Sept. 2: The move is official. Lux’s contract has been selected from Oklahoma City, with Tyler White (whose season is over) moving to the 60-day injured list to open a 40-man roster spot. The Dodgers also announced that they’ve reinstated lefty Julio Urias from the 60-day injured list and recalled right-hander Josh Sborz from Triple-A.
Sept. 1: The Dodgers are calling up star prospect Gavin Lux, manager Dave Roberts told reporters (including Jorge Castillo of the Los Angeles Times). Lux will make his MLB debut tomorrow, starting at second base for the NL West leaders.
Max Muncy’s wrist fracture could have been the catalyst for the beginning of Lux’s time with the Dodgers, as Roberts said at the time that the club would “be more aggressive” with its September promotions if Muncy’s injury proved to be serious. While Muncy is only expected to miss around two weeks with his relatively minor fracture, that was still enough for L.A. to decide that more depth was required at second base.
Of course, it’s not as if Lux himself didn’t do everything he could to force the Dodgers’ hand. Lux has been nothing short of spectacular at Triple-A Oklahoma City this season, hitting .392/.478/.719 with 13 homers over 232 plate appearances. Even accounting for the extremely hitter-friendly conditions of the Pacific Coast League, the numbers were still astounding, and far from out of nowhere given Lux’s already-strong prospect status.
Selected as the 20th overall pick of the 2016 draft, Lux appeared on top-100 prospect lists (ranked 40th by Baseball America, 70th by MLB.com) prior to this season and zoomed up the various rankings as he continued to shred Triple-A pitching — the updated midseason ratings from Fangraphs, MLB.com, and BA all list Lux as the ninth-best prospect in baseball. As cited by the Fangraphs and MLB.com scouting reports, Lux’s hitting potential has been unlocked in the minors (even prior to 2019) by a number of swing changes, including more lift in his swing, as well as incorporating his hands and legs into his action at the plate.
Lux has played the majority of his games as a shortstop, but he also saw a lot of action at second base in preparation for fit into the lineup alongside stalwart Corey Seager in Los Angeles. It’s safe to assume that Lux will get the bulk of time down the stretch, as the Dodgers have the NL West long since wrapped up, and are now merely making adjustments for the playoffs. It certainly isn’t out of the question that Lux could force his way onto the postseason roster if he plays well in September, giving the Dodgers an embarrassment of depth once Muncy returns to their already-stacked roster.
Seager, Cody Bellinger, Justin Turner, and rookie catcher Will Smith look to be the only true everyday players on a Dodgers team that prizes versatility. A.J. Pollock is more or less the regular center fielder and Muncy will presumbly return to regular duty at second or first base when he returns. Beyond those names, Los Angeles boasts the likes of Chris Taylor, Joc Pederson, Enrique Hernandez, Matt Beaty, David Freese, the currently-injured Alex Verdugo, Jedd Gyorko, Kristopher Negron, and now Lux to rotate into the starting lineup and as late-game subs to maximize their chances in various matchups.
Beyond just what Lux can do this season, of course, he also represents a major building block for the future. The Dodgers resisted all trade offers for Lux both this season and in past years, and it’s fair to guess that L.A. has him penciled in at second base for years to come.
The future is here!
The future has been there.
What years have the Dodgers won the World Series?
1988, 1981, 1965, 1963, 1959, 1955
Now Walter you’re just being glib.
Try using Google for the answer bruh…
Good so anyone born in 1989 or later that root for the doyuers need to shut their mouth talking about rings
National League Champs
Pennants Playoffs
Dodgers 23 31
Giants 23 27
Cardinals 19 28
Braves 17 23
Cubs 17 18
2019, 2021, 2027, 2028.
You can’t buy a World Series, but you can certainly buy playoff appearances.
I have Lux in my fantasy keeper league. Hoping he becomes the 2B full time next year.
The future is being schooled by major league pitching
It’s about time!!
they have everything locked up, might as well give him an every day spot this month as an audition for October
Not everything. They’ll want to get the best record in baseball locked down to ensure home field advantage throughout the playoffs
And relief pitching but I’m hoping for an early bounce
Stud
Oh joy! Here comes “future hall of Famer Barry Bonds 2.0”. I bet he hits .220 in the majors.
Yes, prospects are more likely to fail than become future hall of famers. I don’t think anyone saying he is a lock to succeed. Still an exciting player and exciting players in the majors is a good thing for baseball. Not a dodger fan but I hope he does well
You’re fun
Is water wet? Explain in 50 words or less.
I’m a man who believes in the scientific method. He needs to be pushed in to find out.
Water isn’t wet, it makes things wet.
Oh joy you’re posting the exact same thing.
Yeetus: You are the only person comparing him to Bonds or any other greats. You are literally creating your own reason for being pissed off. Why do you do that to yourself?
Troll.
Please cite any sources you have that are calling Lux the next Barry Bonds. Thanks.
Myself, see above. Your welcome
* you’re
I will be at three games this week and very excited to see him!
Nice, you and the Kulos!
bye Luck, hello Lux
Too soon
And wrong sport.
That’s 4 dudes on the roster from the 2016 draft.
Best draft class in a very long time for any team
Very bright future in LA for the Dodgers. Lux, Verdugo, Seager, Rios, Gonsolin, May, Smith, Ruiz, Beaty, and that guy named Cody…
Forgot Buehler and Urias.
White, Peters, and the two they stole from the Reds..Gray, and Downs. This years draft Hoese and Busch in a couple years. The hits will just keep coming. Who has the most homegrown players on their big league roster folks?
Doesn’t mean anything if it doesn’t translate into championships
That being said though, solid homegrown talent is the recipe to win titles and with the amount the boys in blue have, they should setup to be in contention for many years to come
That being said, a team that has won the division ten times in the last fifteen years hasn’t lacked the ability to contend. What they’ve lacked is the ability to go all the way. Relying entirely on homegrown talent is a recipe for coming in second, for many years to come. Fans who think that’s good enough are going to have a ball. The rest of us, not so much.
Ask the 2008 Phillies, 2010 2012 2014 Giants, 2015 Royals, 2016 Cubs and 2017 Astros
Yeah because none of those teams made major acquisitions like Verlander, Chapman, Lester, Zobrist, Cueto, Pence, Lee, Halladay, etc., etc.
Yes developing great players is key to winning these days, but don’t pretend each one of those teams you listed didn’t supplement their roster with outside talent – especially heading into the stretch run.
Exactly. Spotting and developing talent has always been key (arguably even more so back in the Reserve Clause era, when teams essentially owned players they originally signed for their entire careers). Two previous Dodgers ownerships starved that part of the organization, which has been rebuilt impressively under the current front office. But they have a blindspot in making the trades that can close the deal on a season. Teams always have to sacrifice some of the future for the present if they hope to win it all. This FO is averse to that concept, which is why we have so many division wins with no world championships to show for it. Winning those isn’t about having the best farm system or the best 40-50 players, it’s about having the best 20-25 players taking the field in October.
Not pretending. Just stating the fact of having a solid core of young players in place to contend then acquiring the pieces to finish it off
Agreed BlueSky. The best 20-25 man roster come October, playing the best ball
Pitching, pitching, pitching
And timely hitting
It means a better chance to get in the post season. After that it is a crap shoot.
Not really. It isn’t a coin toss. Being prepared actually matters.
Jansen needs to go. Give joe kelly shot at closer job.
And more on the way!
Yes, except the Dodgers screw around with their young guys. Pitchers and hitters. Can’t platoon them, or pitch some out of the bullpen during the entire season. Otherwise shouldn’t be up. Lux, Verdugo should be in the lineup everyday. May, Stripling, Urias in the rotation. At least for next year that is. They mess around with them too much.
Seager is overrated. Hasn’t produced and very injury prone.
He’s missed one season after having Tommy John surgery (130 games last year, the first month of this season), and is leading the NL in doubles in only 112 games. Career OPS+ of 125 at shortstop, and he’s 25 years old.
The power will be back next year, and yet even a recovering version of Seager has produced, and he is from being “very injury prone.”
Watching Seager for 1 series, he is NOT overrated. Dude can play.
Arguments over, Johnny Superscout has given his report.
Please don’t feed the trolls.
Yep 24 with 2 Silver Sluggers. Trash
If he has any role in October the Braves are going to expose this. #chopon
Now that’s funny
Meanwhile, Luis Robert toils in an organization obsessed with service time manipulation.
There’s a small difference between the Dodgers and White Sox right now.
Take a look at Eloy Jimenez and say that again.
You mean the team that’s spent SIGNIFICANTLY more money than every other team in baseball over the last 6+ years doesn’t need to worry about service time? I’m shocked.
the reason for the Dodgers success this year as it has been for the last 70 years is their farm system. yes, they have a big payroll but the farm system continues to produce young talent. LA didn’t go out and pay big FA contracts for Machado or Harper because they didn’t need them. They got outbid for Grienke. But their scouting and development has been outstanding.
This is what a winning team does; bring up a stud, never mind the service time, give the stud a chance to contribute and/or watch how a winning team goes about their business. Lux is about to embark on an amazing journey learning how to play at the top level and contributing to a World Series contender. Great situation for him.
Yes let’s just hope he plays regularly, not like verdugo.
Did they need to add him for Rule 5 reasons in the offseason anyways?
He was a high school draft, so they didn’t need to add him until Dec 20.
What is with the new update about Urias off the 60 DAY IL? Uh he was suspended not injured….
And im pretty sure this still puts them at 41/40… something is missing.
I believe Hill, White, and Alexander are on the 60 day IL , so with Lux and Urias added it comes out to 40/40
That’s correct. The article is wrong, Urias wasn’t on the IL. He was reinstated from the suspended list.
Never mind, you’re right, I was looking at bb ref, mlb.com was more accurate
Alexander and Hill already were on it… and they were already at 40… so 40 plus 2 and minus 1 = 41. I checked with Jason at Roster Resource too and he confirmed they still need to make another move as well.
That move was Alvarez to the restricted list.
Wonder what is going on there. The Dodgers aren’t saying, naturally.
Urias was suspended, no? Not on 60-day DL…
Plus their 40 man roster now has 41… this article has to be wrong.
What’s a DL?
We have a pretty solid core of young guys mixed with some good vets. Management has always made the moves we want them to make but you can see why they’ve held onto these young guys. This kid will be another young star for this team. I worry about his poor defense but I do this he can and will improve and the offense he produces should help make up for that as well until he does improve. Excited to watch him tonight. If the game isn’t blacked out that is lol. Can’t believe DirecTv still doesn’t have the Dodgers games and the contract talks between the two seem to have come to an end with them basically moving in from even trying.
A pretty Lux-orious farm system….
Kudoos to them. Historically they’ve ALWAYS been good at developing their own talent (ghost of Branch Rickey), but that was in the days when they just outspend everybody.
With the restrictions now in place (everybody gets about the same amount to spend, both domestically and internationally), it’s a tribute that they’ve maintained that excellence. And that’s with a historically unfavorable drafting spot.
Agree on all accounts! The scouts they have and the Yankees are the best in MLB. I suppose it is the best that money can buy.
Good to see Lux – will probably split time at 2B and giving Seager some rest down the stretch. Definitely believe Lux is the SS of the future and with Turner getting older (34) Seager can move over to 3B. Turner could then either be moved to an AL team to finish his career as a combo DH/3B or remain with the Dodgers filling the roll Freese now holds.
2020 Line-Up with ages
Taylor 2B (24)
Lux SS (21)
Seager 3B (25)
Bellinger RF (24)
Verdugo LF (23)
Smith C (24)
Muncy 1B (29)
Pedersen CF (27)
Ryu (32), Kershaw (31j, Buehler (25, Urias (23), May (21)
If they could figure out to do something with their bullpen!
Yah, that’s pretty impressive. They’re going to own the NL West for quite some time.
Last outing notwithstanding, Joe Kelly has been really, really good for over two months. Jansen is a concern, but he has flashed some velocity and cutter movement. The Dodgers have time to let him try to figure it out, or let him rest if they want. Baez has been pretty good, and Maeda is in the pen now (which I, at least, really like). And, of course, there’s always Russell Martin and his pristine 0.00 ERA.
I don’t know if Casey Sadler makes the postseason roster, but Julio Urias should figure into the mix. Rich Hill might be a pen guy as well.
The Rich just keep getting Richer – which also includes the Yankees. Both clubs have phenomenal scouting systems that seem to find not just gold nuggets, but gold veins!
It’s always the age-old question: is it scouting? Development? How much of each?
The BA handbook is full of “tools”, guys with MLB skills. That most, if they make it all, turn to into average players, almost interchangeable with each other, seems to indicate that a lot more than some kind of “set” of talent is required. The development staff, and ultimately the individual himself, makes more difference than I think is appreciated.
Well, I know the White Sox really liked Lux in the draft, so I’m going to go ahead and say it’s the development team that’s making the difference.
Both? Lux bulked up and added power. The broadcast today mentioned that Lux gained 40 lbs, and maintained it during the first full season following. Joe Davis seemed to be inferring that it is difficult not to lose some of that weight over the course of a season.
But looking at the overall Dodger culture, they’ve managed to turn good prospects into stars, and turn castoffs into useful or better players (Turner, Hernandez, Taylor, Muncy). Part of that is the Dodgers seeking certain attributes, one example being a good batting eye.
But guys like Lux and Will Smith and Dustin May were drafted early, so while they’ve been developed quite well, they weren’t out of nowhere.
The recent stretch of untouchable Dodger prospects have all seemed to be even better than advertised. But they certainly aren’t perfect, given that they didn’t seem to recognize what Yordan Alvarez might become. I’ve seen quite a few posters over the years complain about the Dodgers refusing to trade their top prospects, and maybe those posters finally understand why.
Urias was activated from the restricted list
Why is Barnes not being called up?
He will be in a day or so. He was within the 10-day window since his last call-up so they had to wait.