The Los Angeles Dodgers plan to recall Austin Barnes from Triple-A Oklahoma City on Friday, and that will likely signal the end of adding to their expanded roster in September. Most notably, it leaves Kyle Garlick and Edwin Rios on the outside looking in.
“Those guys did a great job for us, but the September call-up is always a difficult one in the sense of rewarding guys who have earned the opportunity to get a September call-up,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Tuesday.
“Kyle and Eddie are just tremendous teammates and guys, but I think we’re very cognizant of keeping the group to as much of a minimum as possible to keep the focus on the playoffs. Sometimes, unfortunately, there’s some casualties.
“I can’t say enough about Kyle and Edwin and what they did for us.”
Garlick and Rios were among eight players to make their MLB debut with the Dodgers this season. Garlick joined the Dodgers in the middle of May and appeared in 30 games. He hit .250/.321/.521 with four doubles, three home runs and six RBI over multiple stints with the Dodgers.
He memorably hit his first career home run against the San Francisco Giants, and followed it with another homer the next night. In 81 games with Oklahoma City, Garlick batted .314/.382/.675 with 23 home runs and 59 RBI.
Rios hit .270/.340/.575 with 31 home runs and 91 RBI in 104 games for OKC. He showed flashes of his big power while with the Dodgers, batting .286/.419/.571 with two home runs and four RBI in 17 games.
Rios’ first career longball came in a multi-homer performance against the Miami Marlins. He finished 3-for-4 in what was a homecoming at Marlins Park, which is not far from where Rios starred at Florida Atlantic University.
The Dodgers deciding against calling up either Garlick or Rios keeps with the message Roberts had been delivering in the weeks leading up to September. Their desire to minimize roster call-ups largely stems from priority going to players returning from the injured list.
Although Oklahoma City’s season ended Monday, Barnes must wait 10 days prior to returning because of his brief stint with the Dodgers when Russell Martin was placed on the bereavement list.
