Dodgers News: Miguel Rojas Knows He’s ‘Capable of More’ at the Plate
Things haven’t been going as well for Miguel Rojas as he would’ve hoped. Traded for this offseason with the expectation of being the backup all around the infield, the 34-year-old has had a down year in his second go-round with the Dodgers.
He’s slashing .232/.275/.280 in 2023 and hasn’t played well enough to be LA’s guaranteed everyday shortstop, much less one that’s relied upon to make an impact at a crucial position.
Rojas, who made a name for himself as a team leader on an otherwise young Miami Marlins team, is well aware that he’s not playing up to those expectations.
And he thinks he knows why.
“I haven’t been able to find my swing on the inner part of the plate, where I’ve been pretty good throughout my career,” Rojas said. “I’m a pull hitter, but right now, I’m not able to get the barrel of the bat to the inside pitch, and I’m hitting a lot of popups to right field and hard ground balls to second base.”
via Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times
Either way, Rojas needs to be more consistent if the Dodgers hope to be contenders by the time the homestretch of the season comes around.
Sure, the revolving door in the six hole — which has even included some appearances by right fielder Mookie Betts — has worked well enough at this point, but come later in the season the Dodgers will need to know who they can rely upon to play the position on a full-time basis.
As far as the shortstop by trade is concerned, he knows his role in the offense and wants to raise his level of play on that end so he doesn’t become a liability at any point in games.
“I don’t need to be a superstar offensively in this lineup, but I want to match my defense with offense,” Rojas said. “I want to be a complete player. I don’t want to be the guy they put in just for defense, or whose bat is taken away later in the game, but if you’re not producing, you’re going to be replaced. I’m not gonna hit 30 to 40 homers and drive in 100 runs, but I know I’m capable of more.”
And the veteran isn’t out making excuses for himself, unwilling to say a wrist injury has been the reason behind his struggles. He knows he needs to be better for the team that showed faith that he could be “the guy that follows the guy.”
“The wrist has been good — it has nothing to do with the performance,” Rojas said. “After the spring I had, I felt like I would be an impactful offensive player, and that’s what I still believe. But the way I was in spring training, I haven’t shown that so far this year.”
Miguel Rojas has been better as of late, but he’s still yet to prove he can be an everyday player at the shortstop position.
And for the Dodger that left as an intriguing young prospect and came back with the experience that eight years in the MLB can give a player, he knows he needs to fix things.
Now comes the hard part of putting that goal into practice.
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