Dodgers' Ryan Ward DFA takes wild left turn as NPB team comes out of nowhere

The Los Angeles Dodgers DFA'd minor league fa- favorite Ryan Ward last Wednesday to clear up a roster spot for Kris Bubic, who came off the IL for the first time since LA traded for him at the deadline. It was a disappointing end to Ward's tenure with the organization, but fans were certain that someone would snap up the 2025 Pacific Coast League MVP.

And someone did, but not in the way anyone expected. On Tuesday, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reported that Ward was headed to NPB's Chunichi Dragons. The specific verbiage Ardaya went with is a little confusing — he wrote that the Dodgers "sold" Ward to the Dragons — but it's likely that he cleared waivers, elected free agency, and accepted a deal in Japan.

It's a wild turn of events for Ward, who has a major league grand slam under his belt and a seemingly high power-hitting ceiling, but we've seen a few success stories in the MLB-to NPB-back to MLB pipeline. Dodgers fans are already predicting that Ward will hit like a monster in Japan before making his return to the United States.

Ryan Ward will head to NPB's Chunichi Dragons after Dodgers DFA

The former Washington National Shinnosuke Ogasawara came from the Dragons in 2025 before going back to NPB with Yomiuri Giants this year. The Dodgers' own Willie Davis and Don Newcombe as well as Hall of Famer Larry Doby went to the Dragons toward the end of their careers. Newcombe and Doby even made their last professional appearances together there.

Most of the success stories we've seen from players who have gone back and forth between Asian leagues and the majors have been attributed to pitchers. The Arizona Diamondbacks' Merrill Kelly, the Tampa Bay Rays' Nick Martinez, the Chicago White Sox's Anthony Kay and Erick Fedde, and the Detroit Tigers' Drew Anderson have all enjoyed some amount of success since coming back over from Japan or Korea. The Toronto Blue Jays' Cody Ponce received a massive contract after coming back as the KBO's 2025 MVP.

Eric Thames, who last appeared in the majors in 2020, may be one of the only position players to enjoy a notable amount of success. He spent three seasons with the KBO's NC Dinos before coming back and putting up a career-best season with the Milwaukee Brewers.

Even if they never end up back in MLB, players have thrived in Japanese or Korean baseball. With Ward's power potential, he may very well be smashing some home run records by this time next year.

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