LOS ANGELES -- For part of the offseason, it appeared Miguel Vargas was setting up to be the Dodgers’ third baseman in 2023. That thought became even more of a reality once Justin Turner signed with Boston on a two-year deal in December.
But instead, president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman and general manager Brandon Gomes said Wednesday that Vargas is expected to handle the second-base duties for the Dodgers this season.
“Vargy has been taking a ton of reps at second, some at third, but we think at this point that’s his focus and that’s trending really well,” Gomes said. “He’s a great athlete and he’s working incredibly hard.”
Vargas has been one of the players that has spent the most time at Dodger Stadium this offseason and as we now know, he’s expected to be part of the team’s Opening Day roster and will get the majority of his reps at second base.
Now, Vargas will have to prove he’s capable of handling the position on a nightly basis. He believes second base is his best position and it’s the spot he enjoys the most, other than the batter’s box. By having Vargas at second, the Dodgers are keeping Max Muncy at third base, a position at which Los Angeles rated Muncy very highly last season.
Muncy and Vargas could alternate positions from time to time, but with some of the new shift rules, the Dodgers believe having Vargas and Muncy at second and third, respectively, gives them the best infield defense, an area of question heading into Spring Training.
“I think Muncy is a great athlete, personally. He always graded out well,” Gomes said. “Vargas is our second- or third-fastest guy on the team, which is probably not appreciated at all. So he’s also a good athlete. It’s more about getting him reps and getting his feel at second base. I think a combination of it all is really strong.”
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Joining Muncy and Vargas in the infield is Gavin Lux, who, barring a late move, is the Dodgers’ starting shortstop for the upcoming season. As we wrote last week, Lux has gained nearly 15 pounds of muscle and has been a fixture at offseason workouts. After waiting behind Corey Seager and Trea Turner, it appears it’s now time for Lux to show what he can do in the middle of the diamond.
“He’s been working really hard this offseason,” Gomes said. “We feel really good about Gavin and continuing to take another step, as he has over the course of his career, and take a hold of the shortstop position.”
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DIVISION STILL RUNS THROUGH LOS ANGELES? |
Unless Friedman has a late move up his sleeve, the Dodgers didn’t make a big splash this offseason, which has opened the door for some of the teams in the National League West to close the gap -- especially the Padres, who have made plenty of major moves over the last 12 months.
With prediction season coming up, don’t be surprised to see people pick the Padres over the Dodgers in the NL West. The 2022 NL Division Series -- which San Diego won over L.A. in four games -- will certainly influence that, but so will the Padres’ new level of star power.
But if you ask Freddie Freeman, the All-Star first baseman still believes the NL West runs through the Dodgers. At least, until someone beats them.
“The division is still ours until we lose the division, right?” Freeman said. “I think our team is very, very good. Yes, when you lose Trea Turner, everybody sees that. When you lose Cody [Bellinger], who has been such a staple for this organization for such a long time, and obviously, the big red man, Justin Turner, who is just such a special person and special player. … But I still think we have a really good team.”
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DODGERS OPEN UP ABOUT BAUER DECISION |
For the first time since releasing Trevor Bauer following his 194-game suspension for violating the league’s domestic violence policy, the Dodgers met with a small group of reporters to discuss why they made their decision a few weeks ago. Dodgers president Stan Kasten said the organization met with staffers, players, coaches and numerous fans before coming to an “unanimous” decision to release Bauer. The conversations also included meeting with Bauer face-to-face, something they weren’t permitted to do during the entirety of the investigation.
“We had the time to check all our bases, get all the input you could get to make a decision, which we did,” Kasten said. “And that included hearing from Trevor, because we had not spoken to him since the beginning of this.”
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The Dodgers announced their 2023 Major League coaching staff on Wednesday and there was a significant change in roles. Bob Geren, who has served as the team’s bench coach since 2016, will shift over to a Major League field coordinator role. Danny Lehmann, who has been part of the organization since 2015, will now be the team’s bench coach.
Lehmann has been heavily involved in the Dodgers’ gameplanning over the last few seasons.
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