The wave of injury news for the Los Angeles Dodgers continued on Wednesday as the club placed Chris Hatcher on the 15-day disabled list with a strained left oblique. Charlie Culberson was recalled from Triple-A Oklahoma City to fill the spot on the active roster.
Culberson starts at shortstop against the Washington Nationals, with Corey Seager still suffering from a stomach virus that kept him out of Tuesday’s three-game series opener. Culberson hit .289/.333/.406 with 13 doubles, two home runs and 19 RBIs over 46 games with Oklahoma City.
This marks his second stint with the Dodgers. After making the Opening Day roster, Culberson appeared in 15 games (seven starts) and hit .259/.286/.333 with two doubles and four RBIs in 28 plate appearances.
Culberson primarily saw time against southpaws, hitting .400/.438/.467 in 16 plate appearances. He played second base, third base, shortstop and left field during the brief time up with the Dodgers.
Hatcher heads to the DL with a 5.53 ERA, 5.22 FIP, 1.50 WHIP, 21 walks and 43 strikeouts in 40.2 innings pitched across 37 relief appearances. He entered in the eighth inning with a 7-1 lead on Tuesday and didn’t retire any of the three batters faced.
Hatcher issued a leadoff walk, followed by allowing a single and two-run triple. He was ultimately charged for three runs. Hatcher’s struggles are reminiscent of the trouble he had last season prior to being placed on the DL, also with an oblique injury, in June.
The hard-throwing right-hander was much improved after returning and cemented himself as the Dodgers’ primary setup man.
