Dodgers pick up 2026 options on Muncy, Vesia

LOS ANGELES -- The Dodgers began their offseason by picking up the club options for third baseman Max Muncy ($10 million) and lefty reliever Alex Vesia ($3.55 million) on Thursday.

The team announced that outfielder Ryan Ward and left-hander Robinson Ortiz were added to the 40-man roster, which is now full. In corresponding moves, right-hander Tony Gonsolin was designated for assignment, and outfielder Justin Dean and righty Michael Grove were outrighted. Dean was claimed by the Giants.

Muncy, 35, has appeared in only 173 games over the past two seasons, but he has been a key cog in the Dodgers' lineup when healthy. While he slumped at the plate through the first month this year, Muncy slashed .268/.406/.563 in 72 games from April 30 on. His 137 wRC+ was the fourth highest of any Dodger, behind Shohei Ohtani (172), Will Smith (153) and Freddie Freeman (139).

Notably, the Dodgers went 60-40 in the games he appeared in, as opposed to 33-29 without him. Muncy went on the injured list twice: first with a bone bruise in his left knee in July, and then with a strained right oblique in August.

There were some questions about Muncy's defense at third base, as he committed 11 errors and was worth -6 outs above average, which ranked in the ninth percentile among qualified Major Leaguers. But for the length he brings to the lineup -- and maybe even his ability to serve as a mentor for shortstop/third baseman Alex Freeland, L.A.'s No. 4 prospect per MLB Pipeline -- picking up the option for their longest-tenured player rather than lose him to free agency was a no-brainer for the Dodgers.

Vesia, 29, was not only the Dodgers' steadiest reliever this season, but he has arguably become one of the best lefty bullpen arms in baseball. He ranks third in both expected batting average (.174) and strikeout rate (33.4%) among left-handers who have faced at least 400 batters in the past two years.

While serving in a fireman role for the Dodgers this year, Vesia posted a 3.02 ERA across 68 appearances and converted five saves. He stabilized a bullpen with a back end that was almost constantly in flux and proved difficult to replace during the World Series, when he had to leave the team to attend to a family matter.

The club option bought out Vesia's final year of arbitration eligibility, and he is set to become a free agent after the 2026 season.

Gonsolin was an All-Star in 2022, but after returning from 2023 Tommy John surgery, he posted a 5.00 ERA across only seven starts before his elbow flared up again this past season.

He and Grove were recovering from major surgeries. While Grove was expected to be ready in time for Spring Training 2026 following a right labrum procedure in March, Gonsolin would not have returned until midseason from an internal brace/flexor cleanup in August. Both were arbitration-eligible.

Dean was on the Dodgers' roster for the entire postseason, serving as a late-inning defensive specialist in center field. He took only two big league plate appearances but made it into 18 regular-season games.

Ward and Ortiz would have been exposed to the Rule 5 Draft had they not been added to the 40-man roster. Both were also eligible to be selected last year, but neither was chosen.

Ward led the Minor Leagues in homers (36), RBIs (122) and total bases (315) for Triple-A Oklahoma City in a campaign that earned him Pacific Coast League MVP honors. Ortiz ascended from High-A to Triple-A, posting a 2.73 ERA in 48 appearances (one start) across three levels of the Minors.