Austin Barnes
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Austin Barnes was a big part of the Los Angeles Dodgers roster in their back-to-back World Series appearances but was overthrown by rookie catcher Will Smith this season.
Russell Martin was the backup and they weren’t going to send him down so Barnes was the odd man out. He only received six at-bats in the month of September.
He was recently reassigned to the minor leagues on October 3, which means he will most likely not be an impactful player on the Dodgers moving forward.
Will Smith seemingly is the starting catcher for the future, and Keibert Ruiz is shortly behind him in addition to Barnes being 30, so I think he needs to be moved if he wants to continue a major league career.
I would assume there would be a market for Barnes, as he was playing in the Fall Classic last year. There are plenty of teams that would either give Barnes a chance to be the starting catcher out of spring training (but probably non-contenders) or be the backup on a contending team. I think Barnes would benefit from a change in scenery.
It just is a shame that Austin Barnes, who nearly hit .300 in 2017, doesn’t have many options other than getting moved if he wants to further his career.