As the 2025 Dodgers’ run to a repeat title showed, it takes a village to win a World Series championship.
For all the heroics from star players like Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Mookie Betts, Los Angeles’ less-heralded players came up huge throughout the regular season and postseason to secure a second straight Fall Classic victory. In the World Series alone, Will Klein’s crucial relief innings in Game 3, Miguel Rojas’ great defense and game-tying Game 7 homer and Andy Pages’ incredible catch to send Game 7 to extras were some of the key contributions leading to another parade through downtown L.A.
Roki Sasaki, RHP
Sasaki already helped the Dodgers win it all in 2025, stepping up at the back end of a much-maligned bullpen and getting the job done. He allowed just one run in 10 2/3 postseason innings, including Games 3 and 6 of the World Series, and picked up two holds and three saves. It was an impressive turnaround for the rookie phenom from Japan, who began the year in the Dodgers’ rotation but struggled as a starter. Sasaki was placed on the injured list in May with a right shoulder impingement and lost velocity on his fastball during his Minor League rehab assignment in August before returning as a reliever late in the regular season.
Despite Sasaki’s success out of the ’pen, the Dodgers will begin 2026 with the hard-throwing righty in their rotation. Sasaki will have to curb his issue with walks (he issued two or more in all eight of his 2025 starts) to last as a starter, but his triple-digit heat and filthy splitter could be enough to keep him in the rotation. If so, he could be an ideal fifth option behind Yamamoto, Ohtani, Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow.
But if the lefty can regain his All-Star form, it could work wonders for a Dodgers bullpen that had a subpar 4.27 ERA in 2025. Scott looked the part at the start of his L.A. tenure, posting a 1.74 ERA with 21 strikeouts in his first 21 games, but he struggled from there before landing on the IL in July. With Sasaki moving back to the Dodgers’ rotation, a healthy and fully effective Scott could be a major weapon against opponents’ top hitters in high-leverage situations, especially in the postseason.
Dalton Rushing, C/OF
Rushing — the Dodgers’ top prospect and MLB Pipeline’s No. 15 overall prospect at the time of his May 2025 callup — remains blocked from a starting job at catcher by Will Smith, one of the best in the game at his position. But the Dodgers want to get Rushing on the field in 2026, and they appear willing to move the 24-year-old around to do so.
In addition to serving as Los Angeles’ backup catcher, Rushing could see playing time in the outfield, the Los Angeles Times recently reported. As a rookie, Rushing made 41 appearances behind the plate, eight at first base and none in the outfield for the Dodgers, but he played 31 games in left field for Triple-A Oklahoma City in 2024 and two more in 2025. Rushing struggled with the bat in his debut season, hitting .204 with a .582 OPS, but he has plenty of power and could be a critical and versatile piece in 2026.
Hyeseong Kim, INF
Kim was rather quietly a valuable player for the Dodgers in 2025, accruing 1.7 bWAR in just 71 games and 170 plate appearances. He batted .280 with 13 stolen bases in 14 tries while spending time at three key positions: second base (45 games), shortstop (11 games) and center field (17 games). It was a solid debut season for the Korean star, who signed a three-year, $12.5 million deal with Los Angeles in January.
Kim could stand to improve his plate discipline considerably in 2026 — he struck out 52 times in 2025 (30.6% K rate) and drew just seven walks — if he wants to get more consistent playing time. Even if he does, a starting role might not be in the cards, with Tommy Edman playing second base, Betts at shortstop and Pages manning center field. But Kim was effective in a sort of supersub role in 2025, and if he can up his game, he could emerge as one of MLB’s best utility players.
River Ryan, RHP
Ryan, who missed all of 2025 recovering from Tommy John surgery, is on track to be back in 2026. If so, he could be a key piece of the club’s rotation depth. Ryan was excellent in his 2024 debut — four starts between July and August — before tearing his right UCL in his final outing. He posted a 1.33 ERA with 18 strikeouts in 20 1/3 innings and was adept at avoiding hard contact.
The Dodgers’ No. 9 prospect has the best arsenal of any L.A. farmhand, according to MLB Pipeline. His four-seam fastball sits in the upper 90s, and five other pitches — including a slider with plus movement — round out his repertoire. Dodgers fans got to see Ryan’s talent on display before he went down, and if the right-hander can stay healthy, he could factor into L.A.’s pitching depth in 2026. That might not mean a full-time spot in the Dodgers’ stacked rotation, but Ryan could be an effective long reliever or spot starter if he gets the chance.
Alex Freeland, INF
Just like Rushing, Freeland was one of the Dodgers’ top prospects at the time of his 2025 debut. And just like Rushing, he struggled at the plate in his first taste of the Major Leagues, batting .190 with a .601 OPS across 97 plate appearances. The infielder — who enters 2026 as the team’s No. 4 prospect — was called up when Kim landed on the injured list in July, splitting time almost equally between third base (17 games) and second base (15).
While blocked at shortstop by Betts, Freeland is a plus defender who has proven himself capable of handling either third or second. He showed off his impressive plate discipline in his 29-game sample at the MLB level, and his switch-hitting ability certainly doesn’t hurt. Freeland might not start the season on the Dodgers’ roster, but he could still play a key role off the bench — or potentially at shortstop if Betts misses any time.
