2015 Dodgers review: 'Grand Slam Heisey,' they call him

A look back at the 2015 season for veteran outfielder Chris Heisey, who became intimate with travel between Los Angeles and Oklahoma City, then spent some time away in August in Buffalo, only to return to the Dodgers for a strong September finish.

What went right

Heisey walked 15 times in 72 major league plate appearances, a 20.8-percent walk rate that was tops among position players on the Dodgers. Of the 46 players to have at least one PA with the Dodgers, the only one with a higher walk rate than Heisey was pitcher Ian Thomas with one walk in four PA.

Despite playing only 66 games with Triple-A Oklahoma City, Heisey was third on the team with 16 home runs, hitting .241/.370/.495 with 41 RBI, and was three off the team lead with 39 walks.

Heisey was 5-for-11 (.455) with a home run and seven walks (.600 on-base percentage) with runners in scoring position.

Heisey started all three outfield spots for the Dodgers, 63 innings in center, 62 innings in right field, and 38 in left.

After getting reacquired for cash from the Blue Jays on Aug. 31, the outfielder had two home runs and nine RBI in September, including a go-ahead grand slam on Sept. 24 against the Diamondbacks. More on that in a moment.

What went wrong

Aside from the walks Heisey was just 10-for-55 (.172) in the majors with two doubles and two home runs (.327 slugging percentage), and before September had just one double in 34 plate appearances, with no RBI.

Part of that might have been a result of shuttling back and forth between Los Angeles and Oklahoma City. Heisey was optioned to Triple-A five different times by the Dodgers before getting designated for assignment on July 30, then released eight days later.

Before Sept. 18-19, Heisey started on consecutive games for the Dodgers only once, and that was both games of a June 2 doubleheader in Denver.

2015 particulars

Age: 30

Stats: .182/.347/.327, .290 wOBA, two HR in 33 games (17 starts), 72 PA, 90 OPS+, 90 wRC+, 0.1 rWAR, 0.1 fWAR

Salary: $2.16 million

Game of the year

Heisey's grand slam punctuated a six-run fifth inning on Sept. 24 against Arizona, turning the attention away from a Clayton Kershaw tantrum to a Dodgers win. Heisey's slam turned a 3-2 deficit into a 6-3 lead.

In the next inning, Heisey caught a routine fly ball and Vin Scully, without skipping a beat said, "Grand Slam Heisey, they call him," as if that was his nickname for years and years.

It is now.

Roster status

Heisey ended the season on the 40-man roster, but then was sent outright to Triple-A. Heisey, as was his right, refused the minor league assignment and is now a free agent.