Dodgers: Three Non-Tendered Players That Could Fill Holes for LA

1. Jonathan Schoop (2B)

On the surface, Schoop matches exactly what the Dodgers want. A second baseman with a good glove and with legitimate power to all fields who has the durability to play every day, he is something the Dodgers have lacked over the last two seasons.

Schoop came into 2018 on the coattails of a major breakout in 2017, a year in which he popped 32 home runs and finished with a triple slash line of .293/.338/.503.

2018 did not go as well. Schoop had more than 100 less plate appearances than he had in his past two seasons, hitting for a lower average and striking out more as well, though he still managed to hit 21 home runs.

His struggles at the plate did not translate into his peripherals, however, as he still finished 2018 with a .184 ISO, a mark similar to his .187 ISO in 2016. His drop in overall offensive output can perhaps be explained by his lowest BABIP since he earned a starting job in Baltimore in 2015. This lower BABIP led to a depressed batting average. He shed 60 points of batting average from 2017 to 2018, lowering his value and his potential as a middle of the order bat.

In the field, Schoop is viable and experienced at second base, though he can also play shortstop and third base. At second last season, Schoop was worth 3 DRS, defensive runs saved, in 941.1 innings.

With a poor performance will come a lower price, even though Schoop is just 27 years old. He is arbitration eligible for 2019, though he could be extended by the Dodgers long term if he proves himself to be better than his outlier 2018 showed.

2. Hunter Strickland (Reliever)

The only player on this list with experience in the NL West, Strickland may have the most upside of any pitcher on this list.

A flamethrower who has averaged 97mph on his fastball in his career according to Fangraphs, Strickland struggled to perform last season, despite being the Giants’ primary closer to start the year. He racked up 14 saves early on in the season before going on the DL for two months after breaking his finger after punching a wall in mid-June.

Strickland never regained his role at the backend of the Giants bullpen, ceding save opportunities to Will Smith. His effectiveness was worse than at any point in his MLB career. From 2015 to 2017, Strickland never had an ERA above 3.10, but his 2018 ERA was 3.97.

Part of the reason why may be due to his fastball. According to Fangraphs Pitch Info, Strickland threw the fastball nearly 5% less than he had in 2017, and had a negative pitch value on his favorite pitch for the first time in his career.

If Strickland can regain his fastball, he should be able to provide a valuable season in a setup role for Los Angeles, a la 2017 Brandon Morrow, as he has demonstrated the ability to throw hard and strike batters out.

3. Blake Parker (Reliever)

After living in relative obscurity for much of his career, Parker broke out with lasting force in 2017, setting career bests in nearly every pitching category. The 6’3 right-hander had never been a viable major league closing option, yet he closed out 2017 as the frontrunner for saves in the Angels 2018 ‘pen.  But things did not quite work out that way.

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Though Parker did add 14 saves in 2018, he did not follow up his breakout 2017 with much improvement or consistency. His ERA went back up over 3.00 and his FIP went back up above his pre-breakout 2016 mark of 4.04. His strikeout rate dropped from 33.9% in 2017 to 25.4% in 2018 and his WHIP ballooned from 0.83 to 1.24.

Part of this can be explained by his batted ball data. Hitters hit the ball harder and hit far more line drives and flyballs against Parker in 2018 compared to 2017 according to Fangraphs.

And like Strickland, Parker’s fastball got a lot worse. By his Pitch Info pitch value, Parker had the worst fastball of his career in 2018. He went from having a far above league average fastball in 2017, 16.3 pitch value, to having a pitch worth -5.1  in 2018.

If the Dodgers think they can fix his fastball, which lost 1.2mph between 2017 and 2018, Parker could add closing and late-inning experience to the bullpen.