Dodgers Invite 16 Non-Roster Players to Spring Training

The Dodgers announced that 16 non-roster players were invited to Major League camp for Spring Training.

The Dodgers deep farm system will be represented at Spring Training, as the Dodgers announced that 16 players would be invited to Major League camp despite not being on the 40-man roster.

A pair of pitchers headline the non-roster invitees, as top pitching prospects Julio Urias and Jose De Leon will each make the trip to Glendale, AZ for Spring Training. They, along with all other pitchers and catchers, are scheduled to report to Camelback Ranch on Feb. 19.

Urias and De Leon are the big names, as they were each named to MLB’s top prospect lists for left and right handed pitchers, respectively. Urias was rated the top left handed prospect, and De Leon the fifth-best right handed prospect. Four other pitchers will also make the trip: Chris Anderson, Lisalverto Bonilla, Brooks Brown and Matt West.

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Joining them early will be catching prospects Kyle Farmer, Jack Murphy and Shawn Zarraga.

The rest of the position players report on Feb. 24, and will be joined by seven non-roster players. Cody Bellinger headlines the position players, as he was recently named the sixth-best first base prospect by MLB.com. Charlie Culberson, who was recently acquired from the Rockies, will also be at Camelback. Culberson missed all of 2015 with a back injury.

Rob Segedin, Elian Herrera, Corey Brown, Alex Hassan and Rico Noel round out the other position players invited to spring training. Segedin was recently acquired from the Yankees for Tyler Olson and Ronald Torreyes, both of whom were on the 40-man. Herrera, who played for the Dodgers in 2012 and 2013, is a versatile player that could pay dividends as a depth piece that can fill in at multiple positions. Brown and Hassan both made appearances for the Red Sox in 2014, but don’t seem to be anything more than minor league depth. Noel, 27, is a bit old for a prospect but his speed could get him to the majors at some point. Noel has stolen 283 bases in six minor league seasons, topping out at 90 steals in 2012 for Lake Elsinore, the single-A affiliate of the Padres. Noel stole five bases in 15 games for the Yankees last year, where he pinch ran 12 times and only had two at bats.

Considering how tight the Dodgers’ 25-man roster is, it’s really tough to see how any of these players can win a job out of Spring Training. If the Dodgers are able to clear a roster spot or two, it’s still unlikely that any of these guys make any immediate impact. Urias, De Leon and Bellinger will hopefully make big impacts in the future, but it’s good for all of these players to get a bit more experience and show what they can do in AZ.