Dodgers re-sign – Santiago Espinal is back with the Los Angeles Dodgers after being designated for assignment earlier this week, with the club creating room by optioning Hyeseong Kim. The move comes as Kiké Hernandez’s injury creates a new roster crunch and as Tommy Edman begin
By the time the Dodgers steadied themselves after two separate four-game losing streaks. it looked like the kind of baseball momentum Los Angeles can build on. They have done it again—pushing past the slump. sweeping the lowly Los Angeles Angels and the Colorado Rockies. then winning on the road against the San Diego Padres and Milwaukee Brewers.
The result is the same kind of season that has become familiar in this organization: the Dodgers are 36-20, and they sit only one and a half games behind the Atlanta Braves for MLB’s best record. But even with the standings doing the talking, the roster is still being tweaked.
The latest adjustment has a familiar name returning. Veteran infielder Santiago Espinal was designated for assignment at the beginning of the week. and now he has re-signed with the Dodgers. The California Post’s Jack Harris reported the deal. and the organization plans to make space for Espinal by optioning Hyeseong Kim to the minor leagues.
Espinal, 27, carries more than just a back-to-the-roster headline. He is a 2022 All-Star with the Toronto Blue Jays. and his 2025 numbers reflect a hitter the Dodgers believe they can use in the infield. Through 131 plate appearances in 2025, he is batting .259 with one home run, 11 RBIs, a .328 slugging percentage and a .651 OPS. In his current stint for the Boys in Blue, his line sits at .220/.238/.366/.604 across 26 games.
It’s the kind of second chance that can feel freeing—or unforgiving—depending on what happens next. The Dodgers will accommodate Espinal’s return now, but he knows there is a path where he could be designated for assignment again promptly once the club shifts its needs again.
That urgency lands on Kim as well. At .259 with one home run and 11 RBIs for Espinal this season. the Dodgers are clearly looking for reliable production and at-bats they can trust. Kim’s move to the minor leagues turns this into a race for control of time—because Kim is trying to become a reliable hitter who can command more MLB playing time.
The roster juggling isn’t happening in a vacuum. The Dodgers absorbed a blow with the Kiké Hernandez injury news. even as they keep an eye on what comes next. In the near future. Los Angeles could welcome back Tommy Edman. and that timeline matters because Edman is beginning a rehab assignment in Triple-A Oklahoma City next week.
For now, though, the club has to handle the immediate at-bat needs with Espinal available again. That means the window created by Hernandez’s injury and the one opening for Edman’s eventual return are colliding—right in the middle of a season where the Dodgers are already trying to keep their distance in the race for the best record.
Andrew Friedman’s impatience is part of the team’s identity. and the Dodgers feel it every season—because they keep pushing toward another championship. After two-time reigning World Series champion expectations and their own wake-up call from those back-to-back stretches of four straight losses. the quest for a three-peat remains the driving force.
So Espinal’s return isn’t just a roster move after a designation for assignment. It’s a statement that the Dodgers will keep reshaping their options while they’re still chasing perfection in the standings. And with one and a half games separating them from the Atlanta Braves for MLB’s best record. the timing of every personnel decision is starting to feel like it matters more than ever.
Los Angeles Dodgers Santiago Espinal Hyeseong Kim Kiké Hernandez injury Tommy Edman rehab assignment Andrew Friedman MLB standings Atlanta Braves World Series champion
So they DFA’d him and then brought him back? Dodgers really be playing roster Tetris.
Kiké hurt again?? Seems like every time I turn around there’s an injury with them. Hope Espinal is actually good and not just “veteran depth.”
Wait who is Hyeseong Kim again, like is he the one who used to play for the Angels? They said option him to the minors so that means he’s gone right? Dodgers always do this and then the media acts surprised when it’s the same problems.
The article says they’re only 1.5 games behind the Braves which is wild, but then they’re still tweaking the lineup like it’s not working. Espinal batting .220 right now sounds rough though, not gonna lie. Also the Hernandez injury sounds serious? Did I miss how long he’s out?