It’s no secret that the Dodgers are loaded at the catching position all the way up and down their system. Dalton Rushing is the Dodgers #1 prospect currently, and Diego Cartaya was the Dodgers #1 prospect last year. Not to mention that Will Smith was an All-Star in 2023, Yeiner Fernandez is a Top 30 Prospect and Hunter Feduccia was just placed on the 4o man roster to protect him from the Rule 5 Draft.

Add Thayron Liranzo to that list. 

Liranzo is a 20 year switch hitting catching prospect that was signed out of the Dominican Republic in 2021, and has splashed onto the scene. His offensive numbers in 2023 jump off the page, and he registered a pop time that was under 1.8 seconds throwing down to 2nd base. To put that into context, the highest average pop time in the MLB last year was 1.83 registered by J.T. Realmuto, so sub 1.8 is crazy good. 

When asked how what he has done to continually improve his defense, this is what he had to say, via Trindad Loeza as translator.

About a week before I left the D.R. defense is about all I was working on. I was working on receiving the ball, my pop time and trying to find ways to get more comfortable behind the plate.

Because, if you’re catching, you have to find ways to be comfortable blocking, receiving, pop times, and so I worked on all those defensive skills, and I took all of that into Rancho last season.

How He Was Found

The Dominican Republic has long been known for producing one Major League talent after the other, and Liranzo hopes to be one of the next stars it has produced. Knowing how many great players the D.R. has produced, one of the aspects I was curious about is “how do kids get seen in the D.R.?”

Liranzo says it starts when they are very young, and continues all the way through the Dominican Summer League.

Most scouts already see you when you’re 11, 12 or 13 which is Little League age. But, then, they don’t sign you until you’re 16, so they’ll keep an eye on you during that time.

Then, after they sign you, they take you out to the complex leagues and they’ll keep evaluating you out there. Then, after further evaluation, they’ll send you out to the Dominican Leagues and that begins the process of moving up the ranks in the D.R. 

Becoming a Major League baseball player is a dream of many, if not most, kids in the D.R. It’s obviously not as direct of a path as one would take in the United States, so, many times, young players have to sacrifice just about everything else to pursue their career in baseball. 

Here’s what Liranzo had to say about that.

It’s structured a lot different out in the Dominican Republic. In terms of education and baseball, sometimes guys have to take a risk and give up their education to pursue baseball. 

A lot of guys do that to try and make the Big Leagues so they can take care of their families.

Liranzo was found by Area Scouts Jesus Lantigua and Domingo Toribio, 2 area scouts in the D.R., then was signed by Manny Pimentel the Director of Scouting in the D.R. for the Dodgers. 

When a scout gives a player the opportunity to sign, then reach their dreams, it’s an instant bond and connection that really can’t be found anywhere else.

Here’s what Liranzo had to say about Lantigua, Toribio and Pimentel, the Scouts in the D.R. that made it happen for him. 

I keep in contact with Domingo, the scout that originally found me, for advice, even during the season. Before signing, I had already been with the Dodgers organization for about a week, and the whole process was 1st class. 

From then on, the signing was well done, and that’s why I’m where I’m at in the Dodgers organization.

Becoming a Dodger

Liranzo was signed in 2021 where he spent all of that year in the DSL, before finally moving stateside in 2022. In 2022 he played the entire season at the complex, then moved to affiliated ball in 2023 where he played all year with Rancho Cucamonga. 

And, he had a year that turned heads.

The 20 year old catching prospect, in 2023, posted a batting average of .272, hit 24 home runs, had an OPS of .962, and posted a BB% of 16.7. And, although his K% was 26.8%, his ISO was higher at .290, which suggests his tradeoff between power and striking out was elite.

To further the context of just how good of a season he had in 2023, Liranzo posted a WRC+ of 155, which is elite.

And, that’s just his offense. 

Defensively he worked very hard to improve his framing, his blocking, his game planning and every other aspect of his defense. But, the highlight is his sub 1.8 pop time. He showed the ability to control the running game with his throwing arm, to combine with his great offensive output.

Here’s what Liranzo had to say about the progress he made last year. 

I just trusted the process of the Dodgers developmental system. I just took everything I had learned back in the D.R. and at the complex, and put that with my obsession for hitting. I did a lot of work outside of just the work I did within the system with the Dodgers, and all of that carried into the season.

Liranzo is a switch hitter, but acknowledges that the left side of the plate is a little more natural, just because you see more right handed pitchers. One of his idols growing up was Robinson Cano, and you can definitely see the similarities in swing structure. 

Finishing Up

Liranzo, as he mentioned in our interview, has left a lot behind in the D.R. to chase his dream of playing in the Big Leagues. So, he has that extra edge to him when it comes to motivation and drive towards reaching his goals in the game. As a result, he will continue to keep working tirelessly at his craft, and keeping improving. 

His baseline is very high, and so is his ceiling, so keep an eye out for this young man, he’s gonna be a good one. 

Big thanks to Thayron for joining for an interview. It takes a lot of trust to agree to a translated interview, so all of that credit needs to be given to Trinidad Loeza, who Thayron was 100% comfortable and confident in. Dodgers Daily is looking forward to watching Thayron progress through the system, and eventually reach his dream of becoming a Major Leaguer. 

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