LOS ANGELES ― The Dodgers kicked off a four-game series against the Atlanta Braves on Thursday. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts conceded it’s an “information gathering” exercise for the team’s staff, who will almost inevitably be scouting Atlanta as a possible postseason opponent a month from now.
“You look at the rosters,” Roberts said, “and they’re pretty much what they’re going to be to finish out the season and the postseason.”
One important exception could emerge for the Dodgers.
Starting Friday, teams can expand their active roster from 26 players to 28. Pitcher Emmet Sheehan is expected to be called up from Triple-A Oklahoma City – if not Friday then Saturday, when he’s expected to pitch the bulk of the innings against the Braves.
The other player en route to Los Angeles wasn’t even in the Dodgers’ organization a month ago. Kolten Wong played only three games with OKC, but his 7-for-13 (.539) performance – highlighted by a 413-foot home run – was enough to earn a promotion, according to multiple sources. The Dodgers have yet to announce the transaction.
Since Wong is not on the team’s 40-man roster, the Dodgers will have to make a corresponding move when they purchase his contract.
Released by the Seattle Mariners on Aug. 3, Wong signed a minor league contract with the Dodgers six days later. Wong reported to the Dodgers’ Camelback Ranch facility in Glendale, Arizona, where he worked with coaches in an attempt to fix his approach to hitting until he was assigned to an affiliate.
A career .256 hitter with two Gold Glove awards on his mantle, Wong hit .165 with two home runs and 19 RBIs in 67 games with the Mariners. He was released with two months remaining on the three-year contract he originally signed with the Milwaukee Brewers in February 2021.
The Brewers and Mariners are splitting the $10 million salary Wong is owed this season. The Dodgers will pay him only the pro-rated major league minimum while he is on their active roster.
The Brewers traded Wong to the Mariners in December for Abraham Toro and Jesse Winker. Wong has played one inning at shortstop over the last seven seasons, but he started all three games there at Triple-A. The rest of his recent experience has come at second base, where he won Gold Glove awards in 2019 and 2020.
Wong’s left-handed bat could potentially boost the Dodgers at either second base or shortstop. The Dodgers have rotated through a variety of middle infielders this season, spurred by a season-ending injury to shortstop Gavin Lux in spring training and the offensive struggles of rookie second baseman Miguel Vargas.
Vargas was optioned to Triple-A on July 9 with a .195 batting average. He’s hit .302 with a .414 on-base percentage and six home runs in 40 games since the demotion. Mookie Betts, and recent trade acquisitions Kiké Hernandez and Amed Rosario, have taken turns starting at second base in the meantime.
Miguel Rojas has been the team’s primary shortstop. An outstanding defensive player, Rojas is hitting .222 with three home runs. Betts has filled in at the position occasionally, but Dodger shortstops collectively rank 22nd in Wins Above Replacement, according to FanGraphs.
Wong, 32, was a first-round draft pick (22nd overall) by the St. Louis Cardinals in 2011. The Dodgers drafted 16th that year and selected pitcher Chris Reed, who appeared in only two major league games before retiring.
BUEHLER UPDATE
Walker Buehler is scheduled to make his first minor league rehabilitation start on Sunday with OKC.
Roberts said Buehler is slated to throw one or two innings against the Round Rock Express. It will be his first start at any level of baseball since he underwent Tommy John surgery on his right elbow in August 2022.
Buehler is expected to need a minimum of three minor league starts to build up his workload, Roberts said. After that, the Dodgers will continue to ease Buehler into a starter’s repertoire.
Roberts said “there’s no clear definition” of a target number of innings and pitches for Buehler before he’s activated.
“A starter is the person who starts the game,” Roberts said. “It’s not going to be five (innings) and 75 (pitches), I know that.”
Buehler, 29, is 46-16 with a 3.02 ERA in 115 career games, all with the Dodgers.
INJURY UPDATES
The Dodgers activated right-hander Shelby Miller (neck) from the 15-day injured list and optioned pitcher Ryan Pepiot to Oklahoma City. Pepiot threw five shutout innings on Wednesday against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Miller was 1-0 with a 2.40 ERA in 25 games prior to the injury. He allowed five runs and eight hits in four innings across five rehab games at Triple-A.
Reliever Daniel Hudson threw a 15-pitch bullpen session at Dodger Stadium, his first since spraining the MCL in his right knee on July 6. The 36-year-old right-hander reiterated his hope to pitch again before the season ends, but Roberts said Hudson remains a “longshot.”
Reliever Blake Treinen is “day to day” after experiencing some soreness in his minor league rehab assignment at Triple-A, Roberts said. After back-to-back scoreless appearances for Oklahoma City, Treinen retired only one of the four batters he faced Tuesday, allowing three runs.
UP NEXT
Atlanta Braves (LHP Max Fried, 5-1, 2.85 ERA) at Dodgers (LHP Julio Urías, 11-7, 4.41 ERA), Friday, 7 p.m., SportsNet LA, MLB Network (out of market only), 570 AM