Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder James Tibbs III Kyle Tucker is hitting .230 with an OPS below .700 and is in the middle of a 0-for-24 stretch. Dave Roberts recently gave him a day off at home because he was showing signs of frustration amid his terrible season at Dodger Stadium. He has actually been fine on the road, but it's starting to become clear that his confidence is shot, and he is currently not an asset to the team. Benching him would be hard, considering his track record and how much he is getting paid, but the Dodgers are in pursuit of a three-peat, and Tucker may not be the best option to get them there. The Dodgers would love nothing more than to see him get hot and swing the bat as he has for the last five years, but time is running out. It may be time to give James Tibbs III a chance. Tibbs was acquired from the Boston Red Sox for Dustin May last year, after the Red Sox got him in the Rafael Devers deal. He is the Dodgers' No. 7 prospect and has really leaped since joining the organization. He has a .297/.416/.547 slash line with 24 homers this year.
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He started off the season scorching hot, leading the minors in homers through about two months. However, in June, his bat cooled down, and he hit .209. He hit .279 in July, but did not hit any home runs. This month, he has two home runs and is slashing .365/.470/.577. He's had a case to be called up for most of the year, but he's gotten to the point where keeping him in Triple-A is doing him no good. He could be ready for his shot in the big leagues. He plays first base, right field and left field. If the Dodgers come to the decision that Tucker no longer needs to play every day, Tibbs would be a solid replacement. At the very least, he could split time with Tucker until Tucker starts to look like himself again. More MLB: Red Sox's Payton Tolle Provides Contract Extension Update