heat of a pennant race isn’t the best time to be evaluating a player. This is time is for winning the division and figuring out who belongs on the playoff roster. I’d have guessed Heyward had that edge due to his experience and proven position value. I suppose the Dodgers have information we don’t but I’m kind of mystified by what it might be. Pages being postseason ready doesn’t seem to be it.
“The heat of a pennant race isn’t the best time to be evaluating a player. This is time is for winning the division **and figuring out who belongs on the playoff roster.**”
Also known as a different form of evaluation 😉 Pages is an upgrade over Heyward, so it makes sense to roster the youthful player with a future on the roster who warrants a longer look given the multitude of vet presences. If he wasn’t the better current performer–or even if Heyward were performing better than his results–then of course Pages wouldn’t be worth calling up, but he is in both instances, so they need to evaluate their unknown commodity with a high ceiling rather than just hold pat with a known commodity whose value isn’t very high whatsoever.
Just my two cents.
If I am the Mariners I might try and sign Heyward and option canzone. He’s a veteran and still only 34. Puts the ball in play and plays good defense. .800 OPS last year. I remember when he was a rookie being compared to Junior maybe Griffey and Edgar can get him going again
Only 34? He was a .700 ops player for 7 years prior to last year. As a Braves fan, I get the optimism for heyward. We all got pumped with the tales of his 450+ ft pull power coming up.
Acquiring an OF who could post a .700 OPS would be an upgrade for the Mariners lineup this season.
I remember that. Lot of hoopla for him and Stanton. If I remember correctly they both came up at the same time with lots of power. Heyward never really developed the power tool that he looked like he would.
Puts the ball in play and has good defense.
The article says he has .224 BABIP and his defense is average at best. I like Heyward but his 24 season is peaks and valleys. At least with Taylor he’s already got the valleys covered and we’re waiting for old Chris to turn clutch again.
Key words “last year”, let it go he’s done…great guy but basically offers nothing offensively…time to move on.
Entire career in NL. Goes to the Mariners or another AL team. Change triggers better play?
He wasn’t going to play much, except for pinch hitter. Kiermeier was already getting the platoon starts, and after Pages got sent down the backup had to be a CF anyway. I do worry they will be short a LH bench bat but they were never going to drop Kike’ or CT.
Let’s go braves, do the right thing
They have enough jobbers as it is.
Probably a very tough move for the Dodgers to make. The Yankees should take notes and do the same with DJ LeMaheiu
Go get ‘em Yanks! So he can give us the WS speech he gave the Cubs in 2016.
Freddie Freeman lost his best friend from the Team. Up and down career the last 5 or 6 years. Still aa good man and a Class Act!
He’s been bad for at least a decade
Interesting. During the time you say he’s been “bad” his OPS+ was 102 and he won five Gold Gloves.
How about WRC+
Jason Heyward saved the Cubs $100M by convincing Tom Ricketts not to extend Kris Bryant and Javier Baez. $300M there minus Heyward’s $178M is still a net positive.
Vaya con dios, Jason. We will always have the speech.
I hate this part of the business of baseball. He is such a good mentor.
Oh how the mighty have fallen.
Still a rich man. ♂️