Where Will Dodgers Play Josue De Paula During First Stint In Big Leagues?
· Yahoo Sports
The Los Angeles Dodgers are making an unprecedented move to call up Josue De Paula from Double-A.
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Under Andrew Friedman, no position player has ever been called up directly from Double-A until now. The Dodgers are placing Shohei Ohtani on the 15-day injured list after about a week of trying to manage his injuries without shutting him down. The team has confirmed that De Paula will replace him on the active roster. Dave Roberts revealed that De Paula will get most of the work at designated hitter moving forward.
"With Ohtani sidelined, De Paula will take the 'lion’s share' of reps as the team’s DH, Roberts said," wrote The Athletic's Katie Woo on Thursday. "De Paula could also spell others at the corner outfield spots, though with Teoscar Hernández playing well and the team trying to find late-season lightning in a bottle with Kyle Tucker, that option seems less likely."
Ohtani is the everyday designated hitter when he's healthy, so that spot has been locked in the lineup ever since he signed with the Dodgers. With him out, the Dodgers do have some fluidity there. If Dalton Rushing were also not on the injured list, there would be an opportunity for him to get a ton of work as the designated hitter with Ohtani out.
However, given the fact that Rushing and Ohtani are out, it is the perfect storm for De Paula to make his debut. He is not a terrific defender, so calling him up to replace Ohtani allows him to focus solely on hitting, which he has excelled at.
In 124 games for Double-A Tulsa, he has a .303/.401/.547 slash line with 27 home runs, 37 doubles and 31 stolen bases.
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