Season in review about nothing: Scott Schebler, ‘The Switch.’

Scott Schebler

Scott Schebler was called up to the majors twice in 2015. (Getty Images)

This is Part 42 of a series in which every member of the 2015 Dodgers has his season juxtaposed with an episode of the greatest sitcom of all-time. Don’t take it too seriously.

Scott Schebler, OF

Key stats: .250/.325/.500 in 40 PAs (19 games).

Seinfeld episode: “The Switch” (Season 6, Episode 11)

Key quote: “Do you realize in the entire history of western civilization no one has successfully accomplished the Roommate Switch? In the Middle Ages you could get locked up for even suggesting it!”

The Dodgers orchestrated a roommate switch of sorts in 2015.

The roommates in question: Scott Schebler and Corey Seager, who bunked together at Triple-A Oklahoma City for a time. Schebler is the former 26th-round draft pick; Seager the number-5 prospect in all of baseball coming into the season. And yet, it was Schebler who reached the majors first, a wholly unexpected reversal of fortunes.

Schebler had a good season at Double-A in 2014. He was a Southern League All-Star and finished the season with a .921 OPS for the Chattanooga Lookouts. It was hard to believe the same player could start so slowly at Triple-A. Schebler had a .216/.307/.389 slash line when he was recalled to make his major league debut against the St. Louis Cardinals.

The numbers mattered little in the final equation; the Dodgers needed a left-handed hitting outfielder for the series finale against the Cardinals. Going beyond his traditional stats, Schebler was hitting the ball hard in the evaluation of the Dodgers’ front office and putting together good at-bats.

The one-game cup of coffee whet Schebler’s appetite for MLB. At least, that’s what he said three months later after his next big league start, a memorable game in which Schebler stole two bases and hit a home run in San Diego. He hit two more home runs before the season was over.

The roommates reversed fortunes once again before the calendar turned to 2016. Schebler was traded to the Cincinnati Reds on Dec. 16, part of a three-team trade with the Chicago White Sox, while Seager was effectively handed the starting shortstop’s job when the Dodgers chose not to re-sign Jimmy Rollins. (Rollins is a free agent as of this writing, so it’s possible he could return.)

In “The Switch,” Jerry and George go to great lengths to strategize the perfect roommate switch when Jerry decides he’s more attracted to the rooomate of the woman he’s dating:

It’s not spoiling much to say that Western Civilization is still waiting for its first successful roommate switch.

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About J.P. Hoornstra

J.P. Hoornstra covers the Dodgers, Angels and Major League Baseball for the Orange County Register, Los Angeles Daily News, Long Beach Press-Telegram, Torrance Daily Breeze, San Gabriel Valley Tribune, Pasadena Star-News, San Bernardino Sun, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin, Whittier Daily News and Redlands Daily Facts. Before taking the beat in 2012, J.P. covered the NHL for four years. UCLA gave him a degree once upon a time; when he graduated on schedule, he missed getting Arnold Schwarzenegger's autograph on his diploma by five months.