A ton of players to watch and some notable omissions – Dodgers Digest

Final rosters have been set for the 2026 Spring Breakout game — which will take place at 2:30 PM PT tomorrow — and it’s time to take a look at what to expect in this year’s showcase. The first event was held in 2024 and it featured some notable alumni, including Edgardo Henriquez before he ascended from A-ball to the majors and earned himself his first World Series ring.

This year’s contest will spotlight the tremendous upside and outstanding depth — particularly in the outfield — that the Dodgers have accumulated in the minor leagues. But first, let’s take a look at who isn’t playing.

NOTABLE OMISSIONS

A preliminary 40 man roster for the game was announced a few weeks ago and that list has been pared down to 27 players. Don’t worry, most of the Dodgers’ top prospects will still be included in the festivities, but there were some surprising cuts.

On the pitching side, top prospects River Ryan and Jackson Ferris were left off. Luckily, Dodger fans have been able to see them on the major league side in Spring Training, with Ryan having pitched very well this spring after missing last year due to injury. However, I’m more disappointed by another pair who were dropped.

Patrick Copen, a 2023 7th round pick and personal favorite, will not be appearing in this year’s Spring Breakout. He made two appearances for the big club in spring training before being sent back to minor league camp. Cam Leiter, of the MLB Leiter family, was the team’s 2nd rounder last year and hasn’t pitched in a competitive game yet. It appears fans will have to wait a little longer for his debut.

Luckily, the Dodgers will have more hitters than they know what to do with, even with the cuts. The biggest name on offense who won’t be participating is Alex Freeland, while Ryan Ward and Ching-Hsien Ko were other noteworthy exclusions. Noah Miller, who has dazzled this spring on defense, will save his glove for the regular season as well.

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With that out of the way, let’s take a look at who is scheduled to appear.

PITCHERS (8)

Maddux Bruns, LHPCam Day, RHPPayton Martin, RHPCody Morse, LHPMarlon Nieves, RHPZach Root, LHPAdam Serwinowski, LHPChristian Zazueta, RHP

CATCHERS (2)

Francisco EspinozaVictor Rodrigues

INFIELDERS (7)

Moises Bolivar, INFChase Harlan, 3BElijah Hainline, INFKellon Lindsey, SSEmil Morales, SSJoendry Vargas, SSLogan Wagner, INF

OUTFIELDERS (10)

Charles DavalanJosue De PaulaZach EhrhardKendall GeorgeZyhir HopeEduardo QuinteroMike SirotaJames Tibbs IIIBrendan TuninkLandyn Vidourek

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PITCHERS

Even without top guys like Ryan and Ferris, this group is intriguing. The highest rated of the bunch is Christian Zazueta, who pitched mostly in Single A last season and figures to head back to High A Great Lakes to start 2026, where he made a singular, late season appearance before shutting down last year.

Then there’s Adam Serwinowski, the reigning Midwest League strikeout king. He, like Zazueta, was acquired through trade for organizational depth. The Dodgers have done an outstanding job at trading for prospects, which is a topic I may have to explore in the future.

Speaking of lefties with some funk, you’ll love Zach Root. LA’s top selection in last year’s draft, he has a chance to overwhelm young hitters in this exhibition and in the low minors with multiple plus secondaries and a deceptive delivery.

A late season pop up guy from 2025 is Marlon Nieves, who made 12 appearances in complex ball before reaching Rancho where he posted a 2.21 ERA in eight starts while striking out a batter an inning. The 20 year old righty has a big fastball and will occasionally spin a really good bender.

INFIELDERS

I combined catchers with the infield since only two catchers are being carried. One of them is Francisco Espinoza, who just turned 19 and had a monster state-side debut in the Complex League last year. The precocious teenage backstop hit .350/.443/.467 in 35 games in Arizona in 2025. Joining him behind the dish is Victor Rodrigues, who posted a ridiculous .446 OBP with Rancho last season.

The infield group is probably the weakest but features some big time talent, led by Emil Morales. Another 19 year old, Morales has posted a .322/.423/.568 slash line in his first 135 professional games and was ranked the 92nd best prospect in the minors by MLB Pipeline.

Kellon Lindsey and Joendry Vargas give the team another couple of shortstops to shuffle around the infield. Lindsey has the makings of a young Trea Turner but that’s a very distant and ambitious projection. Vargas is another big bodied infielder like Morales, with plenty of power projection but lots of work to do at the plate and in the field. That trio should be reunited in Single A Ontario this coming season.

Another pair of infielders who are less heralded but worth following are Elijah Hainline and Chase Harlan. Hainline was a 7th rounder in 2024 who OPS’d .840 in A ball before getting a cup of coffee in OKC last year. Harlan was taken in the 3rd round in 2024 and debuted last season, showing prodigious raw power coupled with contact concerns.

OUTFIELDERS

The cream of the crop resides in the outfield for the Dodgers, who have the strongest such group in all of professional baseball. Carrying ten outfielders, the Dodgers could cycle entire groups of prospects every three innings.

You could see De Paula, Hope and George to open, then Sirota, Davalan and Quintero next, followed by Ehrhard, Tunink and Vidourek to close it out. James Tibbs III likely slides over to first, since the team doesn’t appear to have a natural first baseman on the roster.

I could go on, at length, about the breadth and talent of this group, but I already did a couple weeks ago and I encourage you to read or re-read this article as a refresher.

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So, what and who can we expect to see in the game? I’m sure as many players as possible will rotated in and out, but if I was in charge of the lineup card, it would look like this:

CF Eduardo QuinteroDH Josue De PaulaRF Mike Sirota1B James Tibbs IIILF Zyhir HopeSS Emil Morales3B Joendry Vargas2B Kellon LindseyC  Francisco EspinozaP  Christian Zazueta

With last year’s game rained out, here’s hoping for sunny skies and healthy guys. This should be an awesome prelude to a very exciting season.

By the way, feel free to follow me on BlueSky for live-skeeting of the game and check back here afterward for a recap.

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Author’s Note: After going back and linking to my first article, I’m just now seeing the messages some of you left for me. Turns out taking years off of writing led me to forget about comments. Thank you for the kind words and warm welcome.