Backyard Scouting Report: Los Angeles Dodgers
A Skills-First Review of the Dodgers’ Lineup
Welcome to a new series where I’ll be tracking MLB hitters one team at a time, with an eye toward the bigger picture. This isn’t about reacting to hot streaks or weekly leaderboards. It’s to build a long-term view of the player pool that helps us stay sharp in both redraft and keeper formats.
Each week, we’ll review one lineup in full. Who’s showing signs of growth? Where is playing time shifting? Which under-the-radar changes might matter a month from now, not just today? The goal is to step back from the daily noise and keep tabs on how fantasy value is evolving across skill sets, usage, and opportunity.
First up: the Dodgers, baseball’s most consistent offensive machine.
The Dodgers are the only team to eclipse 800 runs in each of the past three seasons. That level of consistency creates one of the most stable run and RBI environments in fantasy, especially for hitters with everyday roles.
Shohei Ohtani is having another elite season. He’s already at 20 home runs and 10 steals before mid-June, but what stands out most is his league-leading 66 runs scored. Only two other players have even eclipsed 50. While runs scored don’t carry the same scarcity as homers or steals, totals like this are extremely valuable in roto formats.
Mookie Betts remains a lineup staple, but his power has taken a step back. His barrel rate dropped last year and hasn’t rebounded in 2025. Context helps as he’s dealt with rapid weight loss, a broken toe, and the physical toll of a new full-time defensive role. At age 32, he still possesses bankable plate skills and volume, but with less upside in power. He’s looking like a Round 2 bat heading into 2026.
Andy Pages has quietly climbed to third on the team in plate appearances. His rookie-year batted-ball data hinted at upside, though there were concerns about swing decisions. He hasn’t improved his chase rate, and his barrel rate is down, but his strikeout rate has improved, and his zone contact is up. He’s also swiped six bases and earned playing time across all three outfield spots. He doesn’t turn 25 until December.
Max Muncy is on a sustained heater. It’s a good reminder not to give up on proven veterans too quickly, especially in April. The question now is how long he can hold this level of performance.
Freddie Freeman has zero stolen bases, which should have been the expectation after last year’s ankle injury. It hasn’t mattered. At 35, he’s currently posting the second-best wRC+ of his career. The counting stats have been solid, but not elite. As a pure hitter, he remains one of the league’s best.
Michael Conforto is the only Dodgers regular with a wRC+ below 100. He showed some encouraging batted-ball metrics last year, and there was reason to believe the Dodgers would get the most out of him, but it hasn’t happened yet.
Teoscar Hernández has been a mess since returning from injury, but his BB% was falling even before hand. So much was made about how he improved in that area in 2024, his first with the Dodgers. He’s far from finished, and now is a great time to buy, particularly in redraft leagues, but this is a trend to start tracking for a player we have already worried about aging.
Will Smith looks a lot like the version of himself we saw back in 2020 - the one that kept us chasing his upside for the next 3-5 years. Now, in his age-30 season, he’s finally delivering on that early promise. Catcher always feels volatile given the positional toll, but Smith is a solid consolation prize for those of us with zero Cal Raleigh.
Tommy Edman has struggled since returning from injury, and his walk rate is down. That’s opened a small window for Hyeseong Kim, who’s been productive in limited playing time. He doesn’t light up Statcast, but he’s shown the ability to square the ball up without totally emptying out power-wise. He’s also running, and he’s drawing starts at second, short, and center field. If the playing time increases, there’s enough there for a useful fantasy contributor, though Edman still profiles as the better straight-up option for now.
Finally, Dalton Rushing has taken over the backup catcher job in the post-Austin Barnes era. The lack of DH or outfield opportunities limits his short-term utility. In dynasty formats, he’s a stealth acquisition target for rebuilding teams.