11:50 p.m: Outfield prospect Johnny DeLuca is called up by Triple-A to take Thompson’s place in the squad, reports The Athletic’s Fabian Ardaya (Twitter link). Los Angeles selected DeLuca to its 40-man roster during the offseason to avoid his being included in the Rule 5 draft. DeLuca was a 25th-round pick for the Dodgers in the 2019 draft and has hit strong numbers on every minor league stop, including a .329/.373/.571 slash line in his first 75 plate appearances at the Just triple A. His first on-field appearance with the Dodgers marked his major league debut.
Baseball America (17th) and MLB Pipeline (20th) each rank 24-year-old DeLuca among the top 20 candidates for the Dodgers’ deep farm system, with BA seeing him as “a draft or reserve outfielder who the left-hander bats and plays all three outfield spots.” DeLuca is a solid-to-decent defender whose plus-speed helps with both his gloves and his base-stealing (58 shots in 63 attempts during his minor league career). DeLuca started his career as a switch hitter and appeared to be achieving something after becoming just a right-handed hitter. Pipeline’s scouting report mentions his strength and “brute power” at the plate, “and he’s able to hit the ball without sacrificing contact.”
10:39 p.m: Dodgers outfielder Trayce Thompson suffered an oblique abdominal injury during a controlled swing in tonight’s game, manager Dave Roberts told reporters (including). Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register). The severity of the injury is not yet known, but Roberts said Thompson would be placed on the 10-day injured list.
It’s another setback in a difficult season for Thompson, who hits just .155/.310/.366 in 87 plate appearances. The outfielder hit three home runs in his first game of the season and had three hits against the Rays on May 28, but other than that, Thompson has just five hits over his other 79 PA, including an ugly 0-for-36 loss that narrowly ended was snapped with that big game against Tampa. Of course, Thompson’s playing time was cut short because of his troubles, even if the Dodgers have been looking for additional outfield support ever since Mookie Betts spend more time as a midfielder.
Perhaps a dip was inevitable given Thompson’s 2022 numbers far exceeded his otherwise modest careers, but it’s still a disappointment that he couldn’t continue his apparent breakthrough. After Los Angeles acquired Thompson in a cash transaction with the Tigers in June 2022, Thompson became an unexpected contributor, scoring .268/.364/.537 over 239 PA for the Dodgers last season.
Luke Williams, Yonny Hernándezand top view Michael Bush Could all be contenders for another major appearance to replace Thompson. The Dodgers have enough multi-position players that they don’t necessarily need to replace Thompson with another outfielder, but Williams does have some outfield experience. This trio are all in the 40-man roster, so LA would have to take another corresponding step if they want to replace Thompson with someone not currently in the 40-man roster.