Will the Dodgers trade for a new shortstop?
With Mookie Betts out and Miguel Rojas taking over at shortstop, the Dodgers may still look for additional possibilities at the position.
The bad news: Mookie Betts will be out for six to eight weeks due to a fractured left hand.
The good news: The trade deadline is approaching, which means the market for a replacement is just heating up.
Do the Dodgers truly need a new player to fill the void? Perhaps not. Miguel Rojas and Kiké Hernández are waiting in the wings, and Rojas has been playing good defense recently, with a 119 OPS+ this season. Plate performance may leave something to be desired, but it is a start.
Bo Bichette (Blue Jays) and Paul DeJong (White Sox) are the most intriguing. Bichette, while expensive because he isn’t a free agent until 2026, is also having a terrible season at the plate. However, he has hit at least.290 with an OPS+ of at least 121 in his first five seasons in MLB, so there is plenty of potential—if the Blue Jays decide to sell.
In contrast, DeJong would be much easier to sign. He performs well on both offense and defense but also ranking in the lowest 7% of the league in strikeouts, walk rates, and whiff rates.
Whatever decision the Dodgers make, it will most certainly come late—the team’s trades for Yu Darvish, Manny Machado, Max Scherzer, and Trea Turner all occurred near the deadline.
Dodgers’ Links
Love them or hate them, the Dodgers’ new City Connect jerseys contain a lot of thoughtful connections to Los Angeles—and not just Hollywood. Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times thinks the star-spangled version is a huge success.
The other piece of news that has everyone talking is the loss of Mookie Betts and Yoshinobu Yamamoto due to injuries. What exactly does that mean for the team? Jay Jaffee of FanGraphs takes a detailed look at what is currently missing.
The Dodgers have officially signed Taiwanese outfielder Ko Ching-Hsien, according to Francys Romero. The 17-year-old won a $750,000 signing bonus after making an impression at the 2023 Under-18 Baseball World Cup last year.
