Dodgers parting with Jason Heyward was scapegoat move for Chris Taylor mistake

On Thursday, the Dodgers designated Jason Heyward for assignment in order to make room for Chris Taylor, who was coming off the IL after a month-long absence with a groin strain. Heyward was really the only logical choice — Gavin Lux was the only remaining player on the roster with minor league options, and the rest of the one-year contract crop (Teoscar Hernández, Kiké Hernández, Kevin Kiermaier) either have been playing too well or have been getting hot enough that it would be really hard for the Dodgers to justify dropping them.

Especially hard in exchange for a player like Taylor. If you sort of forgot that he was even on the IL, you wouldn't be judged. He's basically been a non-factor in LA's lineup this year, after batting .045 through April and .200 through May. His June was promising (.278), but he quickly got back to being bad in July before he got hurt.

However, there's really nothing the Dodgers can do except wait and see if he has a Gavin Lux-esque resurgence and can get hot out of nowhere, and his four-year, $60 million contract is to blame.

If Taylor can't magically get better through the rest of the season, then his deal is well on the way to joining a few "worst contract busts" lists for the Dodgers.

Chris Taylor's outsized contract is to blame for Dodgers' recent Jason Heyward DFA

This wasn't the first time the Dodgers have been faced with rough roster decisions this year. Aside from Mookie Betts, Max Muncy, and Tommy Edman's recent returns, the Dodgers claimed Cavan Biggio off waivers in June, and someone had to get the push. It should've been Taylor, who was batting .108 on the season at the time, but instead it was Miguel Vargas.

The problem then is the problem now, is the problem that will persist when/if the Dodgers need to make more hard decisions through 2025 (and maybe 2026, if they pick up his club option, which at this point they should not do). Do they eat millions of dollars or do they ditch players who are doing objectively better, but are making less in order to save money?

To be fair, Taylor does have a history of greatness with this team. In 2021, the year he signed the contract in question, he was an All-Star and was the first player to hit three homers in a postseason elimination game in the NLCS that year. Apart from the money, there are reasons for the Dodgers to stick by him and give him the benefit of the doubt.

How long can that last, though? Now that he's back, the pressure is even higher than before. The Dodgers cleared Heyward for him, and now they have even fewer options if something like this happens again. LA could pay him through the year and decide that the $13 million he's due next year isn't an unaffordable loss in the offseason. He should definitely be approaching the last few weeks of the season like he's fighting for his future.