2015 Dodgers review: Alex Guerrero, a man without a position

We have reached the time of the year of player reviews, looking back at every single player who was added to the Dodgers' 40-man roster since the conclusion of 2014. In order to finish these by December 31, publishing one every single day, we have to start today. This is the first of 73 player reviews.

So here is a review of the 2015 season for Alex Guerrero, who kept a contractually-obligated spot on the Dodgers' active roster for the entire regular season.

What went right

Guerrero got off to a blazing start, hitting .423/.429/1.077 in April, and despite getting only 28 plate appearances during the month, Guerrero drove in 13 runs.

He was the first Dodger with three pinch-hit home runs in a season since Wilson Betemit in 2007. The last Dodger with more than three pinch-hit homers in a single year was Dave Hansen, who set the franchise record with seven in 2000.

After his game-winning grand slam in Colorado on June 2 (see below), Guerrero was hitting .296/.327/.684 and was third on the team at the time in both home runs (10) and RBI (26).

On the season, Guerrero tallied 11 home runs in 230 plate appearances, tied for fifth-most home runs by a Dodger in a season with 250 or fewer PA.

What went wrong

Guerrero after that June 2 grand slam hit just .182/.206/.231 with one home run in 61 games and 126 plate appearances during the rest of the season, with 33 strikeouts and just three walks.

In 230 plate appearances, Guerrero walked seven times all season and struck out 57 times. His .261 on-base percentage on the season was 17th-worst by a Dodger with at least 200 PA in the live-ball era (1920-present).

Though he started 18 games at third base and 27 games in left field, Guerrero was a butcher with the glove on, especially in the outfield. He became almost literally a man without a position down the stretch, starting just five of the final 50 games of the season in the field.

Guerrero was on the active roster for the entire season — he couldn't be sent down to the minors without his consent — but was left off the National League Division Series roster.

2015 particulars

Age: 28

Stats: .233/.261/.434, .297 wOBA, 90 OPS+, 89 wRC+, -0.2 rWAR, -0.2 fWAR

Salary: $4 million, in the second season of a four-year, 28 million contract.

Game of the year

This is probably the easiest choice of everybody. Down three runs with two outs in the top of the ninth at Coors Field in the second game of a doubleheader on June 2, Guerrero launched a 1-2 pitch from Rafael Betancourt over the center field wall for a game-winning grand slam in the Dodgers' 9-8 victory.

Roster status

Guerrero has two years, $10 million remaining on his disaster of a contract, and will be a free agent after the 2017 season. He can't be sent to the minors without his consent, and his lack of a defensive position makes him a prime candidate for a trade to an American League team.

Guerrero can opt out of his contract at the end of a season in which he is traded, which is an obstacle to any potential trade, but it's hard to see a spot for him on the Dodgers' roster going forward.