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Dodgers’ Trayce Thompson feels like he’s back where he belongs

Posted on July 30, 2022 By admin No Comments on Dodgers’ Trayce Thompson feels like he’s back where he belongs

Bat bags and a large suitcase.

In many ways, they have been the defining memories of Trayce Thompson’s transitory career path.

The journeyman outfielder has been in professional baseball for over 13 years with nine franchises; Played for 19 major league and minor league teams; traded, bought or claimed six times.

At the end of each rotating stint, two things usually happen:

He is packing his suitcase to move to a new city, a new clubhouse, a new organization.

And he places his old bat bag in his family’s storage unit, adding to what now feels like a kaleidoscope of discarded baseball relics.

“It’s a little intimidating to see all the different colors,” she said.

Indeed, the spectrum ranges from Chicago White Sox black to Oakland Athletic green, Arizona Diamondback red to San Diego Padre brown.

Thompson couldn’t help but gasp at the thought of all the recent changes.

Trayce Thompson is hitting .295 with three home runs and 15 RBIs in 29 games during his current stint with the Dodgers.

(Mark J. Terrill/Associated Press)

“When you come up, you always think you’re going to be with a team,” he said. “It was a mental grind.”

But he proudly noted that his collection has always featured more Dodger blue than anything else.

This is the club where he experienced the peak of his career six years ago.

And the team that gave him a long-awaited opportunity back in the major leagues in the last month.

“I knew I could get to the big leagues, contribute, recover and be an impact player,” said Thompson, now more than a month removed from the trade that sent him back to Los Angeles, where he appeared midseason. Surprise with .301 batting average, four home runs and 17 RBI in 30 games.

“But to do it here, with a lot of guys that I know, a lot of people that I’ve spent a lot of time with, I think the common thread is just special,” he said. “It’s something I never thought could happen.”

At one time, Thompson thought he would be with the Dodgers for a long time.

Thompson, a Southland native who attended Santa Margarita High in Orange County, was drafted by the White Sox in the second round in 2009, then traded to the Dodgers in 2015 after a successful MLB debut.

He immediately felt at home.

Thompson made the opening day roster coming out of spring training in 2016. He developed a fast relationship in his new clubhouse, even moving alongside Joc Pederson, Corey Seager and Alex Wood.

In the first half of the following campaign, he flourished as a 25-year-old rookie, posting a .796 on-base-plus-slowing percentage and 13 home runs in his first 73 games, while occasionally hitting high. is third in the ranking.

“He carried it for us for a couple of months,” manager Dave Roberts recalled.

At the time, Thompson said he “felt like I was going to be here for a while.”

Dodgers' Trayce Thompson arrives at a spring training baseball game against the Chicago White Sox on March 19, 2016.

Dodgers’ Trayce Thompson arrives during a spring training baseball game against the Chicago White Sox on March 19, 2016 in Phoenix.

(Jae C. Hong/Associated Press)

On the contrary, his career quickly unfolded.

He injured his back in July. A few weeks later, an X-ray revealed two broken vertebrae, an injury that ended his season.

His time with the Dodgers was also on time.

After bouncing between triple A and the big leagues in 2017, Thompson, who totaled 122 points in 27 games, was assigned by the New York Yankees at the end of spring training the following year, then waived by the team again. Athletics two days later.

“I didn’t play well,” Thompson said of his first game with the Dodgers. “It comes to that.”

His next few years weren’t much better: a self-confessed “disaster” in 2018 when he hit just 117 points in 51 games with the A’s and White Sox; mediocre 2019 season with Cleveland’s triple-A affiliate; and the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign was spent entirely at the Diamondbacks’ alternate training facility.

“I just lived out of one big suitcase,” he says with a self-deprecating laugh. “I learned to be efficient with my packing.”

Despite the setbacks, he had no plans to retire.

“When you go up, you always think you’re going to be with a team. This is mental distress.”

– Dodgers shortstop Trayce Thompson

“I always knew I was capable,” he said, “so I always saw a light at the end of the tunnel.”

But he also knew that his career was on the brink.

“I had to dig deep,” he said. “I didn’t want to end my career thinking I didn’t leave everything out there.”

Trayce wasn’t the only member of the Thompson family experiencing hardships at the time.

While he toiled in the minors trying to reinvent his game, his older brother, All-Star guard Klay Thompson of the Golden State Warriors, was sidelined with serious injuries and missed the entire 2019-20 season. A torn anterior cruciate ligament and all of 2020-21 with a torn Achilles tendon.

Trayce said Klay turned to him for advice on how to deal with the frustration of a back injury and how to deal with the mental challenges of long-term rehab.

But their talks were also effective for Trayce.

“Seeing her mental strength to go through all of that and see the light at the end of the tunnel is like what I had to go through,” Trayce said. “Not necessarily because of the injury, just because of the performance and everything that has happened in my career.

Golden State Warriors star Klay Thompson signs autographs for fans as he watches the Dodgers play the San Francisco Giants.

Golden State Warriors star Klay Thompson signs autographs for fans during the Dodgers’ game against the San Francisco Giants on July 24 at Dodger Stadium.

(Mark J. Terrill/Associated Press)

“I certainly looked to him as an inspiration. He came back from two major injuries when a lot of people counted him out and didn’t know who he was going to be or what he was going to be. So I had no excuse but to try my best to come back [to the majors] and restore myself.’

For Trayce, that meant taking a “deep dive” into his declining performance, trying to determine where he had gone astray.

He spent long hours in front of the computer, watching and replaying videos of his swing, and others practicing the sport he admired. He also did a lot of “self-talk,” trying to fill his psyche with “belief and confidence.”

Still, Klay provided some family motivation.

“My brother is a good example of that, a guy who never shies away from a moment, never shies away from a certain shot,” Trayce said. “He’s a guy I’ve been studying.”

While Klay returned to the court last fall and went on to win his fourth NBA title with the Warriors, Trayce returned to the majors for the first time in three years and earned a September call-up after being bounced from the Chicago Cubs last season. 21 home runs in a Triple-A season.

“I had to reevaluate myself … and kind of find myself again,” Thompson said. “I feel like the last few years have really been a journey towards that, starting in ’19.”

Two days before last month’s Warriors championship parade was set to celebrate Klay’s triumphant return, Mychal Thompson sat in a Bay Area hotel room and witnessed his other son’s latest turning point in real time.

After signing with the Padres this spring and being released after just six MLB games, Trayce underachieved, excelling for the Detroit Tigers’ triple-A affiliate in his latest bid to revive his career.

“It felt like he was coming home. It was his dream to wear the Dodger jersey again.”

– Mychal Thompson, father of Dodgers outfielder Trayce Thompson

On the afternoon of Father’s Day, June 19, in a game that Mychal watched live on his hotel room computer, Trayce hit a 6th inning single that raised his average to .299 for the season.

Mychal was delighted. Then he was confused.

Trayce was unexpectedly ejected in the seventh inning.

no, Michal thought. Is Trayce hurt?

But soon Mychal’s phone rang. Trayce was on the other end of the line.

“Hi, Dad,” Trayce said. “I just got traded.”

Where?

“The Dodgers” son spoke excitedly.

Dodgers' Trayce Thompson gestures toward the stands after scoring three runs

Dodgers’ Trayce Thompson gestures toward the stands after hitting a three-run home run against the Colorado Rockies on July 4 at Dodger Stadium.

(Kyusung Gong/Associated Press)

Mychal immediately recognized the significance, knowing all too well his son’s feelings about the organization—the blue relics he had kept in the storage unit all these years.

“Every hair on my body stood up,” the former Lakes center recalled recently. “It felt like he was coming home. It was his dream to wear the Dodger jersey again.”

Mychal added: “It was an answer to my prayers.”

Tracy, meanwhile, helped address the Dodgers’ midseason woes.

When they suffered some injuries on the field, president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said the team immediately targeted the right-hander.

“He made a strong impression when he was here,” Friedman said. “He was someone we followed closely and always rooted for.”

And since then, in what has become his longest major league career since 2018, Trayce has flashed his trademark power — it’s a small sample size, but his .542 slugging percentage is the best on the team — and combined strong outfield defense with newfound consistency. plate.

“Trace being comfortable, knowing her surroundings, I think that gave her the best chance to perform from the start,” Roberts said. “He’s a guy you can’t go against.”

Tracey’s role for the rest of the season remains unclear.

Chris Taylor is nearing his return from a broken leg. The Dodgers are reportedly in the market for another bat by Tuesday’s trade deadline.

Still, it hasn’t been a recent trip to the holding unit for Trayce; there’s no sign he’ll need to pack his suitcase again anytime soon.

For now, just getting back to the majors — and with the Dodgers in particular — is the first step done.

“A lot of teams maybe didn’t see that from me, which is good,” he said. “But I always knew I could be here.”

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