Dodgers Prospect Deacon Liput Impressive in Limited Role

Los Angeles Dodgers’ shortstop prospect Deacon Liput made an excellent professional debut with the Low-A Great Lakes Loons in 2018. Liput, who finished the season with a .280/.332/.446 slash line in 168 at-bats with the Loons admits that he just tries to keep things simple while he’s in the batter’s box.

“I try not to do too much in the batter’s box,” explained Liput. “Baseball is a tough enough sport, so you need to simplify it, and just go out there and compete.”

And compete he did, as Liput recorded seven doubles, three triples, and five home runs in his limited role in 2018. Limited only by the fact that he just finished a long college season at the University of Florida prior to the 2018 MLB Draft.

The Dodgers selected the left-handed batting Liput with the 314th overall pick in last year’s MLB Draft, grabbing the former College World Series champion in the 10th round. At Florida, Liput finished the 2018 season, during which the Gators once again earned a spot in the CWS, slashing .285/.375/.478 with nine home runs and 11 steals.

So, with that in mind, the Dodgers chose to limited how many reps Liput would take in the abridged year one of his professional career.

While Liput would’ve liked more reps in 2018, he understood the reasoning behind it, and knew it was more important to take advantage of the opportunities when they were there.

“Playing in a limited role was a little bit different,” said Liput. “But I think the most important thing is that when your opportunity comes you give it 110 percent every time, and whatever happens, happens.”

Despite the limited role, Liput still logged 199 innings at shortstop carrying a .932 fielding percentage, and an additional 97 innings at second base carrying a .964 fielding percentage.

Known primarily for his play at shortstop, Liput talks about what he likes best about that position.

“My favorite part about shortstop is the range factor,” stated Liput. “Another thing I like about shortstop is they’re considered the leader of the infield, so it keeps you very aware of what’s going on out there.”

Be sure to follow Deacon Liput’s progress in 2019 as he takes on a bigger role with one of the Dodgers’ affiliates.