Corey Seager remained out of the Los Angeles Dodgers lineup on Wednesday, marking a fifth consecutive game he’s missed since being removed last weekend due to lower back discomfort.
The Dodgers held off with placing Seager on the 10-day injured list, in large part due to his gradual improvement over recent days. Their patience has seemingly been rewarded as Seager was expected to be part of a pregame workout Wednesday.
“He’s going to be a full participant in the cage,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said before Wednesday’s game. “Got treatment, going to do some running, taking grounders, take batting practice in a group.
“Still no timeline when he’s going to be back, but I will say when he does come back, the first day or two will probably be in a DH role.”
Seager was easily the team’s hottest hitter at the time his back flared up. He’s batting .340/.389/.600 with four doubles, three home runs and seven RBI, and was leading the league in hard-hit balls.
Ironically, hours before he was removed from the game, Seager attributed his success to being healthy. “It’s a body-confidence thing, just feeling better, feeling stronger, being able to make moves I want to be able to make,” he said last Friday.
“It’s showing. Hopefully I can keep it going. I think I just kind of feel better in general, whether it’s the field, hitting, regardless. I feel back to normal and I’m excited to be out there again.”
The Dodgers are a little less than halfway through a stretch of 17 consecutive games. The club certainly won’t rush Seager’s return and he’ll have plenty of opportunities to get back into the lineup. The Dodgers don’t have an off day until Monday, Aug. 24.
Confidence in Seager at shortstop
In addition to the back trouble, Seager’s young career has been marred by hamstring, hip and elbow injuries. He missed the 2017 National League Championship Series because of a back injury, though Roberts said the latest issue was unrelated to that.
Roberts also dismissed the notion that the team would have to primarily have Seager in the lineup as a designated hitter for the remainder of the season.
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