LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Dodgers ripped off the Band-Aid. Rather than opt for sentimentality and patience for a half-billion dollar payroll, they’ve continued to trim veteran names off the roster.
On Wednesday, it meant cutting their longest-tenured position player in Austin Barnes to give top prospect Dalton Rushing the chance to cut his teeth as the team’s backup catcher. That passed the honor of longest-tenured position player to Chris Taylor, who played 1,007 career games as a Dodger after being acquired in 2016.
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That title lasted four days. The Dodgers cut Taylor on Sunday, clearing the path for Korean infielder Hyeseong Kim to stick on the big-league roster even as Tommy Edman and Teoscar Hernández return off the injured list.
Two of the Dodgers’ mainstays are now gone within days.
“This has been a very emotional week for all of us,” Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said after Taylor was released on Sunday morning.
Thank you Chris for bringing two championships to LA, all the unforgettable moments on and off the field and everything you’ve done for the city of Los Angeles. pic.twitter.com/64yGt7WwDC
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) May 18, 2025
The Dodgers entered Sunday tied for the best record in the National League. The transactions indicated an acknowledgment of the urgency they still feel despite their record.
“We didn’t feel like coming into the season, this was something that we would necessarily be doing in May,” Friedman said. “But you learn things and things change and things evolve and play out. We just have a lot more information at this point in May than we did before the season. I wouldn’t say it was something that we thought was a fait accompli, and was necessarily going to happen. But with where we were, all things factored in, while not easy, we felt like it was the right thing to do.”
Each move was foreseeable. The timing wasn’t.
Barnes’ bat had lagged for years, a downside the Dodgers absorbed because of the veteran backup’s ability to handle a pitching staff and his defense. But as those skilled deteriorated — Barnes ranked dead last among catchers in pop time and arm strength — his time appeared to be running thin. The club still picked up his $3.5 million club option with two other catchers, Hunter Feduccia and Rushing, appearing to be big-league ready. Rushing’s productive bat forced the issue, as did the Dodgers’ belief he was ready for the equivalent of catching finishing school at the big-league level.
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Injuries took a toll on the 34-year-old Taylor, and his fit was so awkward on the Dodgers roster that he hardly played. Through the Dodgers’ first 46 games, he came to the plate just 35 times. The team carried him on the roster to start the season anyway as he entered the final year of a four-year, $60 million contract with $16 million guaranteed.
The emergence of Kim, who signed a three-year deal this winter and exceeded the Dodgers’ modest expectations after a spring training swing change, rendered Taylor expendable. Kim brought a different dynamic with his speed, something the Dodgers have lacked for years.
The new longest-tenured position player on the roster is Max Muncy, who signed to a minor-league deal in 2017, came up in 2018 and established himself as a stalwart. Next is Will Smith, the catcher who debuted in 2019.
Time has flown. The only Dodgers position player with the team who was around for Taylor’s home run to lead off the 2017 World Series is Kiké Hernández, who is in his second stint with the club.
“They’ve been in the middle of some huge moments for this organization,” Friedman said of Barnes and Taylor. “I feel like our culture is in a significantly stronger spot than it was five years ago, and I hope five years from now, it’ll be even stronger. And if that’s the case, their fingerprints are still going to be on that. The lasting impact that those guys have had is real. Again, that’s what made it so difficult and so emotional. But balancing that with our roster and how to win the most games.”
Why now? The state of the National League West requires it. For as strong as the Dodgers’ record is, the San Diego Padres are right behind them. So are the San Francisco Giants. And the Arizona Diamondbacks. (Sorry, Colorado Rockies).
“We saw it in 2021, winning 106 games and not winning the division,” Friedman said. “Our primary goal during the regular season is to win the division. That is what we feel like puts us in the best position to accomplish our ultimate goal.”
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The Dodgers have improved on the margins because they have to. Rushing appears big-league ready, which gives Smith one of the best catcher caddies in the sport. Kim’s path to playing time is slightly complicated when Teoscar Hernández joins Edman back on the active roster, but he’s shown himself to be a useful contributor.
The question is, how urgent do the Dodgers remain? Their pitching staff is again in tatters, with Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow and Roki Sasaki all on the injured list with shoulder trouble. A bullpen that has taken on the most innings in the majors is wearing down with injuries, as well, with Blake Treinen, Evan Phillips and now Kirby Yates all on the shelf.
“Not fun,” Friedman said.
Kershaw represented reinforcement, though he showed signs of rust in his season debut on Saturday. The Dodgers are counting on him to help get them through this fallow period for some of their biggest arms.
Friedman was right. The Dodgers didn’t expect to be in this position in May. But here they are, and they’re showing hints of how they might proceed.
(Top photo of Chris Taylor’s homer in Game 5 of the 2021 NLCS: Sean M. Haffey / Getty Images)
This news was originally published on this post .
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