The Los Angeles Dodgers recalled Hunter Feduccia from Triple-A Oklahoma City as the corresponding move to placing Freddie Freeman on the 10-day injured list because of a sprained right ankle.
Freeman’s IL stint was backdated to March 31 and announced by the team upon landing in Philadelphia on Thursday night. However, the Dodgers did not recall Feduccia until Friday.
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Freeman had missed the past three games due to aggravating his right ankle by slipping in the shower. That led to receiving multiple hours of treatment daily, but Freeman did resume workouts by the middle of the week and was optimistic of returning to the Dodgers lineup at the beginning of their road trip.
“With a day off on Thursday, they’re pushing for me to play Friday. But I’m going to do everything I can to get out there tomorrow,” Freeman said on Tuesday.
“It’s frustrating, because I was actually feeling pretty good. The third game in a row of the Tigers series, it was getting a little stiff at the end. Playing back-to-back-to-back, it was feeling a little stiff, but nothing to be worried about. I was like, ‘Oh, good an off day. I’ll be able to recover.’
“About 10:15, halfway through my morning coffee (on Sunday), I showered to get ready for the day and next thing I know I’m down in the bathtub. It’s a great mental picture if you guys want to think about it. Big guy falling all over the place. You slip in bathtub showers all the time, and when you’re healthy, you catch yourself.
“Mostly, I think it just flared everything back up. I was a little sore, it’s sore on the inside still, but I’m feeling much better.”
Hunter Feduccia gets opportunity with Dodgers
Feduccia made his MLB debut last season and went 4-for-12 with one RBI over five games. He began this season with Oklahoma City, where Feduccia batted .357/.526/.643 with one double, one home run, four RBI and five walks.
“I do think we see his value,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said of Feduccia this spring. “Obviously with Will (Smith) and Austin (Barnes), I think he’s the third catcher in the organization. If something happens, then he’d be the guy that we’d look to.
“I think the bat translates. It’s a very easy-maintenance swing, low-maintenance swing. He really controls the strike zone. Certainly, with our two right-handed hitting catchers, to complement being on the left side of the box is a good thing.
“He’s starting to get more familiar with the other pitchers, sequencing and things like that. He’s an organizational guy, he’s done a lot of good stuff for us. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him up at some point in time.”
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