Dodgers Digest Los Angeles Dodgers Baseball Blog
The time has come, and a bit earlier than expected. Top outfield prospect Andy Pages is being called up to the Major Leagues according to various reports, the first of which was from Francys Romero.
Pages, the No. 3 Dodgers prospect on Dodgers Digest’s preseason list, has been excellent so far in 2024, both in spring training and in Triple-A. Returning to action from a torn labrum and subsequent surgery in May of 2023, Pages homered twice in seven spring games and took that momentum with him to Oklahoma City.
In 15 Triple-A games, Pages has done everything well, slashing .371/.452/.694 for a 178 wRC+. The numbers under the hood were all impressive too, with a couple of his five home runs registering some of the highest exit velocities of his career and a strikeout rate of just 17.8%.
Andy Pages hit his SECOND HOMER OF THE DAY
— Bruce Kuntz (@Bnicklaus7) April 14, 2024
He’s up to a 1.163 OPS this season pic.twitter.com/Nph4JHILOw
Power is the No. 1 tool for Pages, who has shown a great feel for elevating the baseball throughout his minor league career. He can lift almost any pitch, and that should translate to many homers in the Major Leagues.
Pages’ batting averages have typically fallen on the lower side, but he makes up for it with a good eye at the plate that gives him a high walk rate. Additionally, his hit tool has improved over the last two years as he’s begun hitting more line drives. If he can bat .250 in the Majors, he will be very productive.
Defensively, Pages is best suited for right field, where he can be an above-average defender due to his solid range and cannon of an arm. He can also play center field at a fringe-average level, and he should be expected to get some innings there with the Dodgers.
Andy Pages is on ANOTHER LEVEL right now
— Bruce Kuntz (@Bnicklaus7) April 14, 2024
He just ended a 13-pitch at bat with his fourth homer of the year, and this one was a bomb. 110 mph off the bat, travelled 406 feet. #Dodgers pic.twitter.com/8CpEDnIQv6
The Dodgers signed Pages out of Cuba in 2017 and he’s been an offensive force in the minors ever since. In 2021, when he was just 20 years old, Pages won the High-A Midwest League MVP by launching 31 homers as he ascended to top prospect status.
Pages was promoted to Double-A for the 2022 season, where he faced his first bit of adversity. His overall numbers were still decent as he hit 26 homers and had a .804 OPS, but he batted just .236 and struggled against right-handed pitching. Following a good performance in that year’s Arizona Fall League, Pages transformed himself in the offseason.
He entered camp in 2023 having trimmed 25 pounds of weight off his frame, and it immediately translated to improvement. Previously slated for strictly the corner outfield, Pages is now able to play a passable center field again. He was also more of a speed threat, stealing more bases in his 33 game stint in 2023 than his full 2022 campaign.
RBI triple from Andy Pages ? pic.twitter.com/GklezJuGmX
— Bruce Kuntz (@Bnicklaus7) March 31, 2024
Pages got his first call to Triple-A in May, and in his first game, he tore the labrum in his left shoulder. It was an injury that required season-ending surgery and left in doubt how he would return as a hitter. However, Pages came into camp in 2024 and has dispelled any possible concerns quickly.
He has made it clear that he is ready for the Major Leagues. Still, this call up happening now is a bit surprising. The Dodgers have a crowded outfield, especially once Jason Heyward returns, and Pages will need to be getting everyday at-bats to prevent stunting his development.
The Dodgers will likely stick Pages in a corner outfield spot — likely right field — against most right-handed pitches right off the bat. Against left-handers, the matchup where Pages is at his best, he could get some starts in center field. He is not as good of a defender there as James Outman, but he can get the job done, thanks in part to his double-plus throwing arm.
#Dodgers no. 4 prospect Andy Pages showed off his 65-grade throwing arm, gunning a runner at third base. It’s his ninth outfield assist of the season. #AlwaysLA pic.twitter.com/Xg69L8Zvkk
— Bruce Kuntz (@Bnicklaus7) August 12, 2022
Pages was a victim of prospect fatigue, falling down the prospect lists of many evaluators this offseason, but he has reminded the baseball world of his talents in a big way. Forcing his way onto the Major League roster in April was not at all expected for the 23-year-old, but he managed to make it happen.
There is a solid chance that Pages will be a mainstay in the Dodgers outfield from the time he debuts through six or more years into the future. The bottom of the Dodgers lineup has struggled immensely to begin this season, but Pages has a chance to change that immediately.
