The Los Angeles Dodgers have several top catching prospects in the Minor Leagues, including Diego Cartaya, who endured some struggles with Double-A Tulsa this past season.
Cartaya hit just .189/.278/.379 with 10 doubles, 19 home runs and 57 RBI over 93 games in what marked his first action at the Double-A level. While Cartaya continued to show elite power, he struck out at a 29% clip and saw his walk rate dip to 9%.
Dodgers general manager Brandon Gomes said the organization is focused on helping Cartaya make swing adjustments this offseason, per Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic:
Among the conversation points this winter, Gomes said, is continuing to work with Cartaya on tweaking his swing. The general manager and former player development executive did note some of the other strides Cartaya made as he caught a career-high 68 games.
Although Cartaya experienced some growing pains, he is still just 22 years old and has a bright future ahead of him as a top Dodgers prospect.
Cartaya figures to split time between the Drillers and Triple-A Oklahoma City during the 2024 season. He could potentially make his MLB debut as well, but presumably will have a bigger impact on the Dodgers no sooner than 2025.
Given the ascension of fellow top catching prospect Dalton Rushing, the Dodgers may also entertain the idea of trading Cartaya for an elite starting pitcher.
Diego Cartaya expected to benefit from World Baseball Classic
When Will Smith and Austin Barnes temporarily left the Dodgers during Spring Training to participate in the 2023 World Baseball Classic, Cartaya was due to benefit from more opportunities.
“Just look at it right now, I see Diego catching every other day on the back half of games,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said at the time.
“We’ll get [Hunter Feduccia] starting some games, (Patrick) Mazeika will start some games, but we’ll have (David) Freitas and Cartaya (primarily) for the backend of games. It’s an opportunity that Diego normally wouldn’t have.”
However, Cartaya’s playing time remained somewhat sporadic and so too was his production.
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