The Los Angeles Dodgers completed most of their heavy-lifting this offseason with a trio of marquee moves, but they still have a bit of rounding out to do on the roster, especially in their outfield mix.
With Mookie Betts set to play primarily as the everyday second baseman, the Dodgers have Chris Taylor, James Outman and Jason Heyward slotted in at their three outfield positions, with Manuel Margot as a fourth option.
Taylor doesn’t have the most extreme splits in his career, but Heyward will primarily see time against righties, likely platooning with Margot. However, Taylor is best when he’s utilized in a utility role, so the Dodgers could still use a primary option in left field.
They have been linked to Teoscar Hernández so far, and Tommy Pham is on their radar as well as they search for a right-handed hitting outfielder, according to Juan Toribio of MLB.com:
The Dodgers have been in the market for a right-handed-hitting outfielder, and some of those options could include Teoscar Hernández and Tommy Pham, according to sources.
Betts and J.D. Martinez wanted the Dodgers front office to acquire Pham at the trade deadline last season, but he was ultimately dealt to the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Pham also made his case to sign with the Dodgers last offseason, but that didn’t persuade president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman.
Pham ended up having a solid stint with the New York Mets upon signing with them, and after the trade, he became an important piece in the D-Backs’ run that led them to their first World Series appearance in more than 20 years.
The 35-year-old is a free agent for the third time in as many years and could opt into an ideal role with the Dodgers on a team loaded with star talent.
Tommy Pham 2023 stats
Aside from his strong splits against right and left-handed pitching, Pham was among the best outfielders offensively last year.
Pham ranked second in hard-hit rate at 43.1%, ahead of Betts and several power sluggers, such as Mike Trout and Adolis García.
Pham had nearly equal splits between both left- and right-handed pitching, but his production did slightly decline after getting traded to the Diamondbacks.
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