Dodgers notes: Walker Buehler, Juan Soto, Hall of Fame

Free agent right-hander was honored in his hometown of Lexington, Kentucky after winning his second World Series with the Dodgers. Plus, Tuesday is LA’s meeting day with Soto

Monday, November 18 was Walker Buehler Day in Lexington, Kentucky, with the Dodgers right-hander and current free agent honored officially by his hometown for his postseason heroics. The proclamation was delivered by Lexington mayor Linda Gorton.

Also during the ceremony, the Buehler Family Foundation gifted rehabilitation equipment to the Lexington Fire Department. From Josh Shortt at Fox 56 News in Kentucky:

“Being born and raised here and our family being here and my wife’s family from being here, I think having some sort of legacy here is the important thing for me. With the baseball stuff, there’s millions of kids who play baseball, and some of us get lucky enough to get to the major leagues. I think doing something with it that’s positive is, is kind of what I want to do in the end,” Buehler said.

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The Dodgers are meeting with free agent Juan Soto on Tuesday, reported Mark Feinsand of MLB.com and Alden González at ESPN. The outfielder has already als met with the Blue Jays, Red Sox, and Mets, per Feinsand.

Tuesday at 3 p.m. PT is the deadline to add prospects to the 40-man roster to protect them from December’s Rule 5 Draft. Many of the Dodgers’ must-adds were already added to the roster during the season — 2018 international signee Edgardo Henriquez plus 2021 college draftees Ben Casparius, River Ryan, and Justin Wrobleski. But as for the other potential Dodgers additions, like Austin Gauthier or pitcher Carlos Duran, were analyzed by Bruce Kuntz at Dodgers Digest.

Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo at MLB.com picked the toughest 40-man addition call for all 30 teams. For the Dodgers, they chose right-hander Jerming Rosario, who is still just 22 years old and had a 4.47 ERA with 120 strikeouts and 73 walks in 108⅔ innings across three levels, including Triple-A. Rosario also pitched in the Arizona Fall League this year and struck out 35 percent of his batters faced in 16 innings.

Among the newcomers on the Hall of Fame ballot for 2025 is former Dodgers catcher Russell Martin. Jay Jaffe at FanGraphs said of Martin and fellow ballot newcomer Brian McCann, “While neither looks particularly impressive based on traditional catcher JAWS, they were among the elite pitch framers of their era, boosting their value to the point that they’re worth mentioning in a discussion that also includes Mauer, Buster Posey (eligible in 2027), and Yadier Molina (eligible in 2028).”