Dodgers’ Max Muncy Gets Intriguing Free Agency Update Amid Uncertain Los Angeles Future

It hasn’t been an ideal season for Max Muncy of the Los Angeles Dodgers. Muncy has dealt with multiple injuries throughout the year and was also out for a few months last year. Muncy has been limited to 89 games throughout the 2025 campaign. 

Set to hit the free agency market this winter, there have been questions about whether he’ll remain with the Dodgers. Throughout Muncy’s time in Los Angeles, all he’s done is swing the bat at a high level, providing the Dodgers with above-average play at third base and in the middle of their lineup. 

Despite the questions about Muncy’s future in Los Angeles, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com believes that he’ll remain with the Dodgers. He noted that the injury has kept him to only 89 games, but since he started swinging the bat at a high level after a quiet start, there’s reason to believe the Dodgers could be interested in keeping him around. 

“Knee and oblique injuries have limited Muncy to 89 games this season, but the third baseman has been superb since starting the season with a poor April, hitting 17 home runs with 64 RBIs and an .880 OPS. Muncy has said he wants to retire as a Dodger, and while that’s still far from a certainty, it seems likely that he will be back in 2026,” he wrote.

Could Injuries Factor in Dodgers’ Max Muncy Decision?

Regarding when Muncy could return for the Los Angeles Dodgers, he hasn’t appeared in a game for the team since Aug. 12. Prior to going down, he was hitting .258 with 17 home runs, 64 RBIs, and 73 strikeouts in 279 at-bats. 

When speaking to reporters about the injury, skipper Dave Roberts stated that he was unsure how many games Muncy would need on a rehab assignment, but added that it’s the same injury he dealt with a year ago.

“Not sure how many games,” Roberts said, per Dodger Blue’s Matthew Moreno. “There’s a chance we could see him at the back half of the road trip, but that’s all contingent on how things are going. He’s in a good spot. Swinging the bat, running, the grounders, all that stuff.”

“I think it was on the right side, but it was more of a bigger area, not just really focused in one little spot. So that kind of led to the MRI, and just to get a scan of it,” Roberts noted when previously comparing Muncy’s oblique strains.

“But from what I hear, it’s not as bad as it was last year. I think a similar feeling, but a little bit less. A little bit more on the mild side.”

Will Max Muncy Leave Los Angeles?

If the Los Angeles Dodgers allow Muncy to walk, some believe there’s already a perfect replacement for them on the market. 

However, for that to happen, the Dodgers will need a few things to go their way. One of those is Munetaka Murakami, a third baseman out of Japan. 

Murakami is regarded as one of the better young players in the professional ranks, but it remains uncertain what his market will look like in Major League Baseball. 

Given the Dodgers’ history with international players, there appears to be a very good chance he could end up in Los Angeles as well. Kerry Miller of Bleacher Report predicted that to be the case earlier in the month.

“Murakami has missed most of this season due to an arthroscopic surgery in his throwing elbow, but he mashed 223 home runs from 2019-24 and is still just 25 years old,” he wrote. 

“The expectation remains that he will be posted this winter and will be a traditional free agent, able to immediately sign a major deal (a la Yoshinobu Yamamoto) as opposed to needing to go the Roki Sasaki route. (Prediction: Murakami signs a six-year deal with the Dodgers, becoming the heir apparent to Max Muncy at third base.)”

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