3 Dodgers players most likely to have a breakout season in 2023

The Los Angeles Dodgers, like most other MLB teams, have had their fair share of breakout performers over the years.

2023 figures to be another season in which one (or more!) player(s) explode onto the scene in a big way. There are a handful of young studs who are right on the cusp of greatness for this club.

32-year-old Trayce Thompson is off to a hot start, but he's going to just barely miss out on this list. He had an OPS+ of 136 last season in 80 games for the Padres/Dodgers, so one could argue that his breakout came then. Plus, he is not projected to be a part of the team's everyday lineup.

Shelby Miller is another attractive option, but he is a former All-Star and has experienced success with both the Braves and Cardinals what feels like a lifetime ago.

Let's dive in. Here are the Dodgers' top 3 breakout candidates for the 2023 season.

Dustin May

There are few words to describe how nice it is to see a healthy Dustin May to start the 2023 campaign. After breaking into the league at just 21 years old back in 2019, he has struggled to stay on the field, making just 37 appearances over the course of four years.

What makes his absences hurt so much more is the fact that he's been absolutely filthy virtually every time he's taken the mound for the Dodgers. After he finished fifth in Rookie of the Year voting in 2020, the expectations and hype were sky-high for him, and rightfully so.

After making just 11 outings in the next two seasons after that showing, he is finally at full health, and was able to crack the Dodgers' Opening Day starting rotation. True to form, his first two starts were nearly unhittable. In 13 innings, he posted an 0.69 ERA with nine strikeouts and just three walks. Ignore his third slight blemish against the San Francisco Giants; May's true talent has shined thus far.

While May is already in his mid-20s, there's still a strong sense that he's capable of greatness for this team. If he can manage to stay healthy for a long period of time, he could give the Dodgers another top-of-the-rotation talent that they've seemed to grow on trees in recent years.

Gavin Stone

This one's a bit of a wild card, but feels like a distinct possibility. Gavin Stone, 24, is the No. 51 prospect in the game per MLB.com and sits at No. 4 in the Dodgers system.

Last year, he burst onto the scene in the minor leagues, making 26 appearances and posting a sparkling 1.48 ERA across 121.2 innings. He struck out 12.4 batters per nine innings, allowed just three home runs and did an exceptional job of limiting walks as well. The season he was able to have in the minors would've easily gotten him Cy Young consideration in the majors, which is wild to think about.

While the first few outings in Triple-A haven't gone the way Stone would've liked them to, he has still managed to strike out batters at a high rate, and overall does not merit much concern behind the slow start. In spring training, he struck out 14 batters and walked just two across four appearances and 6.2 shutout innings.

Slow start aside, Stone already feels like a better option to man the No. 5 spot in the big league starting rotation than Michael Grove. Grove, 26, has a career 6.63 ERA in 36.2 innings for the Dodgers, and has yet to show anything worth getting excited about. As of right now, his 12 earned runs in 7.1 innings of work leads the entire National League.

Sure, Stone has yet to experience an outing in a big league game, but he has shown time and time again that he has what it takes to succeed, regardless of what level he's at. Don't be surprised to see him up in The Show soon. He's not going to look back once he makes it.