The Los Angeles Dodgers boast one of the deepest rosters in all of baseball, but their infield depth has been tested in recent weeks due to a handful of minor injuries affecting key players.
Justin Turner has most notably fought through hamstring tightness since the end of May. While he has been limited to some degree, it hasn’t cost him in terms of playing time. The 34-year-old has started in five consecutive games entering Tuesday’s matchup with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.
Likewise, David Freese has recently been plagued by right knee tendinitis. The injury limited him to a potential pinch-hit appearance but Freese didn’t appear in Monday’s Freeway Series opener against the Angels altogether.
In addition to Turner and Freese, the Dodgers are currently without the services of infielder Matt Beaty, who continues nursing a left hip flexor strain and is on the 10-day injured list.
Beaty, sidelined over the past week, suffered the injury in the Dodgers’ three-game finale with the Philadelphia Phillies at Dodger Stadium earlier this month. A silver lining was that manager Dave Roberts didn’t expect him to miss too many games.
Roberts’ prognosis was spot on, as he revealed that Beaty is expected to soon conclude a rehab assignment with High-A Rancho Cucamonga, via SportsNet LA:
“He’s here (but) he’s going to continue to do some stuff with the Quakes. I think it’s Wednesday, Thursday, off Friday, then we’ll see what we do on Saturday. Activation here at some point in the near future.”
Beaty was first promoted to the Majors after A.J. Pollock underwent elbow surgery in early May and has spent the majority of his time with the Dodgers ever since.
But with Beaty unavailable for the time being, Kyle Garlick was rewarded with a second stint at the big league level. The La Habra, Calif., native has struggled a bit, however, collecting just one hit in eight plate appearances.
As for Beaty himself, he has fared better in a slightly larger sample size with the Dodgers. The 26-year-old is hitting .286/.286/.310 with one double and seven RBI over 42 plate appearances. While his batting average is solid, Beaty has yet to draw a walk in the Majors and has recorded only one extra-base hit thus far.
He went 1-for-3 with an RBI double in his first rehab game with the Quakes.
