A common theme that played out for the Los Angeles Dodgers during the 2019 season was the contributions they received from rookies and first-year players. Among the many standouts included Alex Verdugo, who earned his first significant opportunity at the Major League level.
The 23-year-old was included on the Dodgers’ Opening Day roster and eventually carved out an everyday role for himself in the outfield. He hit an impressive .303/.350/.489 with 20 doubles, two triples, nine home runs and 39 RBI across 86 games during the first half — 66 of which were starts.
An oblique injury sustained at the beginning of August derailed the second half of Verdugo’s season. While the expectation was that he would return in the time for the postseason, he suffered a setback while on a rehab assignment with Rookie-level Ogden.
But rather than oblique trouble resurfacing, Verdugo dealt with a back injury and was shut down for the remainder of the season. In 106 games, he hit a solid .294/.342/.475 with 22 doubles, two triples, 12 home runs and 44 RBI over 377 plate appearances.
An underrated element was Verdugo’s success against left-handed pitching, hitting .327/.358/.485 in 109 opportunities. Also providing solid defense at all three outfield positions, Verdugo accumulated 3.1 WAR (Baseball-Reference) in his first full year as a big leaguer.
2019 highlight
Verdugo enjoyed his best performance of the season on June 22 against the Colorado Rockies, recording four hits in six at-bats — two of which were home runs. His second long ball came in walk-off fashion, helping the Dodgers secure their fifth consecutive win.
What’s more, Verdugo’s walk-off blast was the second in as many games for a Dodgers rookie. He followed in the footsteps of Matt Beaty, whose two-run home run the previous night propelled L.A. to a 4-2 victory.
2020 outlook
Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman recently revealed that Verdugo is still rehabbing from the back injury that kept him sidelined from Aug. 4 through the end of the season. Friedman maintained that he expects Verdugo to be fully recovered by the start of Spring Training.
When he’s cleared to return, Verdugo figures to see the majority of his reps at one of the outfield corner spots. He primarily played center field in 2019, but Cody Bellinger has since taken over the position, leaving Verdugo to contend for playing time with Joc Pederson and A.J. Pollock.
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