Dodgers Top Prospect Suffers Freak Knee Injury in Brutal Development

The 'dog days' of summer arrived early and painfully for him.

Dodgers catcher Chris Okey (46) and outfielder George Kendall (00) celebrate at the end of the game against the Los Angeles Angels in Anaheim on March 25, 2025. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

What was the Tulsa Drillers' "bat dog" thinking?

It's an odd question for Los Angeles Dodgers fans to be pondering in May, but it's one that Kendall George will probably be asking for days, weeks, or months after he suffered a freak knee injury on Monday.

George, the Dodgers' No. 13 prospect according to MLB Pipeline, had just scored in the second inning of the Drillers' game against Northwest Arkansas when Achilles the bat dog raced out of the dugout to retrieve a bat near home plate.

Dodgers prospect Kendall George got hurt trying to avoid the bat dog. pic.twitter.com/4fS53NBRRB

— Codify (@CodifyBaseball) May 27, 2026

George continued running toward the dugout after touching home plate. Along the way he had to leap at the last second to avoid the dog. When he landed, George winced in pain, and was immediately removed from the game with a left knee injury.

According to multiple reports, George underwent imaging to determine the severity of the injury Tuesday. Jack Harris of the California Post reported Wednesday that the Dodgers fear George suffered a "moderate" patellar injury in his knee.

The exact nature of George's injury, and the estimated time he'll need to recover, have yet to be revealed.

George had been among the best players in Double-A this season, hitting .333 with 26 stolen bases through 43 games. The 21-year-old outfielder was the Dodgers' first-round draft pick (36th overall) in 2023. This is his first full season playing in Tulsa, two steps away from the big leagues.

George is part of a vaunted Dodgers farm system full of Top-100 outfield prospects. Each of the Dodgers' top four prospects (Josue De Paula, Zyhir Hope, Eduardo Quintero, Mike Sirota) and six of their Top 10 are outfielders, according to MLB Pipeline.

Any injury to George's knees carries the potential to sap his greatest tool — his speed. The young outfielder stole 100 bases in 124 attempts last year at advanced Class-A Great Lakes.

Harris reports that the Drillers have suspended their bat dog program "for the immediate future."

According to the website for the dog trainer Make Your Dog Epic, Achilles is a 4-year-old Belgian Malionis who has worked as the Drillers' "bat dog" since April 12, 2024.

"Our number one motto is obedience but NEVER at the expense of personality," the trainer claims.

Achilles fulfilled his singular task of retrieving a bat, but his timing Monday night was unfortunate. It might have cost him his job — and cost George some time on the field.

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