Originally published by DodgerBlue.com
Following a win against the Colorado Rockies on Friday night, it was reported the Los Angeles Dodgers planned to recall Ryan Ward from Triple-A Oklahoma City this weekend.
Ward did not join the Dodgers roster on Saturday but the expectation is he will be added as the wraparound series at Coors Fields continues.
“You know, there’s some talk. Right now, I’m going to kind of stay hushed on this,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said on SportsNet LA prior to his team’s loss to the Rockies. “Obviously there’s some thoughts and things that are happening. But from different people, we want it to be quiet.
“So I think that right now, we’ve got to stay in the moment and have a conversation [Sunday].”
Ryan Ward move not because of injury
Although Roberts declined to get into specifics, he did rule out Ward’s impending arrival being due to an injured player.
“No, not injury-related. Thank you for asking,” Roberts said.
There had been some speculation Teoscar Hernández had a left foot issue as a result of fouling a pitch off in the series opener. Roberts’ comments, coupled with Hernández remaining in the lineup on Saturday, soothed those concerns.
The plausible, if not likely, explanation for Ward getting his first MLB opportunity is that Freddie Freeman needs to on the paternity list. Freeman recently announced with his wife, Chelsea, they are expecting their fourth child via surrogate.
The Freemans did not disclose an expected due date, but Chelsea recently held a baby shower.
Regardless of the corresponding roster move, this is going to represent Ward’s first opportunity at the big league level. There seemingly was a chance for that to take place last year amid Michael Conforto’s ongoing struggles, but Ward remained in Triple-A.
It was thought to be in part because he was not yet on the Dodgers’ 40-man roster and the team needed to maintain flexibility for players returning from the 60-day injured list. He admitted to being somewhat frustrated earlier this year with continuing to get passed over.
Ward was added onto the Dodgers’ 40-man roster during the offseason offseason in order to protect him from possibly getting picked in the Rule 5 Draft. That came after Ward was named Pacific Coast League MVP for the 2025 season
The 28-year-old is in the midst of another productive year at the Triple-A level, as he’s hit .324/.432/.588 with six doubles, four home runs and 14 RBI over 18 games thus far.
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