James Outman

James Matthew Outman

• Bats Left, Throws Right
• Height 6' 3", Weight 215 lb.
• School California State University, Sacramento
• High School Junipero Serra High School (San Mateo)
• Debut July 31, 2022

• Born May 14, 1997 in Redwood City, CA USA

BR page

Biographical Information

In his major league debut for the Los Angeles Dodgers on July 31, 2022, James Outman started in right field against the Colorado Rockies and hit a two-run homer off German Marquez in his first at-bat in the 3rd inning. He then had two more hits, and scored and drove in another run in a 7-3 win.

Outman was drafted in the 7th round of the 2018 amateur draft from California State University, Sacramento. He put up some good power numbers in the minor leagues, with 11 homers in 55 games with the Ogden Raptors of the Pioneer League in his first pro season in 2018, followed by a 19-homer season with the Great Lakes Loons of the Midwest League in 2020. After sitting out the 2020 season while the minor leagues were shut down by the Coronavirus pandemic, he returned in 2021 to combine for 21 doubles, 9 triples and 18 homers in 104 games between Great Lakes and the AA Tulsa Drillers. His slash line was .266/.379/.490 and he also scored 90 runs. He started the 2022 season with Tulsa and hit .295 with 17 doubles and 16 homers in 68 games to earn a promotion to the AAA Oklahoma City Dodgers at the end of June, which was followed a month later by his big league debut. He went 6 for 13 (.462) in 4 games in his first major league stint, then was sent back to AAA on August 5th when players came off the injured list. He continued to hit like a demon in Oklahoma City, however, as he hit for the cycle twice in a four-game span, doing so on August 26 and 30th. Before this, no one had achieved the feat for Oklahoma City in 13 years. He finished the season with a combined line of .294/.393/.586 in 125 games between AA and AAA, with 31 doubles, 31 homers, 101 runs and 106 RBIs. He did not appear in the majors again after his initial very successful four-game stint.

In 2023, he made the Dodgers' Opening Day roster out of spring training. He benefited from Gavin Lux being lost for the season because of a knee injury, as this opened up an extra spot for a position player. He took full advantage of the opportunity, claiming a starting job in the outfield and hitting .314 with 7 homers and 19 RBIs through his first 22 games for a team otherwise struggling to find offense. He ended up being named the National League Rookie of the Month for April, hitting ,292 in 29 games, with 7 homers, 17 runs and 20 RBIs. He won the award again in August, after hitting .277 with 5 homers and 15 RBIs in 26 games.

Notable Achievements

• 2023 MLB All-Rookie Team
• 20-Home Runs Seasons: 1 (2023)

Further Reading

• Michael Avallone: "Dodgers' Outman hits for 2nd cycle in four games", mlb.com, August 31, 2022. [1]
• Juan Toribio: "Outman makes OD roster: 'Felt like a dream'", mlb.com, March 23, 2023. [2]
• Juan Toribio: "Rookie Outman a surprising savior for L.A.'s offense: Outfielder's two-homer, four-hit game extends one of best starts ever by a Dodgers rookie", mlb.com, April 22, 2023. [3]
• Graham Womack (Sacramento Bee): "Out of this world: Sacramento State alum Outman is tearing it up in Dodgers debut", Yahoo! News, August 3, 2022. [4]

Related Sites

• James Outman on mlb.com
• Sacramento State bio