Dodgers: Three Surprises From the 40 Man Roster Decisions

Edwin Rios makes the forty man roster

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Another big surprise on Tuesday evening was Edwin Rios making the forty man roster.  The one thing with Rios is that there is no doubt he can hit.  Rios was banged up during the 2018 season and limited to just 88 games with the Oklahoma City Dodgers.  In those 88 games, Rios hit .304 to go along with 10 home runs.

In his previous two seasons in the minors, Rios hit 24 and 27 home runs across his multiple stops.  For his minor league career, Edwin Rios is a 300 hitter so not only does his bat pack punch, he is capable of hitting for average.  In 2019, Rios will turn 25 years old so he is still young enough to be considered a prospect. Maybe 2019 will be the year that Rios makes his major league debut.

The reason that it’s surprising that Edwin did make the forty man roster is the fact that defense is not his strong suit.  The projection for Rios is to be a designated hitter despite previous experience at first base, third base, and outfield.  It was widely expected that the Dodgers would try to trade Edwin Rios to an American league team although there is still time for them to do so.

The other aspect that makes his selection surprising is that the Dodgers have three players who could play first base in Cody Bellinger, Max Muncy, and David Freese.  Not only can all three play first base, they can also play multiple positions.  This makes it a near lock that Rios will begin the 2019 season in Triple-A unless an injury arises.  It will be worth watching to see if the Dodgers try trading Rios in the coming weeks.