Austin Barnes’ early success with Roki Sasaki clarifies why Dodgers value him

Austin Barnes is the longest-tenured Dodgers position player currently on the roster, having made his debut with the team in 2015, but it's oftentimes been hard to understand why they keep him there given his offensive production - or, rather, lack thereof. It took him until this week pick up his first hit or walk this season, now at 1-for-17 plate appearances this year, and he batted .213 with a .626 OPS from 2018 through 2024 after one great offensive year in 2017.

In 2022, the Dodgers gave him a two-year, $7 million extension with a club option worth $3.5 million for 2025, which they exercised this past offseason. They did so despite the fact that keeping Barnes means leaving a hole in the bottom of the lineup and blocking prospect Hunter Feduccia, who showed promise last season, out of the majors.

His relationship with Clayton Kershaw has something, if not everything, to do with it. Barnes has sort of turned into Kershaw's personal catcher over their 11 shared seasons with the Dodgers, and it's clear that the Dodgers value his ability to approach his relationship with pitchers with a veteran's eye.

That veteran's eye has clearly helped him with Roki Sasaki this season. Sasaki formed a battery with Will Smith in the first two starts of his MLB career and struggled both times. In his third start, with Barnes behind the plate, his command improved drastically and he struck out four batters, a high so far this season. During Sasaki's most recent start on April 12, it was Barnes behind the plate again.

Dodgers' Austin Barnes might not be Roki Sasaki's personal catcher, but something is working when they're paired up

Dave Roberts was asked about the choice to go to Barnes instead of Smith on April 12, and Roberts shot down the idea that Barnes would become Sasaki's personal catcher. He said, "I don't want to box myself in. Will [Smith]'s our starting catcher. So when you start playing that game and then you box yourself in. I'm not going to do that."

Sasaki bested his third start in his fourth, pitching five innings and giving up just one run on four hits and two walks while striking out three. The Dodgers bullpen ended up blowing it, giving up 15 more runs after Sasaki was pulled, but it was another great step for him after a difficult first week in the majors.

It makes sense that Roberts wouldn't want to say anything that might undermine Smith, who the Dodgers gave a 10-year, $140 million extension to last March, but it also wouldn't be surprising if we see more of a Sasaki-Barnes battery. Although the sample size is still small, the numbers speak volumes.