The Dodgers may have found a way to ease one of their biggest roster logjams by sliding Charles Davalan off the outfield grass and over to second base in the Arizona Fall League.
That move matters because Los Angeles has plenty of outfield bodies already, enough that even some of the minor league depth could be used as trade bait. Rather than let a good player get buried, the Dodgers are giving Davalan a new lane.
And it’s not exactly unfamiliar territory for him. He spent most of his college career at the University of Arkansas in left field, but before that, at Florida Gulf Coast University, he logged a healthy amount of time at second base.
Davalan is still only 22, but he’s already one of the more interesting names in the system. MLB Pipeline has him ranked as the Dodgers’ No. 6 prospect, though he’s only the fourth-highest ranked outfielder behind Josue De Paula, Eduardo Quintero, and Mike Sirota. That’s part of why he’s flown a bit under the radar, even after a strong 2026 season that deserves more attention.
At High-A Great Lakes, with just a one-game stop in Tulsa mixed in, Davalan put together a loud year at the plate. He hit .292/.402/.535 with 24 home runs and 17 steals. He also drew walks at an 11.9% clip while striking out just 10.8% of the time, which is the kind of combination that gets evaluators leaning in.
He hasn’t broken out yet in the AFL, but the bat hasn’t cooled off the buzz around him. FanGraphs prospect analyst Eric Longenhagen put Davalan in the "Up Arrow Potential Stars" tier in a look at the autumn showcase, and his comments painted a pretty appealing picture of what’s coming next.
"Davalan is revisiting second base, where he played as a freshman at Florida Gulf Coast, and it’s going well," Longenhagen wrote. "A long in-person look has also made me confident that he has meaningful juice despite being such a little guy. He’s going to be an everyday player, even if that means playing a mix of second base and left field the way Chris Taylor and Enrique Hernández would in concert with Max Muncy."
That’s the kind of comp that turns heads. A prime Chris Taylor reset would be welcome anywhere, and whenever a player gets mentioned alongside Kiké Hernández, that’s usually a compliment. More than that, Longenhagen’s framing suggests Davalan’s versatility may be part of the package, not the ceiling.
The path ahead looks straightforward enough. Davalan should open next season in Double-A, and if he moves quickly through Tulsa, he could reach Oklahoma City and put himself in position for a major league role in 2028. That’s especially useful for the Dodgers given the current state of the roster, where Hernandez is getting long in the tooth, Tommy Edman has been injury prone and underwhelming, and Alex Freeland and Hyeseong Kim have fumbled their opportunities.
The Gavin Lux trade may go down as one of Andrew Friedman’s greatest heists.
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