One of the biggest questions marks going into Spring Training for the Los Angeles Dodgers was the health of shortstop Corey Seager as he was coming off Tommy John and hip surgeries that cost him almost all of the 2018 season.
The Dodgers have maintained all along that Seager would be ready for Opening Day, but they still have taken things slowly with his progressions.
Seager recently began playing defense in Minor League games, which was the final hurdle he needed to cross before being proclaimed healthy enough to play in a Major League game.
He recently played five innings, and while he did not get any ground balls at shortstop, he was happy with how his body responded. Seager is expected to play seven innings in a Minor League game on Monday and then could head back over to the Major League side for the final week of Cactus League play.
It appears the original timetable for Seager is still the same as it has been all spring as Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Seager is expected to play in all three games of the exhibition Freeway Series and reiterated he will be in the Opening Day lineup, via Alanna Rizzo of SportsNet LA:
Roberts expects Corey Seager to play in all three games of the Freeway Series & Opening Day.
— Alanna Rizzo (@alannarizzo) March 17, 2019
This is obviously fantastic news for both the Dodgers and Seager, who has been itching to get back on a big league field after watching his team lose in the World Series for the second straight year in 2018.
Even if he is ready to play on Opening Day though, Seager will likely require a handful of days off in the first month of the season to ensure that he is not overworked. Luckily, the Dodgers have very capable backups in Chris Taylor and Kiké Hernandez readily available to spell him whenever needed.
