Wednesday, May 14, 2025
Copyrighted by Sarah Morris, 2025
The Los Angeles Dodgers released Austin Barnes, so they can promote Dalton Rushing. Barnes has had a great career with the Dodgers, beginning in 2015.
Barnes has been a great backup catcher. Never known for his offensive ability, he worked well with pitchers. He framed pitches well. His knowledgeable personality got along with pitchers well. He and Clayton Kershaw worked well in many victories. Without Barnes, the Dodgers probably wouldn’t have won the 2020 World Series, breaking a 32-year drought.
This year, Barnes hit better than in the past. He had .214 batting average, no home runs, 2 RBI, and a .518 OPS.
At 35, Barnes’ catching skills have deteriorated. He has an elite pitch-framing skill but wouldn’t be as important as it was with the automatic strike zone coming; he can’t throw a baserunner out. The young teams like the Arizona Diamondbacks were running wild when Barnes caught.
The Dodgers want to rest Will Smith twice a week to keep him fresh after the All-Star break. Now, Smith has a .330 batting average with 3 home runs, 21 RBI, and a .915 OPS. Without Teoscar Hernández, the Dodgers felt that they couldn’t rest Smith without damaging the offensive production.
Rushing is the top prospect in the Dodger organization. He has performed expertly in Triple-A with a .308 batting average, 5 home runs, 17 RBI, and a .938 OPS. He can catch and play left field and first base. Freddie Freeman, who is playing great, is still dealing with an ankle that requires hours of treatment both before and after every game. Although Freeman is hard to get out of the lineup, he may need to rest.
The Dodgers will miss Barnes’ tenacity. However, the team needs to have a better backup catcher who can play first base and left field.
