Dodgers do the right thing for Andrew Toles again

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell and I have found evidence that baseball is the oldest sport. Right in the Bible, it says “In the big inning, God created the heavens and the earth.”

The Dodgers’ front office doesn’t always get things right. They keep fans at arm’s length and generally give the impression of “Aren’t you lucky to be our fan?”

But there’s one thing they get right every year. Every year they renew Andrew Toles’ contract so he can retain his health insurance while dealing with mental health issues. And they have done this without a big announcement, only confirmed when contacted by a reporter.

Things are a little bit different this year. My colleague, Ed Guzman, asked the Dodgers about Toles this year and this was the response:

“We’ve been in contact with the Toles family and have worked together on how to best move forward. Continuing with the previous setup was no longer possible due to eligibility. The Toles family has asked that Andrew’s privacy be respected. Out of respect to the Toles family, we will not comment any further.”

In short, the Dodgers will continue to help Toles, but they can no longer just renew his contract and are finding a new way to help.

In years past, they would renew his contract for $0 and put him on the restricted list, so he didn’t take a roster spot. What are they doing now? Well, the family that is helping Toles doesn’t like a lot of details leaking out and are extremely protective of Toles’ privacy. And really, who can blame them?

You probably know Toles’ story. He hit .364 in the 2016 postseason for the Dodgers and was off to a solid start in 2017 when he tore his anterior cruciate ligament sliding into the wall while trying to make a catch. He sat out the rest of that season but returned in 2018, playing 17 games. He wasn’t at spring training in 2019, and it was eventually learned he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.

In 2020, Toles was found sleeping behind a building at Key West International Airport in Florida. He was homeless and taken to a mental health facility.

Toles has been in the care of his father, Alvin, who said Andrew is in a “zombie-like” condition. ”We are having challenges,” Alvin told USA Today in 2021, “but nothing that God and I can’t handle. Schizophrenia, it’s just so tough. I mean, he can’t even watch TV. He hears voices and the TV at the same time, so it’s kind of confusing. I’ve seen him looking at some baseball games on his laptop, but I don’t think he really understands what’s going on. I just want him to have a chance in life. That’s all. Just to be healthy, live a normal life.”

At last report, five years ago, Toles was living next door to his dad in Georgia.

When the Dodgers renewed Toles’ contract in 2024, former Dodgers pitcher Tom Koehler, who signed with the team in 2017 but injured his shoulder in spring training and never pitched an inning for the team, had this to say:

“I love this,” Koehler said. “Saw it firsthand how they treated me when I could provide nothing for them. I am not surprised they are helping Andrew. It’s bigger than sports.”

I would guess that almost all of us have a friend or family member who has dealt with mental illness. Though it seems highly unlikely that Toles will ever play in the majors again, let’s hope that he can just enjoy life again. And if things work out perfectly and he’s able to return to Dodger Stadium one day to throw out the first pitch or just wave from the stands, let’s hope there’s a sellout crowd on hand to give him a standing ovation.

Who is Santiago Espinal?

When the Dodgers signed Santiago Espinal in February, few gave it much notice. But Espinal is making everyone notice now as he has played so well in spring training that he could make the opening day roster.

Espinal, who was born in the Domincan Republic, was chosen in the 10th round of the 2016 draft by the Boston Red Sox out of Miami Dade College. He was traded to Toronto in 2018 and made the majors in 2020, hitting .267/.308/.333 in 60 at-bats.

He spent the next three seasons as a utility played for the Blue Jays, hitting .273/.332/.370 with 52 doubles and 11 homers in 900 at-bats. Toronto traded him to Cincinnati before the 2024 season and he hit .245/.294/.322. His power disappeared last season, as he hit no home runs after hitting nine the year before.

The Dodgers signed him and brought him to major league camp as a non-roster invitee, and he apparently rediscovered his power. He is 10 for 20 with two doubles, two homers, nine RBIs and nine runs. He also has walked as much as he has struck out (4-4).

“It would be hard to imagine him not being on the team,” Dave Roberts told reporters last Friday. “I can trust him essentially anywhere on the diamond. Outfield corners, second, third, and I think even in a pinch, he can play short. If we need a right-handed bat, he’s going to put the ball in play and take a professional at-bat.”

That sounds like a guy who is going to be on the team, perhaps platooning with Hyeseong Kim at second base. Of course, hitting spring training pitching is different than hitting during the season, so let’s not reserve that MVP award for him yet. Espinal is 31 and has a career OPS+ of 85 (an average major league hitter has an OPS+ of 100). But he’s worth keeping an eye on in case the Dodgers unlocked something in his swing, as they have done with others in the past.

Ryan Ward sent down

When Michael Conforto (who is now with the Cubs) struggled last season, a lot of people wondered why the Dodgers never gave a chance to Ryan Ward, who was hitting really well in the minors. He spent the entire season with triple-A Oklahoma City and hit .290/.380/.557 with 31 doubles and 36 homers. He was named MVP of the Pacific Coast League.

With Conforto gone, he appeared to have a good chance of making the roster this season, until the Dodgers signed Kyle Tucker. And sure enough, on Sunday, Ward was sent to Oklahoma City again. Why?

“Ward’s problem is that the Dodgers are so talented that it’s hard to find a spot for him,” MLB Pipeline prospect analyst Jim Callis told Jack Vita. “You could make the case that he could have helped them more than Michael Conforto did last year. They could use a second lefty-hitting outfielder right now with switch-hitting Tommy Edman out, but it feels like he’s about seventh on their overall outfield depth chart.”

Not helping matters: Ward went five for 32 in spring training, with two doubles, one walk and nine strikeouts. Frankly, at times he looked a bit overmatched. Last season in spring training, he went two for 18 with no extra-base hits and eight strikeouts.

So, unfortunately for Ward, he has not done well when given a chance. And with a team as deep as the Dodgers, that is enough to keep you in the minors.

Could the Dodgers have just said, “Conforto isn’t doing it, let’s give Ward a couple of weeks in the bigs and see what happens?” Well, sure. But, if there’s one thing we have learned about Andrew Friedman and the other decision-makers, it’s that they are a pretty good judge of big league talent.

Ward had 32 at-bats in the spring, a huge number. Espinal played his way on to the roster. Ward could have at least made it a very difficult decision to cut him. But he didn’t. With all the usual Dodger injuries during a season, he may well get called up this season. He needs to perform then, or face becoming another “Whatever happened to….?”

You can read Vita’s story on Ward here.

Dodgers do the right thing for Andrew Toles again

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