The Los Angeles Dodgers selected the contract of Steven Souza Jr. and designated Nate Jones for assignment in order to clear a spot for the veteran outfielder on both the on the 40-man and active rosters.
Souza’s arrival comes one day after the Dodgers elected to put Cody Bellinger on the 10-day injured list due to left hamstring tightness. The 32-year-old last was in the Majors with the Chicago Cubs, though only appeared in 11 games during the 2020 season.
He missed all of 2019 due to a major left knee injury (ACL tear, LCL tear, partial PCL tear and posterior lateral capsule tear) suffered in March of that year when stepping awkwardly on home plate during a Spring Training game.
Souza signed a Minor League contract with the Dodgers at the end of March, after spending Spring Training with the Houston Astros. He batted .279/.444/.603 with four doubles, six home runs and 16 RBI over 22 games for Triple-A Oklahoma City. Half of Souza’s homers and seven RBI came in a single game on May 30.
It’s plausible the veteran outfielder will get a chance to face his former Arizona Diamondbacks club when the Dodgers visit Chase Field this weekend. Though because of the knee injury in 2019, Souza played just one season for Arizona — hitting .220/.309/.369 with 15 doubles, three triples, five home runs and 29 RBI over 72 games in 2018.
Souza was selected by the Washington Nationals in the third round of the 2007 MLB Draft, then made his debut with the club seven years later. He went on to play for the Tampa Bay Rays from 2015-2017.
Dodgers cut jones loose
The Dodgers signed Jones in the middle of May and called up one week after that. He appeared in eight games for L.A., pitching to an 8.31 ERA and 1.15 WHIP. The right-hander allowed a combined six runs in his two most recent appearances.
Should Jones clear waivers, he potentially would be a candidate to remain with the organization and be sent outright to Oklahoma City. The Dodgers may also have a similar option with Dennis Santana, who was designated for assignment last week.
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