Kyle Tucker’s bat is starting to look a lot more like the player the Dodgers paid for.
His homer Monday in Cincinnati was his third in the last five games, and that stretch has nudged his slugging percentage from a season-low .350 on Sept. 8 to .376 heading into Tuesday’s rematch with the Reds. September is only halfway done, but it already looks like Tucker’s strongest month of the year.
That turnaround may not be a coincidence. After a one-on-one meeting with Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, Tucker appears to have gotten the kind of backing that can clear a hitter’s head.
“I told him, I’m gonna ride or die with him,” Roberts said (via Jack Harris of the California Post). “That was my young term phrase.”
The message mattered because Tucker’s first year in Los Angeles has been a grind. The Dodgers gave the four-time All-Star a four-year, $240 million deal over the winter, and the expectations came with it. But the production lagged early, with Tucker managing just one home run in his first 17 games.
The struggles didn’t stop there. Through the end of August, Tucker’s .683 OPS ranked 116th among 138 qualified hitters.
"I was prepared, the organization was prepared, to give him as much leash as we possibly could to work through some things, and I do think that now we’re starting to see the fruits,” Roberts said. “So I see no other reason why we would pivot from running him out there every day.”
The Dodgers also have some roster pressure bubbling in the background. In Triple-A Oklahoma City, James Tibbs III has piled up 29 home runs, 101 RBIs and a .417 on-base percentage. And Josue De Paula, a prospect who has played right field in the minors, was promoted to fill Shohei Ohtani’s spot on the active roster.
De Paula has made an immediate impression since his debut, reaching base in half of his first 14 plate appearances and hitting his first career home run on Sunday. Roberts had said before Ohtani went on the injured list that the club wasn’t thinking about using him in the outfield.
For now, Tucker has the best way to keep that conversation quiet: keep hitting. If he keeps producing like this, the Dodgers won’t have much reason to look elsewhere in right field.
In Other News...
Brewers Are Getting The Kind Of NL Respect Fans Crave
A fresh round of respect is starting to tilt toward Milwaukee, and it came from a source that tends to notice the leagues real power centers. In a poll of MLB executives conducted by Jesse Rogers of ESPN, the Brewers edged the Dodgers as the National League team to beat for the 2026 season, taking six votes to Los Angeles five. The reasoning centered on Milwaukees pitching, with Jacob Misiorowski helping headline a staff that drew plenty of notice.
For the Dodgers, the vote total is hardly a disaster, but it does reflect the unease that can follow a season when the margins look thinner than expected. Executives pointed to concerns about Shohei Ohtanis injury and a lineup that fell short of its usual standard, two reminders that even a star-studded roster can lose some of its aura when health and production wobble. The Dodgers still sit right at the top of the NL conversation, but this time they are sharing the spotlight instead of owning it alone. [Read more 🡒]
Dodgers Suddenly Have A Real De Paula Decision To Make
Miguel De Paulas rise has given the Dodgers something they didnt expect to be sorting out this soon. Promoted straight from Double-A Tulsa to the major league roster after Shohei Ohtani landed on the injured list, De Paula arrived with some momentum behind him and quickly gave the club a glimpse of why he was moved so aggressively. His work in Tulsa had been strong enough to earn the call, and his first taste of the big leagues already included his first career home run.
For a Dodgers team that has had to juggle roster decisions all season, De Paulas place now becomes more than a temporary fill-in. The manager said he will get major league at-bats while Ohtani recovers, which gives the club a chance to see whether the young infielder can do more than cover for a vacancy. For a player who was still in Double-A not long ago, the opportunity is as real as the uncertainty that comes with it. [Read more 🡒]
Dodgers Bullpen Gets A Needed Lefty As Pressure Keeps Building
The Dodgers added another arm to a bullpen that has been asked to carry plenty of weight, reaching into the Royals for left-hander Kris Bubic in exchange for minor league pitcher Carlos Duran. Bubic is currently on the 60-day injured list, but the plan is for him to head straight into Los Angeles bullpen, giving Dave Roberts another option as the club keeps searching for stability in relief.
Roberts confirmed Bubic is expected to arrive soon, and the lefty said he was excited about the move to Los Angeles. If everything lines up, he could be available as soon as Wednesday, which would give the Dodgers a potentially useful piece just as the pressure on the bullpen continues to build. [Read more 🡒]