Updates from Tuesday, Sept. 2
A day after making his first plate appearance with the Dodgers, Joc Pederson will be making his first start according to the Dodgers:
Updates from Monday, Sept. 1
Joc Pederson received an at-bat in the bottom of the ninth in the Nationals’ 6-4 win over the Dodgers on Monday. Pederson struck out on a called third strike to end the game.
Original Text
Los Angeles Dodgers standout prospect Joc Pederson has been summoned to the big leagues.
According to the club’s official Twitter account, Pederson is among four minor league players to be promoted to LA’s active roster on Monday:
Manager Don Mattingly commented on how he plans to utilize Pederson for the last stretch of the MLB regular season, per Los Angeles News Group’s J.P. Hoornstra:
The Dodgers play host to the Washington Nationals on Monday evening—a battle between the National League’s two best teams.
Pederson has made quite a splash this season for Triple-A Albuquerque. Per Baseball-Reference.com, the 22-year-old outfielder has 33 home runs, 78 RBI and 30 stolen bases in 121 games, with a .303 batting average and .435 on-base percentage.
That production allowed Pederson to win the Pacific Coast League’s MVP award. Minor League Team Names highlighted the elite company Pederson joined with his sensational all-around play:
Pederson commented about his achievement after it happened, per MiLB.com’s Josh Jackson:
It’s a great feeling. It shows that hard work and the process I’ve put in with the coaches and the Dodgers staff is paying off in results. You don’t ever strive to do something like that at the start of the season because you don’t want to limit yourself. Something that prestigious is quite humbling and I’m honored to do it.
Based on the gaudy numbers, it appears as though Pederson qualifies for the call-up—and very well could have before now. However, the Dodgers are rather loaded in the outfield. Young All-Star Yasiel Puig occupies center field, while LA also boasts the likes of Matt Kemp, Carl Crawford and Andre Ethier.
It speaks volumes about Pederson’s play that he’s being called up even with that stacked of an outfield rotation. Not to mention, the Dodgers are in first place in the NL West division at the moment, so throwing someone as hyped as Pederson into such a high-stakes environment shows the type of faith the organization has in him.
With the promotion comes pressure for Pederson to perform. Making the leap to the big leagues with so much on the line will tell a lot about the type of player Pederson is bound to become. If his rampage through Triple-A ball serves as any telling sign, though, it appears Pederson will be as good as advertised and be a dark-horse contributor for a potential World Series contender.
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