MLB free agency officially began the morning after the World Series concluded, which for the Los Angeles Dodgers meant six players were no longer under contract. Andre Ethier was added to the group when the club declined their 2018 option on the veteran outfielder.
Although it does not garner the same attention, free agency is also underway for 572 Minor League players. Of those, 23 spent the past season in the Dodgers organization.
Some received a non-roster invitation to Spring Training, while in the cases of Fabio Castillo and O’Koyea Dickson, they were September call-ups. Dickson was recently sent outright to Triple-A Oklahoma City and removed from the Dodgers’ 40-man roster.
Complete list of the Dodgers’ Minor League free agents is courtesy Matt Eddy of Baseball America:
RHP: Scott Barlow (AA), Fabio Castillo (AAA), Eddie Gamboa (AAA), Steve Geltz (AAA), David Hale (AAA), Jair Jurrjens (AAA), Justin Masterson (AAA), Juan Noriega (AA), Oliver Polanco (DSL), Tim Shibuya (AA), Andrew Thurman (High-A), Madison Younginer (AAA)
LHP: Jeremy Bleich (AAA), Ike Davis (AAA)
C: Jack Murphy (AAA), Sean O’Connell (AA), Wynston Sawyer (AA), Bobby Wilson (AAA), Shawn Zarraga (AAA)
1B: O’Koyea Dickson (AAA)
SS: Drew Maggi (AAA)
OF: Todd Cunningham (AAA), Quincy Latimore (High-A)
Dickson had one hit and drew two walks in nine plate appearances over seven games with the Dodgers. In 116 games with Oklahoma City, he hit .246/.328/.484 with 22 doubles, 24 home runs and 76 RBI.
Castillo pitched 1.1 scoreless innings and struck out two against the San Diego Padres in his MLB debut on Sept. 2. He made a second relief appearance the following day, and allowed two runs on three hits without retiring any of the four batters faced. The right-hander was designated for assignment in September and sent outright to OKC after clearing waivers.
Jair Jurrjens was suspended in June for a positive PED test, and he missed the remainder of the season. Oliver Polanco received a 72-game suspension in September, also for testing positive for a PED.
