Los Angeles Dodgers rookie Alex Freeland hit a 462-foot home run in Triple-A Oklahoma City’s 10-8 victory over Triple-A Las Vegas on Tuesday. Freeland hit the leadoff home run to open the first inning, which turned out to be the longest home run by an OKC player this season.
According to Hawk-Eye, this one was hit 462 feet. The longest home run by an OKC player this season at 18 feet. https://t.co/N7zJ0CXfDh
— Alex Freedman (@azfreedman) 14 August 2024
The home run comes at a significant time for Freeland, who was recently promoted to Triple-A for the first time. In addition to being recently promoted to Triple-A, Freeland was also named to MLB.com’s midseason list of the top 100 prospects for the first time. Freeland entered the list at No. 79 in his debut and is now the Dodgers’ fourth-best prospect, according to MLB.com.
Only center/first baseman Dalton Rushing (No. 1), outfielder Josue De Paula (No. 2) and pitcher River Ryan (No. 3) rank ahead of Freeland for the Dodgers, according to MLB.com’s list. Of the three ahead of Freeland, only Ryan has made his debut.
He started four games for the Dodgers with a 1.33 ERA and 18 strikeouts, but is out for the rest of the season with a strained UCL and will undergo Tommy John surgery.
Freeland was the Dodgers’ third-round pick in the 2022 MLB Draft out of Central Florida. He began his minor league career as a rookie in 2022 and posted a .313 batting average with three home runs and six RBIs in eight games.
After his rookie season, Freeland spent the entire 2023 season at High-A Great Lakes. In 106 games, he hit .240/.345/.362 with 94 hits, 58 runs, nine home runs and 57 RBIs.
Freeland returned to High-A at the start of the 2024 season and posted a .346/.518/.593 batting average with 28 hits, 18 runs, two home runs and 21 RBIs in 23 games that season. He was promoted to Double-A and spent the majority of that season in Tulsa. In 74 games, he posted a .245/.370/.422 batting average with 69 hits, 59 runs, 11 home runs and 35 RBIs.
Freeland made his Triple-A debut less than 10 days ago on August 6, recording a walk and a strikeout in his debut. He hit his first Triple-A home run a week later. In just eight games, Freeland has a .250 batting average with eight hits, five runs, the 462-foot home run and two RBIs.
If Freeland can continue his current development, he could be a strong contender to make his MLB debut next season. With Miguel Rojas’ career coming to an end, the Dodgers don’t have a long-term solution at the shortstop position, which bodes well for Freeland.
