MIDLAND, MI – Eventually, the Los Angeles Dodgers got their man, Mookie Betts.
And the original trade, the one that sent prospect Andy Pages to the Los Angeles Angels, fell through, leaving the Dodgers with an unproven teenager from Havana, Cuba.
Two seasons later, Pages has grown older if not old, playing as a 20-year-old for the Great Lakes Loons, the Dodgers’ Single A team in Midland. And two seasons later, the 6-foot-1, 210-pound outfielder has proven himself as a high-caliber prospect.
“He’s a special player, a special human,” Loons manager Austin Chubb said. “He’s 20 years old, which is still hard to believe. I’m looking forward to watch him be a Dodger for some time.”
The Loons finished its season Sunday with a 2-0 loss to Wisconsin at Dow Diamond, with Pages making a token start in right field. After the first out, Ryan Ward replaced him in right field. But his appearance to start the game set a Loons record, with Pages becoming the first player in the Loons’ 15-year history to play every game of the season.
“Obviously, we think he’ll be able to go to the next level and perform,” Chubb said. “We were happy he was here all year. Multiple things go into the decisions to keep or promote a player. He was comfortable here, comfortable with the staff. For his development, it was good for him to be here the whole year.”
Comfortable is an understatement. Pages set Loons records and led the High A Central League in homers (31), games played (120) and on base/slugging (.945). He also led the league in RBIs (87), slugging (.550), extra-base hits (56), total bases (233) and runs (95).
He was second in the league in on-base percentage (.395), hits (114) and walks (73). Pages led a Loons’ offense that set the franchise record with 127 homers this season.
In the mid-season Dodgers prospect rankings, Pages moved up to No. 6 by Baseball America and No. 5 by MLB.com.
“Offensively, he just has to continue to have better at-bats,” Chubb said. “Offensively, he’s clearly in a good spot. And you can always improve your fielding and base-running, but he’s already a well-rounded player and one of the best ones we have.”
He also provided one of the highlights of the season Sunday, Sept. 12 when he hit a game-winning three-run homer, his 30th of the season with two outs in the ninth inning against West Michigan.
“This is a team that grinds at-bats, a historical offense, the best one in Loons history,” Chubb said. “This was a tough way to end it, but overall we’re really happy with getting through the year, early on with the Covid situation.
“We’ve had some guys get promoted to Tulsa, which was great. But we’ve had a core group of guys here that have stayed the whole year.”
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