The Los Angeles Dodgers’ roster featured plenty of new faces for the 2021 season, and among them was Sheldon Neuse, who joined the organization in a February trade with the Oakland Athletics that centered around Adam Kolarek.
Neuse began the year at the Dodgers’ alternate training site but joined the team in the middle of April when Gavin Lux was placed on the 10-day injured list due to right wrist soreness.
The 27-year-old started at second base and struck out twice in his Dodgers debut against the San Diego Padres on April 18. It marked Neuse’s first appearance at the Major League level since 2019, when he played in 25 games with the Athletics.
Neuse was shuttled on and off the roster with some frequency, and never generated much traction while up with the Dodgers. He went 11-for-65 (.169) with one double, three home runs and four RBI over 33 games (13 starts).
Although he struggled in two big league stints, Neuse was more than serviceable with Triple-A Oklahoma City as he batted .293/.352/.478 with 13 doubles, 13 home runs and 56 RBI over 78 games.
Neuse’s 2021 highlight
Despite having previous MLB experience before joining the Dodgers, Neuse did not hit his first career home run until an April 22 matchup against the Padres.
Neuse’s game-tying blast was the second of back-to-back home runs allowed by Emilio Pagan. The ball traveled an estimated 399 feet and left his bat at an exit velocity of 108.7 mph.
2022 outlook
Neuse was designated for assignment as the corresponding move on the Dodgers’ 40-man roster in order to officially re-sign Chris Taylor to a four-year contract just before MLB team owners imposed a lockout at the start of December.
Under normal circumstances, Neuse would have had clarity on his future within a week’s time. However, with the lockout still in effect, Neuse will remain in DFA limbo until a new collective bargaining agreement is in place.
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