Steve Webb
As this week MLB pitchers and catchers are reporting to camp, it’s time for a look ahead at the 2021 Dodgers roster, position by position. To start, let’s look at the three players who figure to get at least some time behind the plate in the upcoming season: Will Smith, Austin Barnes, and Keibert Ruiz.
Will Smith
The other Will Smith still doesn’t have a complete MLB season under his belt, but he has emerged as the Dodgers’ first option behind the dish. He appeared in 37 of the team’s regular season games, most of which as the club’s catcher, although he did do some DH duty last year with the wacky rules of 2020. His progress was impressive. In almost every offensive category, Smith improved over his rookie campaign, putting up a solid .289/.401/.579 slash line in 2020. He also showed tremendous plate discipline for a young player, having the fourth-lowest chase rate in all of baseball. And when he hits the ball, it stays hit. Early in 2020, Smith was visibly frustrated as he was just smoking the ball right at fielders. But he stayed faithful to his approach, before long those balls were finding holes in the defense.
And, though his postseason was nothing to write home about, he did have a few solid moments, including his franchise-record five hit performance in the Dodgers’ Game 3 drubbing of the Padres in the NLDS. But the big Will Smith moment was the go-ahead homer off, um, Will Smith, in the Atlanta series that was one of the key moments that turned the series around in the Dodgers favor. Look for Smith to get the lion’s share of the starts for the Dodgers again in 2021.
Austin Barnes
Let’s face it. The first few weeks of Austin Barnes’ 2020 season were just awful. While he was still a solid defensive catcher, he looked completely lost with a bat in his hand. But, hitting out of the nine hole in front of All-World Mookie Betts eventually paid off dividends. Barnesy had a red-hot August and had his average up to close to .300 for a time, finishing at a respectable .244 by the end of the year. Of course, he will never challenge Will Smith as an offensive threat, but he has a knack for finding holes in the defense, and the converted infielder runs surprisingly well for a catcher.
However, Barnes’s true value is his ability to handle the pitching staff. He’s become Clayton Kershaw’s favorite target, and it was he who was behind the plate to squeeze Julio Urias’s final strike of Game 6.
It will be interesting to see if he can strike up a rapport with either David Price or Trevor Bauer, two pitchers known for their independence and unique personalities. Certainly, Barnes figures to get at least 20-30 percent of the starts behind the plate this season.
Keibert Ruiz
The final backstop on the Dodgers’ 40-man roster is youngster Keibert Ruiz. A 22-year-old switch-hitter with decent defensive abilities, Ruiz only had eight at-bats in the Show last year, but managed a couple of hits for his trouble. Two years ago, he was ranked the 20th highest prospect in all of baseball, but the consensus opinion among scouts was that he took a step back in 2019, and he dropped to 81st in their rankings. Who knows what any of the Dodgers’ prospects were able to do with 2020 at their “alternate site” training facility. Hopefully Ruiz was able to get back on track, as he probably could see some action in a 162-game season, especially if Barnes or Smith is injured.
The Dodgers’ lineup is stacked, and while they don’t have household names doing the catching (yet anyway), they figure to have a productive and solid season, complementing the Dodgers’ marquee offensive players and keeping those world-class starters on track.
DODGERSBEAT RATING: B-
