September 4th, 2022 at 8:00 am 
by Ron Cervenka If ever there were a game to witness the true potential of nearly every position player currently on the National League West first place Los Angeles Dodgers’ (now) 28-man active roster, it was Saturday night’s historic 12-1 win over the NL West second place San Diego Padres at Dodger Stadium.
Of the 12 Dodgers position players who saw action in the lopsided affair, all but four (two starters) had at least one hit, and four others had two or more hits.
Leading the Dodgers hit parade was perennial All-Star first baseman Freddie Freeman, who had three hits, all singles, while driving in a run. Fellow perennial All-Star Mookie Betts in only his fifth game (third start) as the Dodgers second baseman, designated hitter Will Smith, and catcher Austin Barnes each had two-hit nights, with Betts slugging his new MLB career-high 33rd home run of the season. Betts also hit his third triple of the season, which came very close to being an inside-the-park home run. Smith also homered (as did both Turners) while driving in four.
To top things off, 26-year-old Dodgers left-hander Julio Urias picked up his 15th win of the season and lowered his ERA to a National League-best 2.29 in his stellar 6.0 innings pitched on Saturday night. And though the Culiacan, Mexico native has clearly locked up a spot in the Dodgers postseason starting rotation, he said that his focus isn’t there just yet.
“There’s a lot of talent here,” Urías said postgame through an interpreter. “My focus isn’t on [October] yet. We still have a month left in the regular season, and that’s what I’m focused on. We have great talent, and I learn from my teammates every day. We have a healthy competition, and we’re all contributing.”
All contributing indeed. With his team leading 12-1, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts had utility infielder Hanser Alberto pitch the top of the ninth inning. In doing so, Alberto set a new MLB record for most pitching appearances by a position player for an eighth time this season. It was also Alberto’s second appearance in as many games. The extremely popular 29-year-old San Francisco de Macoris, Dominican Republic native retired the Padres in order and picked up his first career strikeout along the way, when he caught Padres All-Star first baseman Josh Bell looking on a blazing 68-MPH fastball.
(SportsNet LA)
All of this said, and with 30 games remaining in the regular season, Roberts and Dodgers President of Baseball Operations Andrew Friedman will soon have to make some very difficult decisions to determine who makes the Dodgers postseason roster and who does not. Of significant concern and despite their extreme popularity among Dodgers fans, outfielder Cody Bellinger and utility infielder/outfielder Chris Taylor have been striking out in career-record numbers; Bellinger 127 times and Taylor 134 times as of this writing. The last thing that a World Series-hopeful team needs are guys who are, quite frankly, designated outs.
Then again, and also as of this writing, Bellinger has hit 17 home runs and Taylor eight, so there’s that to also consider.
Tough decisions indeed.
Play Ball!
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@Dodgers Don’t forget the run saving, game saving plays of which both Bellinger and Taylor are capable. Gold Gloves.
Good point, Plus, Taylor’s versatility makes him a valuable piece for the roster. Also, each playoff roster can change by series — including the ability to swap out players who are injured during a series. I expect the Dodgers will tweak the pitching roster depending on opponent and possibly the bench position players. Right now, I think Bellinger is playing his way off post season rosters, but he has one month to win a spot.
Call me a cynic, but with their 135 and 128 strikeouts respectively, neither Taylor nor Bellinger belong on the Dodgers postseason roster – at least at this point.
That said, and as Jesse notes, heading into play on 9-5-22, both have exactly 29 games in which to turn things around.
That also said, and as Nettie astutely notes, from a pure defensive standpoint, it would be a tremendous loss if neither are on the postseason roster.
This is why Andrew Friedman and Dave Roberts make the big bucks.
Thankfully the team has Friedman moving the chess pieces around the roster. So many factors to consider, including the opposing teams pitching staffs, clubhouse chemistry, etc.