The Los Angeles Dodgers made a series of roster moves before their series opener against the Milwaukee Brewers, which included placing Kiké Hernández on the 10-day injured list with left elbow inflammation.
The utility man sustained the injury when he slid awkwardly into home plate during a game against the Cleveland Guardians in late May.
Hernández has dealt with lingering soreness for the last month and received a cortisone injection to treat the pain after an MRI ruled out a more significant injury.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said the 33-year-old attempted to play through the issue and initially hid it from the team, via Bill Plunkett of the Southern California News Group:
“At that point in time, he kept it to himself,” said Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, adding that he didn’t know Hernandez was trying to play through the injury until two days ago. “He just wanted to be out there to compete, and it just continually got worse and really impacted his offense and the swing. And so just a couple days ago, it just really reached a head where it was pretty much intolerable.”
Hernández was clearly affected by the elbow injury as he has gone just 8-for-his-last-59 since the play at the plate.
Roberts does not expect Hernández to have a lengthy stay on the IL and said he could return shortly after the All-Star break.
Hernández is in the midst of a down year as he’s batting just .195/.259/.367 with five doubles, eight home runs and 22 RBI across 186 plate appearances (71 games). While he has struggled offensively, Hernández has continued to provide value with his versatility, appearing at six different positions this season.
Hernández landing on the 10-day IL comes at a time in which Tommy Edman and Teoscar Hernández are both dealing with their own respective injuries, but remain on the Dodgers active roster.
James Outman replaces Kiké Hernández on Dodgers roster
The Dodgers recalled James Outman from Triple-A Oklahoma City as the corresponding move to Hernández going on the IL.
Outman is back with the Dodgers for a third time this season and has hit .143/.226/.393 with one double, two home runs and four RBI in 10 games.
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