LOS ANGELES — Andy Pages missed the call.
An off day Monday had afforded the 23-year-old Los Angeles Dodgers outfield prospect a rare opportunity: a chance to go to bed early. Given the opportunity after a long trip, he did just that.
When his phone buzzed around 9 p.m. in Oklahoma City, he didn’t hear it. Same, a few minutes later. By around midnight, Pages finally stirred from his sleep and rolled over.
Travis Barbary, his manager at Triple A, was calling. Pages quickly gathered his thoughts and answered. Then he called his mother, Juana Maria, in Cuba.
“I was giving her the gift that she’s always wanted,” Pages explained in Spanish about talking to his mother, whose tears had stirred the entire house back home. “Now she can see me playing in the big leagues.”
A few hours later, Pages sat in the home dugout at Dodger Stadium for his major-league debut. He was batting seventh and playing center field for the Dodgers, less than a year after major shoulder surgery threatened his major-league arrival altogether.
Welcome to Dodger Stadium, Andy Pages. pic.twitter.com/eeyslQJTTH
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) April 16, 2024
Pages’ first game in Triple A last May had ended in pain and heartbreak after he tore the labrum in his left shoulder on a swing. The injury required surgery, cutting short what had been a breakout year. The Dodgers have pegged Pages as part of their future in right field now that Mookie Betts is their shortstop, but they urged caution throughout the past few months.
It was going to take time, they said. Pages had been one of the most prolific sluggers in the minor leagues before the injury, but they would treat him with kid gloves. It took until the end of his highly productive spring training for the club to clear him to play on consecutive days.
Pages forced the organization to change course.
“From the moment I got hurt, I put my mind to working hard to get to the big leagues as fast as possible,” Pages said.
Tuesday, after just 16 career games in Triple A, he was a big leaguer. The preposterously quick turnaround was a massive shock to even the most bullish on Pages’ outlook.
“A pleasant surprise,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said.
It’s one the Dodgers direly need. Their lineup has been among the most top-heavy in the sport this season. Their veteran outfield options, such as Chris Taylor (1-for-33 entering Tuesday) and Kiké Hernández (7-for-37), haven’t performed.
Then came Tuesday, when Jason Heyward received a second CT scan to evaluate his bothersome back. Though the scan didn’t reveal anything new, his back hasn’t gotten better. He has missed enough time that even when he is ready to go, he will require a rehab assignment.
That spells an opportunity for Pages. He started Tuesday against left-hander Patrick Corbin. Pages will start again Wednesday, against right-hander Jake Irvin.
“I’ll try to get him in as much as I can to see what we have,” Roberts said.
Andy Pages to the berm!
The No. 3 @Dodgers prospect drills his third home run of the season and has hit safely in 8 of his last 9 games for @okc_baseball: pic.twitter.com/UNDt9R8gd0
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) April 13, 2024
It’s not hard to see what Pages brings. He has slugged 99 home runs, including five in the Arizona Fall League, in fewer than 2,000 career professional plate appearances with a swing manufactured for hard contact in the air, as his 1.146 OPS this year shows. His arm has been graded as one of the best in the minor leagues. After slimming his figure over the past two winters, he can play a credible center field — “a complete ballplayer,” Roberts said.
And whenever Pages has been around the likes of All-Stars, he hasn’t shrunk. He has listened.
“Don’t let the quiet demeanor fool you,” outfield coach Clayton McCullough said. “He’s always soaking in what’s going on around him.”
Just not when he’s sleeping.
Pages’ mother didn’t miss the phone call. The call wasn’t even over before she woke up the entire household to break the news.
“She started waking up everyone that lives in our neighborhood,” Pages said.
Stay calm, her son warned.
“We’re finally in the big leagues, which is where she’s always wanted me to be,” Pages said.
And it looks like he’ll have a chance to run with it for a little while.
(Photo of Andy Pages in spring training: Mark J. Rebilas / USA Today)
