The Los Angeles Dodgers designated their longest-tenured position player for assignment on Wednesday in Austin Barnes. In a corresponding move, top prospect Dalton Rushing was called up from Triple-A Oklahoma City to bring his notorious bat to the lineup.
Read more: Dodgers Designating Austin Barnes for Assignment to Call Up Dalton Rushing in Shocking Move
Manager Dave Roberts said it was a “tough conversation” surrounding the veteran’s departure from the team.
“Austin is a guy that’s far beyond the numbers,” Roberts said to reporters Wednesday. “He’s a glue guy. He held guys accountable. He was tough. He had a very innate ability to get big hits, and he was respected across the board.”
As for the future of L.A.’s catcher role, the team felt Rushing was doing too well to pass up the opportunity of letting him waste his talents in the minors.
“I just think for us right now, with what Dalton Rushing is doing on the performance side, it’s an opportunity to challenge him,” said Roberts.
Barnes, the Fullerton, CA native, was batting just .214 this season with 14 strikeouts in 42 at-bats. His team has recently shown that there is a need for more of a boost on offense and will look to try and achieve that through Rushing.
Barnes first appeared in a Dodgers uniform in 2015 after being acquired in a deal that sent Dee Gordon and Miguel Rojas, among other pieces, to the Miami Marlins, and brought in the catcher and Kiké Hernández, among others players in the trade.
Little did the Dodgers know at the time that Barnes would be the longtime backup catcher for over a decade.
Over his career — with all 11 seasons in MLB being in Los Angeles — Barnes batted .223 with an OPS of .660. Although never a home run hitter, he had 35 in a Dodgers uniform, and an extremely important one in the 2020 World Series.
With the Fall Classic tied at one game apiece, Barnes ended up hitting a long ball to separate the two teams further and break the series tie. Barnes proved to be a pivotal player in both the 2020 World Series and in the 2024 regular season on the way to another title.
Photo Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports
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