Dodgers Team News

Dodgers News: Trayce Thompson Feels Like His Hot Streak is ‘Coming’

Things haven’t been going well for Dodgers outfielder Trayce Thompson this season.

After starting the year with a three-home run game in his 2023 debut, it was starting to look like last year’s resurgent Thompson wasn’t a fluke. He appeared to be someone who was finally going to earn himself a consistent role on an MLB team, and, more importantly, last an entire season with one team.



Now, his days are starting to look numbered.

Since Thompson’s incredible 2023 debut, he’s just 4-for-50 with one home run, three RBIs and 28 strikeouts. His slash line during that time is an abysmal .080/.246/.140. His OPS is just .386.

These struggles are nothing new for Thompson, though. Up until last year, he was never able to find a home in the major leagues. He bounced around from team to team, including an extended stay with the Dodgers in 2016 and 2017. Finally, though, it felt like, at 33 years old, he found his long-term home. Now, who’s to say.

Thompson definitely wants to be in Los Angeles for the long haul. He’s continuing to put in the work to get his career back on track, and, maybe most importantly, is just trying to keep a positive attitude (per Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register).

“You just try to stay positive and know that, the fact of the matter is it’s a long season,” Thompson said. “You have to really take that to heart.”

Thompson also explained his mindset to Plunkett, and how he thinks he’s going to get back on track soon.

“It’s coming. I know it is,” Thompson said. “I feel like you can be two ways about it. You can be pouty about it – ‘Woe is me.’ Or you can be, ‘You know what? I’m due.’ I feel like I have to choose the latter. I’ve served my time. Now it’s time to get hot.”

Thompson getting hot would be great for a few reasons. First of all, it would keep him with the Dodgers and not looking for a new home. But second of all, it could potentially help the Dodgers solve their problems against left-handed pitching.

Even though they finally got to some lefties against the Brewers this week, they’re still lacking a consistent lineup against southpaws. Thompson was supposed to be that guy.

The Dodgers are trying their best to make Thompson work, but dating back to last year, he just hasn’t been able to hit a lefty.

The Dodgers, as analytical as they are, aren’t doing anything about Thompson’s struggles. He’s continuing to get opportunities against left-handed pitching, and he’s down to an ugly slashline of .065/.237/.161 against them.

It’s not always easy to stay positive when the results just aren’t there.

“I’ve had moments for sure. I’ve had days where I’ve been in a dark place the last month or so,” Thompson said to Plunkett. “At the end of the day, that’s a recipe that doesn’t work well for me. I think about my 5- or 9-year-old self and how happy I’d be just to be playing in the major leagues. You just kind of take that perspective. I try to view it as today’s the day.”

You have to love this mindset from Thompson. He’s not giving up, and knows he can turn this thing around. His rise to success with the Dodgers last season was one of the better stories surrounding the team, so hopefully his positive mindset starts paying off.

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Noah Camras

Noah is an Editor for Dodgers Nation. He graduated from USC in 2022 with a B.A. in Journalism and minor in Sports Media Studies. He's been a Dodger fan his whole life, and his all-time favorite Dodgers are Matt Kemp and Russell Martin.

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