Dodgers outright Santiago Espinal to Triple-A amid right-handed bat crunch

Santiago Espinal did not leave the Dodgers’ orbit when he cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Oklahoma City. He stayed in the organization, came off the 40-man roster and landed in a place the Dodgers use for exactly this kind of problem: a holding zone for veterans who can be back in Los Angeles at the first sign of another injury.

That matters now because the Dodgers are running thin on right-handed bats. Espinal was designated for assignment on May 25 when Kiké Hernández was reinstated from the injured list, but the roster squeeze only tightened two days later when Teoscar Hernández aggravated a left hamstring strain while running out a grounder. Teoscar was expected to go on the injured list, pushing the Dodgers further into a depth chart already stretched by Kiké’s absence.

Kiké’s return brought back a player who had missed the first 53 games of the season after elbow surgery. He used 12 rehab games with Oklahoma City to get back into rhythm, batting .214 with two doubles and three RBI. Manager Dave Roberts has said Kiké’s energy is a boost for the clubhouse, and the Dodgers clearly valued that return enough to make a corresponding move on Espinal.

Espinal’s numbers with Los Angeles this season explain why he was vulnerable. The 31-year-old minor league signing hit 9-for-41, a .220 clip, in 26 games. He is out of minor league options, which meant the Dodgers had little flexibility once Hernández returned. Outright waivers gave the other 29 clubs a chance to claim him and add him to their own 40-man roster, but no team did, so Los Angeles kept the versatile infielder in-house.

That kind of retention can matter in a hurry. Espinal spent 2025 with the Cincinnati Reds, appearing in 114 games and playing six different positions, the sort of glove-first utility profile clubs need when injuries pile up. For Oklahoma City, that turns a transaction into something more useful: a ready-made emergency piece sitting one phone call away if the Dodgers need another right-handed bat, another infielder, or another stopgap before the roster turns again.