Dodgers Rumors: Dodgers Might Use Short-Term Solution in Outfield Next Season; Ryan Ward Under Consideration
With a hole in the outfield, the Dodgers will undoubtedly be linked to big-name free agents, but the team might choose a short-term solution for next season.
LOS ANGELES, CA—Entering the 2026 offseason, the Los Angeles Dodgers have a few key areas to address before the start of their chance at a three-peat, and among those problems is solving the hole in the outfield.
On paper, the Dodgers have key outfielders for next season, including Teoscar Hernández, who is under contract for two more years. Andy Pages is making significant progress in his second year, and Tommy Edman might return to center field, as initially intended last season before an ankle injury interrupted that plan. The team could benefit from securing a long-term solution in the outfield.
Because of that hole, the team will undoubtedly be linked to the league’s top free agents, such as Kyle Tucker, and a possible reunion with 2019 National League Most Valuable Player Award winner Cody Bellinger.
However, according to Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic, sources familiar with the team say the Dodgers could opt for a short-term solution, as they did during the 2025 season, with minor league outfielder Ryan Ward a possible option.
They could also just run back what they did with their outfield last winter, seeking a stopgap option or turning to even some internal choices, according to multiple people familiar with the team’s thinking. Among the options: Ryan Ward, who the Dodgers surprisingly added to their 40-man roster last week after a torrid offensive season at Triple-A Oklahoma City.
The addition of Ward to the Dodgers’ 40-man roster last week was a surprising one to many, especially with the 27-year-old career minor leaguer being just days away from being eligible for minor league free agency.
The outcry from the fandom for Ryan Ward was high last season after the disastrous one-year signing of Michael Conforto, who posted the 10th-worst OPS (.637) of any hitter with at least 450 plate appearances last season and was left off the postseason rosters altogether.
Ward had a career year with the Triple-A Oklahoma City Comets in 2025, winning the PCL (Pascfic Coast League) MVP, hitting .290/.380/.557 with a 132 wRC+ and leading all of minor league baseball in home runs (36), RBIs (122), extra-base hits (73), and total bases (315).
Despite that showing, Ward was never promoted, but perhaps he could get that chance this season, that’s if the Dodgers do trade him at his peak value before the start of the 2026 season.
On the free agent market, there are also plenty of guys who’d be seeking a shorter deal, perhaps even one year, like former San Fransiscgo Giants outfielder Mike Yastrzemski, who posted good second-half numbers, including the ability to hit right-handed pitching, an area Conforto struggled against despite being a left-handed hitter.
Still, the Dodgers could be motivated to go the short route anyway for the outfield with an eye on the future, with the team having a plethora of top minor league outfield prospects, including Future Game MVP Josue De Paula, Zyhir Hope, and Mike Sirota.
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