Dodgers: Projecting This Season’s September Call-Ups

Non-Roster Possibilities 

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Walker Buehler– At 23 years old, Buehler has impressed thus far at the minor league level. After throwing to a 1.10 era at Class A Advanced and a 3.49 era at AA, he was promoted up to AAA Oklahoma City. In his 3 starts, he has a 6.35 earned run average but has struck out 17 in 11 innings. Buehler is a serious candidate to make an impact on the September team, despite not yet being on the 40 man roster. Cesar Becerra mentioned yesterday that we might see him in the majors sooner rather than later. Although it’s difficult to see him making an impact at the major league level as a starter, he certainly has the pitching presence to make an impact out of the bullpen with his electric arm.

Alex Verdugo– With Verdugo it’s not a matter of if, but when he will hit at the big league level. By being incredibly selfish with him at the deadline, the front office maintained their goal of holding onto Verdugo while still getting elite talent. In 98 games at AAA this year, Verdugo owns a slash line of .314/.384/.426, easily good enough to slot into a major league lineup. While he’s not really a big power guy, he could end up being a decent lead-off man for the team one day. It wouldn’t surprise anyone in the league to see him up by mid-September. The big reason why he hasn’t been called up this season is that it’s hard to find him consistent playing time in the majors.

Yadier Alvarez– Alvarez was another guy the front office was very selfish with at the trade deadline. In three games at AA, Alvarez has thrown a 2.84 era and struck out 18 over 12 2/3 innings. Alvarez might be a long shot for the September roster at just 21 years old and less than three games past A ball, but there’s always a chance with someone of his talent level. I don’t see him contributing as a starter, but it’s feasible to see him come out of the bullpen with his electric arm.

Yusniel Diaz– Diaz has played only five games about A ball, so he falls into the same category as Alvarez. But Diaz has still produced, hitting at .278 across Class A Advanced and AA. In total, he has 8 home runs in 88 games of work. Look for him to make the call up in September 2018 realistically.

Next: 1988 Dodgers vs. 2017 Dodgers

Although the team is chasing history trying to win more than 116 games, the front office is smarter than that. They will not keep their playoff lineup in every single day to make sure that a record is beaten. They have their eyes on the world series, and they understand that record setting runs mean nothing without hoisting the trophy at the end of the year. There are questions about what the makeup of the lineup will be come October, but those should all be answered by September performances.