The Los Angeles Dodgers lost a pair of key pieces to their roster over the weekend in Mookie Betts and Yoshinobu Yamamoto, as both figure to be out for a considerable amount of time.
Fortunately for the Dodgers, Betts and Yamamoto aren’t expected to miss the rest of the season, with Betts being the likelier to return to action first with a fractured left hand. Harboring a substantial lead in the National League West, there isn’t any worry about a dip in play.
Still possessing several of Major League Baseball’s biggest bats, Shohei Ohtani, Freddie Freeman, Will Smith and Teoscar Hernández are all clicking.
Despite a middle run of play for the Dodgers, Freeman reiterated that their roster is made up of the right stuff to forge on, per Dennis Georgatos of the Southern California News Group:
“We have a lot of good guys in this group, a lot of veteran guys,” Freeman said. “A lot of us have been on teams that have lost people to injuries. But we’ve got a good group to hold it down.”
Betts joined Max Muncy on the injured list, a growing number of players the Dodgers are now without. Maneuvering their roster to accommodate for the injuries on the pitching from is what has shown the depth within the organization, but also the coaching staff for finding production in unlikely places.
The Dodgers took a series from a talented Kansas City Royals team, only losing the game Yamamoto left early. The next day, defeating the Colorado Rockies behind James Paxton’s strong seven innings, and a boost in offense, was a bit of reassurance:
“Injuries are a part of this game, part of the grind of a season,” Freeman said. “You don’t think you’re going to lose two guys, the two guys that we lost on back-to-back days but that’s what happened. And no one is going to feel bad for us. But I think the game we played was huge for us and we’ll just hold it down until they get back.”
Good news on the pitching front is on the horizon, as Bobby Miller is set to return this week. Also of note, Clayton Kershaw is currently working through his throwing program and is set to begin a rehab assignment on Wednesday.
Aside from Kershaw and Miller, Kyle Hurt is current progressing on his own. His hard-throwing stuff has already been on display in Triple-A Oklahoma City, pitching to a 2.08 ERA over five appearances (4.1 innings).
Hurt is a versatile piece, and his ability to miss barrels with his heavy fastball can be useful for the Dodgers’ bullpen.
Dodgers remain without Max Muncy
The timeline for Muncy’s return remains in question. Muncy was shut down from swinging for another week as he continues to deal with an oblique injury.
Muncy also stopped doing any rotational exercises, pushing his timeline back even further.
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