Dodgers' Josue De Paula update all but confirms his postseason roster spot

The Los Angeles Dodgers completed their sweep over the San Francisco Giants on Sunday in extra innings. It was their sixth time reaching the century-mark during the last decade, which is better than any American League team and second only to the Milwaukee Brewers in the National League.

The Dodgers now have four days to game plan before they take on either the Philadelphia Phillies or the Atlanta Braves in the NLDS at Dodger Stadium.

There could be some surprises in store, especially on the bullpen front. Blake Treinen's season just ended with a shoulder issue, Edwin Díaz has enjoyed a resurgence since coming off the IL, Edgardo Henriquez is trending toward availability, and they still need to figure out the Roki Sasaki of it all.

But fans saw all of that coming. The more interesting roster development in the last week has been the battle of the No. 1 prospects: Josue De Paula vs. Dalton Rushing.

De Paula was optioned back to Triple-A after Shohei Ohtani came off the IL, and Rushing was officially reactivated from the IL ahead of the Giants series. De Paula, however, looks like he still has the upper hand here, and will be in LA during the bye week as the Dodgers consider all of their options.

Josue De Paula is on track to win Dodgers' postseason roster battle

The Dodgers are currently carrying three catchers: Rushing, Will Smith, and Hunter Feduccia. Whoever LA chooses to be the backup catcher, that player will be playing second fiddle to Smith (even more than they already do).

Last year, Ben Rortvedt started two games in the NL Wild Card Series while Smith came back from an injury, but he didn't make an appearance past Game 2 of the NLDS. Feduccia, though more dispensable than Rushing in most contexts, makes more sense in that role.

LA wants a big lefty bat they can keep on the bench, and De Paula established himself as the better bet almost immediately. At the same time, Rushing had the disadvantage of being on the IL, unable to state his own case.

The question is how the Dodgers will petition the Commissioner's Office to carry De Paula on the roster. He'll have to replace an injured player who's already served the minimum amount of time on the IL. In bringing Rushing back, the Dodgers needlessly complicated things.

But no doubt Andrew Friedman will figure it out. De Paula might only get a precious few at-bats throughout the month, but they clearly already trust him.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow