When the Los Angeles Dodgers completed a three-team trade with the Chicago White Sox and Cincinnati Reds last December, the focal point of their newly acquired prospects was right-hander Frankie Montas.
Micah Johnson was thought to potentially have some say in the vacancy at second base, though that changed with the Dodgers re-signing Howie Kendrick and Chase Utley. Meanwhile, Trayce Thompson joined a glut of outfielders.
Thompson received plenty of playing time during Spring Training, and was among those whom Dodgers manager Dave Roberts praised on a regular basis. Andre Ethier’s fractured right tibia created an opportunity for Thompson, and it’s largely correlated to a platoon with Joc Pederson in center field.
Through his first 26 games this season, including 15 starts, Thompson was batting .266/.299/.484 with five doubles, three home runs, 11 RBIs, three walks and 19 strikeouts in 67 plate appearances.
He appeared as a pinch-hitter in the ninth inning on Tuesday, delivering a walk-off home run for his fourth homer of the season, and second in as many games against the New York Mets.
“That was exciting, I’m just happy to get a win,” Thompson said after hitting his first career walk-off home run. “Mets are obviously a very good team, everyone knows that. Hopefully we can use this as a spring moving forward and keep it rolling.”
In his last 10 games, seven of which have been starts, Thompson is hitting .321/.321/.821 with two doubles, four home runs and eight RBIs. His pinch-hit, walk-off home run was the Dodgers’ first since Scott Van Slyke did so in September 2013.
Thompson attributed the recent success to a change in his mechanics, specifically narrowing his batting stance. “I was really late on a lot of fastballs earlier in the season and Spring Training,” he said. “I made some adjustments, and it’s been paying off.”
“I’m just trying to have fun and help any way I can. … I just want to be a guy that impacts every facet of the game. I want to be someone the coaches can count on, and have the confidence of my teammates.”
Roberts, who has made it a point to find playing time for Thompson, heaped more praise on the 25-year-old outfielder. “He’s pretty special,” Roberts said. “He can do a lot of different things to win a baseball game.”
