Dodgers Digest Los Angeles Dodgers Baseball Blog
In the first game post-Andy Pages (for a month or so), the Dodgers are sending Tarik Skubal to the bump. He’ll be opposed by Southern California native Jared Jones.
131/162.
— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) August 22, 2026
?: @MLBONFOX
?: @937TheFan pic.twitter.com/vwZJKSPsZJ
Tonight’s #Dodgers lineup vs. Pirates: pic.twitter.com/QyKe4hwPk6
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) August 22, 2026
Alek Thomas makes his Dodger debut in center field for the injured Pages. Chad looked at who could help replace Pages, and Thomas was mentioned most. It makes the most sense, as he has plenty of experience in center field and has nothing but perform in Triple-A: .296/.362/.463. I looked at who the Dodgers might be getting in Thomas when they traded for him in May.
“There might be some hope for his bat (“might” is doing a lot of heavy lifting here), as his 72 batted ball events last season produced an average launch angle of 11.7 degrees. He had never run a launch angle higher than 4.2 degrees, which he did in 2025. Probably not coincidentally, he achieved a career-high in home runs (nine) and doubles (19). This season, he hut two home runs and nine doubles in 100 plate appearances. Conversely, he saw his BABIP dip to .217, down from .324 last season. It’s a small sample size, but perhaps the Dodgers see something they can fix with him.”
Well, his average launch angle is back in the 4-degree range, but some of his other batted ball metrics are encouraging.
- 90.0 MPH average exit velo
- 47.6 HardHit%
- 4.3 Barrel/BBE%
- 3.3 Barrel/PA%
He was basically averaging better than one barrel per game and one in every four times he came to the plate, he barreled the ball. A barrel is defined as follows:
“To be Barreled, a batted ball requires an exit velocity of at least 98 mph. At that speed, balls struck with a launch angle between 26-30 degrees always garner Barreled classification. For every mph over 98, the range of launch angles expands.
For example: A ball traveling 99 mph always earns ‘Barreled’ status when struck between 25-31 degrees. Add one more mph — to reach 100 — and the range grows another three degrees, to 24-33.
Every additional mph over 100 increases the range another two to three degrees until an exit velocity of 116 mph is reached. At that threshold, the Barreled designation is assigned to any ball with a launch angle between eight and 50 degrees.”
Yes, the Pacific Coast League’s hitter-friendly environment doesn’t hurt, but it also uses the same ball as in the majors, so Thomas is definitely doing something right by hitting the ball hard — even at the Triple-A level. At the same time, it’s best to keep expectations in-check.
The official move.
Expect him to draw most, if not all, starts against right-handed pitching, while the combination of Tommy Edman and Enrique Hernandez will likely get looks in center field against southpaws.
Some pregame notes from Dave Roberts (via The Athletic’s Fabian Ardaya):
More from Dave Roberts:
— Fabian Ardaya (@FabianArdaya) August 22, 2026
– expect Alek Thomas to start in CF vs. RHP, TBD vs. LHP (Edman, K. Hernández are options)
– surgery is on the table for Andy Pages’ fractured hand, but that won’t affect his timetable.
Here’s hoping the Dodgers can be as healthy by October as they were last year.
Jake Cousins is also alive.
First pitch is on FOX and is scheduled for 4:15 p.m. Pacific time.
