Surprising veteran emerging as Dodgers utility solution in spring training

Dodgers fans definitely forgot that former second overall pick Nick Senzel was still in the organization ... and then he was a non-roster invitee to spring training.

Senzel signed a minor league deal with LA in April 2025 but never cracked the majors. Turns out, that deal was a two-year contract, so he didn't have to go back onto the market looking for what would probably be another minor league deal.

He hit .252 with a .749 OPS, 12 homers, and 62 RBI in 96 games in Triple-A Oklahoma City. That might be okay if he was still a top prospect who had just been promoted to Triple-A, but it's less so for a 30-year-old trying to claw his way back to the majors.

But Senzel has been having a pretty productive spring training. Through six games, he's hitting .308 with a 1.136 OPS, two doubles, a homer, six RBI, and three walks to two strikeouts.

The Dodgers have little, if any, room for NRIs or top prospects on their roster as it is, but they do have a vacancy on the bench with Kiké Hernández out until the summer. Could this finally be the time that Senzel makes something stick?

Nick Senzel's positive early returns from spring training could let him eke onto Dodgers' roster

Spring training forces fans into a weird headspace. Are great performances all smoke and mirrors, or are they a sign that a team should capitalize immediately? We usually apply the latter to top prospects and the former to players like Senzel, who have long been thought of as busts, but who knows?

Senzel is incredibly versatile on defense, having spent time everywhere but catcher, first base, and shortstop in his major league career (though he's logged a few starts at short in the minors). That kind of versatility is one of the things the Dodgers value most about Hernández who, again, won't be ready to play anytime soon.

There are still players further up the totem pole who Senzel will need to prove himself against, though. There's fan favorite minor leaguer Ryan Ward, two-time waiver claim Michael Siani, and infielders Santiago Espinal and Ryan Fitzgerald.

And Senzel has a very long history of poor performance that follows him like his own personal rain cloud. He hasn't been able to shake it with three other organizations, but maybe the Dodgers have finally helped him figure something out.