For as good as Andrew Friedman has been as the architect of the roster, even he won’t have a perfect batting average with every move he’s made with the Los Angeles Dodgers organization.

Veteran outfielder Michael Conforto was brought in over the offseason essentially as a one-year stopgap in left field. Dalton Rushing experimented briefly as an outfielder, and when coupled with the depth in the farm system, Conforto was never expected to be a long-term solution.

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Essentially, he fit the mold as a guy the Dodgers would appreciate. Conforto is an experienced player with a penchant for walking and not chasing. He was billed as a reclamation project where he’d reset his own value presumably with a big year surrounded by better talent than at any other point in his career.

Unfortunately for Conforto and the Dodgers, none of that has come to fruition. With an 0-for-4 performance hitting cleanup on Thursday, the outfielder is currently sporting a .186 batting average in nearly 400 plate appearances. This includes a .293 OBP, a .319 SLG, and a .611 OPS. All of these categories currently are the worst of his career for any single season.

Michael Conforto, hitting cleanup this afternoon, is down to .186/.293/.320 in 392 plate appearances on the season.

— Manny Randhawa (@MannyOnMLB) August 21, 2025

Theoretically, it would be one thing if Conforto were an excellent fielder and/or speed threat. With one or two above-average skills, it could make the lack of production at the plate a bit more palatable. However, Baseball Savant indicates that Conforto ranks in the 21st percentile in sprint speed and the eighth percentile in outfield range.

In other words, Conforto is a below-average runner with some of the worst range in baseball.

Fans will bring up Jason Heyward as a comparison. Heyward had a better OPS in half the plate appearances that Conforto has gotten — yet was let go during the middle of the season. One could also make the argument that Heyward was a far better outfielder from a defensive standpoint.

The Dodgers front office and coaching staff have been steadfast in being supportive of Conforto through the media and clearly with his usage. To be fair to the player, the pressure has to be mounting given the expectations of playing for the Dodgers, and the spotlight it brings.

At the same time, this franchise is all about winning. With a player struggling to this level in all facets, it doesn’t make a whole lot of sense to continually trot him out there when the situation has become this dire contextually speaking.

With Teoscar Hernandez’s struggles in right field, it would make more than some sense to move him to left with the strong-armed Andy Pages patrolling the opposite side of the outfield. Pages is more mobile and has a far stronger arm in comparison.

There are a lot of smart people working for the Dodgers, but sticking with Conforto as a regular for this long has been odd. https://t.co/KtjrXn0Hqp

— Ryan Boyer (@RyanPBoyer) August 21, 2025

Getting Tommy Edman back healthy may be the key to this whole situation. There’s a world where he could man the centerfield spot with a combination of Hyeseong Kim and Alex Freeland at second base. Those two rookies at the very least offer high-level defense, energy, and athleticism.

Kiké Hernández’s impending return also gives the Dodgers another outfield option to utilize in place of Conforto. Alex Call could also play left field on an everyday basis with Pages in center and Hernandez in right.

It’ll be curious to see how much longer the #Dodgers stick with Conforto. The $17 million is a substantial amount. But if he continues to flounder at the plate, it makes too much sense to make Pages and Kim everyday players. I’d put Teo back in LF with Pages in RF.

— Jason Fray (@jasonfrayLA) May 20, 2025

This storyline will continue to fester unless the Dodgers make a move. It very well could be on the horizon given the expected returns of some core team members.

Once Edman is fully healthy, get him back in CF with Kim at 2B.

— Jason Fray (@jasonfrayLA) May 20, 2025

It’ll something to monitor moving forward.

More news: Dodgers’ Dave Roberts Had Heartfelt Talk With Michael Conforto That Appeared to Get Him on Track

Photo Credit: David Richard-Imagn Images

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