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With the Dodgers playing in their 81st game of the season on Friday against the Royals, it’s time to check in on how they’ve done over the first half of 2023.

As a team, the Dodgers have to be pleased with where they are. Despite the injuries and inconsistencies from some players, the Dodgers are 45-35 and two games behind the D-backs in the National League West.

Over the first 80 games, the Dodgers have seen four of their starting pitchers -- Tony Gonsolin, Julio Urías, Noah Syndergaard and Dustin May -- miss significant time on the injured list. They also saw six rookies make their debuts.

With all that being said, let’s hand out a couple of awards as we get to the midway point of the season.

Most outstanding player: Freddie Freeman

Freddie Freeman has been everything Los Angeles hoped for, and more, since joining the club last season. Freeman, who joined the 2,000 hit club last weekend, has 102 hits this season, putting him on pace for more than 200. He also has 14 homers and 52 RBIs, but the one stat he is most happy about is his team-leading 10 stolen bases.

The seven-time All-Star has been worth every penny, as he is the only Dodger to play in all 80 games in the first half.

Most outstanding pitcher: Clayton Kershaw

It seems like most people have been waiting for the moment Clayton Kershaw’s production takes a dip, but at 35, the left-hander is still at the top of his game. Outside of a shaky May, Kershaw has been one of the best pitchers in the NL this season and is a legit contender for this year’s Cy Young Award if he has a strong second half.

Kershaw leads the NL with 10 wins this season and has bailed out the Dodgers a handful of times in the first half. Of the five starters to begin the season, Kershaw is the only one not to land on the IL. That, however, could change depending on how he feels after exiting his last start after six innings with left shoulder inflammation.

Most outstanding rookie: James Outman

It looked like James Outman was going to be a top contender for NL Rookie of the Year. But since May 1, the rookie outfielder has struck out almost 50 percent of the time and hasn’t homered since May 17.

Despite those struggles, Outman’s first month of the season still gives him the nod here. Without that month, the Dodgers wouldn’t be in this position. Outman produced at a time when the Dodgers were missing J.D. Martinez and Will Smith. Outman does, however, have to improve his numbers and cut down on the strikeouts over the last three months of the season.

Rookie pitchers Bobby Miller and Emmet Sheehan have each made quite the case, but they haven’t made enough starts at the big league level just yet.