UPDATE: The Dodgers officially announced Dean’s promotion and Ruiz’s option on Friday afternoon. The Dodgers DFA’ed Luken Baker to make room on the 40-man roster.

The Dodgers dropped two out of three games to the Cardinals this week, dropping their division lead to two over the Padres. They managed to spoil Shohei Ohtani’s best start so far — in which he also hit a two-run homer to put the Dodgers on top for a lead the bullpen would eventually surrender — and apart from a brief flash of life from the offense when they teed off of Miles Mikolas, they went quiet again in the finale.

Maybe they just need a spark. But are we so sure the team’s latest roster move will provide that? It’s hard to believe minor leaguer Justin Dean — who, per Sonja Chen of MLB.com is being called up to the majors on Friday — especially when there was arguably a better choice.

The Dodgers already quietly optioned Esteury Ruiz back to Triple-A on Thursday. The Dean move has yet to become official, but they’re ostensibly trading one speedy, light-hitting outfielder for another. Dean’s numbers in Triple-A are decent, and this is his seventh year in professional baseball without a major league appearance, but his promotion brings up questions about an under-the-radar fan favorite who has also never gotten a shot in the majors: Ryan Ward.

Dodgers reportedly calling up longtime farmhand outfielder Justin Dean over raking outfielder Ryan Ward

Ward isn’t a top prospect and has never been a top prospect, but his offensive numbers throughout basically his entire minor league career have been incredible. This year, he’s batting .301 with a .967 OPS, leads the Pacific Coast League in homers with 28, and leads in RBI by a massive margin. More behind-the-scenes metrics must not speak very highly in his favor if the Dodgers flat-out refuse to promote him when he rakes, but why not give the guy a shot?

Ward hit 33 home runs and drove in 101 runs last year, and he’s on pace to shatter those numbers this season. He has a 12.8% walk rate and 18.7% strikeout rate, both dramatically improved from 2024.

Dean joined the Dodgers on a minor league contract in December 2024 and got an invitation to spring training. He’s a decent bat — .274 with a .796 OPS — and his speed will easily replace Ruiz’s. If Dean’s stay in the majors doesn’t end up being just a phantom stint, he could be exciting to watch.

But the question of what the Dodgers are doing with Ward is going to keep cropping up every time they opt for an outfielder with an inferior bat. It’s becoming a perennial Dodgers mystery that they don’t seem hard-pressed to solve.