Dodgers Notes: Kim’s Return, Injury Updates on Freeman & Call, Dodgers Reclaim No. 2 Seed in NL & More

LOS ANGELES, CA—Happy Thursday! The Los Angeles Dodgers, fresh off a sweep of the Cincinnati Reds, will enjoy a day off before they prepare for a National League West match-up with the Arizona Diamondbacks over the weekend.

But before that, we got plenty of updates around the roster courtesy of Dodgers manager Dave Roberts during yesterday’s pre-/post-game media scrums.

Hyeseong Kim Will Return When Rosters Expand

The 2025 Major League Baseball regular season is coming down to the final weeks, with only twenty-eight games remaining for the Dodgers. With August coming to a close and September on the horizon, that means rosters will also expand, giving the Dodgers two extra roster spaces.

Unlike in years past, when the team could protect any player on their 40-man roster, a move that would benefit a team like the Dodgers, now rosters only increase from twenty-six players to twenty-eight.

For the Dodgers, they will likely use that extra roster spot for Hyeseong Kim, as the rookie utilityman is closing out his minor league rehab assignment with the Triple-A OKC Comets.

Kim, 26, has been on the injured list since early July with a shoulder injury, but began ramping up baseball activities and kicked off a rehab assignment at the same time as fellow utilityman and fan-favorite Kiké Hernández, who was activated earlier this week.

Kim has recorded at least one hit in all five games since joining the Comets on a rehab assignment. He has played shortstop twice, as well as left field, center field, and designated hitter.

While the Dodgers could theoretically add active Kim right now, they are slow-playing it rather than wasting an option on someone like Justin Dean, but they take advantage of their current position in the schedule.

It has been an excellent season for the former KBO star with the left-handed swinger hitting .304/.338/.406 with a 109 wRC+ in fifty-eight games with Los Angeles.

While Kim saw his numbers dip in July, along with his strikeout rate nearly doubling, a lot of that could be attributed to his shoulder injury.

Once Kim is activated off the 10-day injured list, he’ll give the Dodgers some much-needed depth on the position player front, including the bench, having the ability to play multiple positions.

For the final month of the season, it’ll likely be a battle between Kim, Alex Call, Alex Freeland, and Michael Conforto for the final spot on the Dodgers ’ postseason roster.

Alex Call & Freddie Freeman Left Out of Lineup; Considered Day-to-Day

While the Dodgers completed a sweep of the Reds with yesterday’s 5-1 win, they did so without All-Star first baseman Freddie Freeman and platoon outfielder Alex Call, as both players were left out due to injury.

Call was used as a pinch-hitter in the sixth inning on Tuesday night but was replaced by Justin Dean to start the seventh. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts explained after the game that this was due to Call experiencing some lower back issues.

“He’s got an SI (Sacroiliac) situation that when he was going from second to third yesterday, it flared up,” Roberts said before the series finale against the Reds.

“So he’s down today. Not sure about his availability.”

Roberts expressed hope that Call’s back injury won’t be a long-term problem, but the team might not have more information until Friday. Call has not yet had an X-ray or MRI.

“It’s something he’s dealt with before and played through worse, he said. But we felt to be kind of safe, to not play him tonight. But no imaging yet,” Roberts said.

Call has gotten off to a fantastic start in limited playing time since being traded to Los Angeles at the trade deadline. Overall, the left fielder is slashing .278/.381/.444 since putting on Dodger Blue, along with a 135 wRC+.

Also left out of yesterday’s game was Freddie Freeman, who has battled multiple injuries over the last two seasons, primarily due to the ankle he injured last year in September.

However, this time it appears to be a neck injury that kept Freeman sidelined, but all indications point to Freeman returning to the Dodgers lineup on Friday.

“He’s got a little kind of neck stinger that went from his neck to his shoulder on the right side. So I think just getting him a couple days, with the off day tomorrow, he’ll be back in there on Friday,” Roberts said.

Freeman has been having a red-hot August, hitting .319 with a 174 wRC+, and currently has a three-game hitting streak. The left-handed hitter is also the National League leader in batting average at .302, ahead of former Dodgers shortstop Trea Turner (.297).

Dodgers Push NL West Lead & Reclaim No. 2 Seed

The Dodgers, winners of six of their last seven games, have been playing better baseball lately, and that is now starting to show in the National League standings.

Despite watching their once season-high nine-game lead disappear over the San Diego Padres in July, the Dodgers took care of business, taking four of the six games played in ten days versus the Friars.

Now, after sweeping the Reds, the Dodgers have a two-game lead in the National League West thanks to the Seattle Mariners beating the Padres yesterday.

However, while the West lead grows, the Dodgers have also been chasing the Philadelphia Phillies and Milwaukee Brewers for the top two seeds in the National League.

While catching the Brewers may be out of contention, the Dodgers have finally reclaimed the No. 2 seed in the National League after the Phillies have dropped three in a row.

Now, Los Angeles has a 0.5 lead over Philly, but both teams will meet one more time from September 15th to 17th, a critical series that will impact the National League postseason bracket.

With twenty-nine games remaining, FanGraphs has the Dodgers projected to go 17-11 in that stretch, which would give them ninety-four wins, the second-best projected record this season.

Around the Diamond

• Also expected to join Kim when rosters expand is right-handed pitcher Michael Kopech, who is also close to completing his rehab assignment with the Comets.
• Alex Vesia hopes to miss the minimum fifteen days on the injured list.
• Dodgers hitting coach Austin Bates is back with the team after being away for the last eighteen days due to a pair of blood clots in his left leg.

Have you subscribed to the Bleed Los Podcast YouTube channel? Be sure to ring the notification bell to watch player interviews, participate in shows & promotions, and stay up to date on all Dodgers news and rumors!