The Los Angeles Dodgers are just over a week away from beginning a second month without All-Star third baseman Justin Turner. He opened the season on the 10-day disabled list after being hit by a pitch and suffering a fractured left wrist in late March.
A timetable for Turner’s return was not publicly released, though Dodgers general manager Farhan Zaidi said the expectation was it would be weeks not months. On Friday, manager Dave Roberts said Turner advanced to hitting off a tee.
That was notable in that it represented the first time Turner has swung a bit since sustaining the injury. He’s fielded soft grounders and played light catch to keep his right arm in shape.
However, Turner provided some clarity on his status, explained he’s not yet swinging, and joked he would be the first to inform the masses once he’s able to do so, via Ken Gurnick of MLB.com:
Justin Turner said on Saturday he still has not begun swinging a bat, clarifying a miscommunication that resulted in Friday reports that he was hitting off a tee.
“It’s getting better every day and it’s been a good week as far as range of motion and pain tolerance, but not there yet,” Turner said to reporters. “When I hit a ball off a tee, I’ll be the first one to stand here and let you guys know. I’ll send a tweet and tag you guys. Maybe you can get some followers.”
Without Turner, the Dodgers have used Kyle Farmer, Logan Forsythe, Kiké Hernandez and Max Muncy at third base. Whether individually or combined, they’ve been unable to make up for the production lost.
Additionally, Forsythe is on the DL due to right shoulder inflammation that he believes was caused in some part by sliding over to third base and making longer throws in the field. Forsythe is eligible to be reinstated Wednesday.
As for Turner, once he resumes hitting and barring any setbacks, it will give way to a rehab assignment. A general timeline for that would appear to be at least a few weeks.
