Major League Baseball’s richest somehow got even richer Thursday, as the Los Angeles Dodgers called up shortstop Corey Seager, one of the top prospects in the sport.
Jon Heyman of CBS Sports reported the news.
Seager, 21, ascended to No. 1 in Baseball America‘s midseason prospect rankings and ranked fourth in Sporting News‘ similar June checkup.
Selected No. 18 overall in 2012, Seager has ascended quickly through the Dodgers system. He has split 2015 between Double-A and Triple-A, hitting .292/.343/.486 with 18 home runs and 74 RBI overall. While his numbers have dipped a bit in Triple-A compared to his scorching start in Double-A, Seager’s arrival should come with as much fanfare as that of Dodgers center fielder Joc Pederson, if not more.
The Dodgers have spent the entirety of 2015 relying on 36-year-old Jimmy Rollins at shortstop. Rollins has responded by hitting .222/.276/.358 with 13 home runs and 41 RBI while playing below-average defense. He is on pace for his first negative WAR season since a 14-game cup of coffee in 2000, according to FanGraphs‘ formula.
Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports said the Dodgers plan on playing Seager, noting it may be related to third baseman Justin Turner’s taking a pitch off his hand Wednesday:
While Seager has spent the bulk of his career at shortstop, he’s also put in time at third base.
Of course, it’s entirely unclear how much time Seager will get and how it will affect Rollins. The Dodgers are still in the midst of a pennant race. Managers tend to err on the side of caution when a World Series is involved; it’s possible Rollins continues to get playing time well into October despite his poor performance.
Seager might not have a Yasiel Puig-like debut either. As his numbers in Triple-A show, Seager took some time to acclimate to the increased competition. That will only be more difficult as teams try their best to keep baseball’s highest payroll away from the sport’s pinnacle.
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