The Los Angeles Dodgers enter the latter part of the regular season looking to clinch the division on the field, and putting together the best roster for the postseason off the field.
Acquiring Kevin Kiermaier at this year’s trade deadline provided the Dodgers with a true, defensive-minded center fielder. The 34-year-old has won four Gold Glove Awards in his career, with one Platinum Glove.
Spending the first half of the season with the Toronto Blue Jays and struggling with the bat, he’s since posted a 92 OPS+ over 41 plate appearances with the Dodgers. Although the sample size is small, his slight uptick in offense and his world-class defense have made him a valuable player for the club.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts noted that Kiermaier has also made an impact off the field for the Dodgers, becoming a mentor and bringing energy to the team.
“He’s been great,” Roberts said. “I mean on the field, defense, obviously, you see that, the tough at-bats, the grindy at-bats, he doesn’t mind being in the nine-hole, understands his role, impacting Gavin and other guys, how they play, run the bases, those things are tangible things.
“And so he’s a veteran player. I heard earlier that he was contemplating retiring after this year, so this is a guy that he’s emptying the tank. And so there’s a re-found joy, energy, and it’s affecting all of our guys.”
Whether Kiermaier sticks on the postseason roster remains to be seen, but his game-changing defense is a great thing to have around.
The Dodgers already made the decision to keep him on the regular season roster over Jason Heyward, who was designated for assignment on the off-day Thursday to make room for Chris Taylor, who returned from the 10-day injured list.
The Dodgers faced a roster crunch, and Heyward had no real role on the team moving forward, while Kiermaier has proven his value.
Kevin Kiermaier’s role moving forward
The main role for Kiermaier is to showcase how impactful his defense can be in center field.
With Tommy Edman having the ability to slide between both shortstop and center field, it opens the door for the Dodgers to rotate both in the outfield any given day. Kiermaier’s stellar glove isn’t just about saving runs, his spot is based on the pure thump above him in the batting order.
If the Dodgers’ offense is clicking, a pure, run-prevention outfielder who can change a game is a cherry on top piece. Kiermaier’s spot in the starting lineup opens the possibility for late-game swaps, without having to worry about losing defense, because Edman can kick out there.
Kiermaier has some upside at the plate, and his 2024 season as a whole, has been one of his lesser performances in several years. But with the Dodgers, he’s finding more of the barrel, reducing the number of wasted at-bats, maybe in a push to be a part of a team with World Series aspirations.
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