Dodgers News: Dave Roberts Believes James Outman Has ‘Room for Improvement’ in the Outfield

James Outman has had a shaky season so far.

Things are steadily improving for the Dodgers rookie offensively as he's slashing .250/.300/.375 over his last 15 games, but his strikeout rate is still concerningly high at 34.7 percent and he's recorded 19 strikeouts over those last 15 games.

Similarly, the defense has been rocky for the outfielder.

Outman's played 67 out of his 81 games in centerfield for the Dodgers after primarily playing as a corner outfielder over his professional career, and it hasn't been a steady ride for him.

Getting a quick jump is key in all outfield spots, but especially in center field where the ground an outfielder has to cover is the most spacious.

And that hasn't gone well for Outman as his reaction time is 0.8 seconds slower than the average MLB centerfielder, per Baseball Savant.

Dodger manager Dave Roberts has noticed his struggles in center, and the ten-year MLB outfielder and first base coach Clayton McCullough are taking the newly-minted centerfielder under their wings, as Roberts told J.P. Hoornstra of the Orange County Register.

Roberts spent part of his pregame routine working with rookie James Outman in center field. Outman has “a lot of room for improvement,” Roberts said, particularly on how he approaches balls hit in front of him.

“I just wanted him to think differently in center field, as far as getting different reads and I wanted to hear his thoughts on how he goes about playing center field,” Roberts said. “I’ve seen enough of a sample, and it was good for me to get James and Clayton (McCullough) to talk through some things.”

Hopefully for Outman and the Dodgers, the 26-year-old will be able to improve his craft in center. He has the athleticism required to do that and for the rookie, it's most likely just a matter of continuing to get reps.

Things might be rocky now, but he'll probably be a reliable centerfielder soon enough.