PEORIA, AZ: James Tibbs III of the Los Angeles Dodgers bats against the San Diego Padres during a Spring Training game at Peoria Stadium on Feb. 22, 2026. (Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images)
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Los Angeles Dodgers prospect James Tibbs III is with his third organization in three years. The way he is hitting, some fans envision him soon becoming a three-time Most Valuable Player.
The 23-year-old already has been three times better than many players all year. In Spring Training, he hit .313 (15-for-48) in 23 games with 4 homers and 11 RBI. All it did was get him sent to Triple-A Oklahoma City. In 14 games for the Comets, he has a .357 average (20-for-56) with 7 homers and 13 RBI.
“I like James Tibbs,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told Los Angeles Times freelance writer Jack Vita last month. “I like him a lot. He loves baseball, he is obsessed with getting better at the game and he just fits who I am as a baseball coach, and the players that we want, so he’s going to play in the big leagues. He’s a championship-type player.”
Yet both the San Francisco Giants and Boston Red Sox have dealt away the slugging left-hander, perhaps concerned that at 5-foot-11, he won’t measure up to the really big guys like Aaron Judge, Nick Kurtz, Freddie Freeman and Shohei Ohtani, all standing 6-4 or more.
TALLAHASSEE, FL: Outfielder James Tibbs III of the Florida State Seminoles hits the winning home run against the UConn Huskies in the 2024 NCAA Baseball Super Regional on Mike Martin Field at Dick Howser Stadium on June 8, 2024. (Photo by Don Juan Moore/Getty Images)
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It didn’t keep the Giants from picking Tibbs at No. 13 in 2024 and giving the Florida State product a signing bonus of $4,747,500. That was one year after they picked 6-7 Bryce Eldridge at No. 16 overall.
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After just 83 games in the organization, however, the Giants dealt him and three others to the Boston Red Sox for veteran infielder Rafael Devers. Tibbs then played only 30 games at Double-A Portland before being traded to the Dodgers with minor-league outfielder Zach Ehrhard for veteran pitcher Dustin May.
Many of those evaluating the Devers deal considered left-hander Kyle Harrison the key for Boston and glossed over Tibbs. The other trade has Red Sox fans screaming “Mayday, Mayday” in panic as May is now with the St. Louis Cardinals.
The trades originally were unsettling to Tibbs, too.
“I don’t think I imagined in my wildest dreams I would get traded twice my first year of pro ball, much less traded twice at all,” Tibbs told The Athletic. “So for me it was a whirlwind of a year. I feel like I’m in a better spot mentally, physically, emotionally. I feel like I’m in a place where I have a foundation, can control the controllables and go from there.”
Thus far in 2026, the young outfielder/first baseman has displayed the confidence that was portrayed by actor Sidney Poitier as a heroic police lieutenant in the 1970 movie “They Call Me Mister Tibbs.”
Teammates call this Tibbs “JT3”. He loves it because of his family devotion.
SCOTTSDALE, AZ: James Tibbs III of the San Francisco Giants bats in a Spring Breakout game against the Texas Rangers at Scottsdale Stadium on March 15, 2025. (Photo by Chris Bernacchi/Diamond Images via Getty Images)
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“To be able to represent my dad and grandfather, and to go out there and play for the Lord and play for those two people, is a huge honor for me," he told Cole Jacobson of MLB.com shortly after being drafted. "And I hope I do it the right way, the way they would want.
“Obviously the name on the front is what matters most, but to represent not just myself and my team, but also the people that helped me be the person that I am today, is an extremely important thing that I take pride in.”
Tibbs helped Pope High School in Marietta win one Georgia state championship and also to a runner-up finish. He earned first team All-State honors as a sophomore and senior and graduated with honors. At FSU, he earned several academic honors and hit .338 over 176 games across three seasons with 55 homers and 170 RBI.
In 2024, he hit .363 with 28 homers and 95 RBI in 66 games to help the Seminoles to the College World Series. He was the Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Year over players such as 2025 AL Rookie of the Year Nick Kurtz of Wake Forest and his FSU teammate Cam Smith, now a Houston Astros outfielder.
Tibbs is only listed as Los Angeles’ fifth-best outfield prospect and No. 10 in the organization by MLB.com for 2026. Listed at 1, 2, 3 and 4 are outfielders Josue De Paula, Zyhir Hope, Eduardo Quintero and Mike Sirota. Outfielder Charles Davillan is No. 8.
ATLANTA: Los Angeles Dodgers prospect Josue De Paula reacts after hitting a three-run home run during the 2025 All-Star Futures Game at Truist Park on July 12, 2025. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
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The Dodgers already have two All-Star outfielders in Kyle Tucker and Teoscar Hernandez. Andy Pages is playing like one, leading the National League in batting (.442) and RBI (17). Eight-time All-Star Freddie Freeman blocks Tibbs’ way at first base and is still quite a hitter at age 36.
The backlog of talent shows the the two-time defending World Series champions are as adept at growing talent as they are at buying players.
On the mound, Ohtani signed a 10-year, $700 million contract and Yoshinobu Yamamoto a 12-year, $325M deal in December 2023, Blake Snell $182M for five in 2025 and Tyler Glasnow $136.5M in 2024.
Shortstop Mookie Betts got $365M for 12 years in 2021; Tucker $240M for four years this winter; Freeman $162M for six years in 2022 and catcher Will Smith $140M for 10 years in 2024.
The Dodgers can’t buy free agents during the season. So, if injuries come up and they need some help, they have plenty of enticing prospects to pass along for veteran stars in an effort to win a third consecutive World Series.
Tibbs and the other youngsters have promising futures. There is no absolute promise it will be with the Los Angeles Dodgers no matter how many home runs they hit.
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