The Los Angeles Dodgers are continuing through the postseason without Max Muncy for at least a few weeks as he recovers from a left elbow injury suffered during the final game of the regular season.
The 31-year-old dislocated his elbow and had some other damage in the arm, which caused him to be left off the Dodgers’ postseason rosters for both the Wild Card Game and National League Division Series.
The two-time All-Star is hopeful he will be able to return to help the Dodgers in the postseason, but he is unsure of when that may be.
“I have to be,” Muncy said. “If I’m not hopeful, it’s going to be a rough couple weeks for me. I’ll just go in there and work as hard as I can and do whatever I can to get back healthy.”
Muncy met with Dr. Neal ElAttrache to confirm the injury and while he is lucky to avoid surgery, the best course of action is to keep the elbow immobilized for multiple weeks, according to Robert Murray of FanSided:
Dodgers slugger Max Muncy recently visited Dr. ElAttrache and an MRI confirmed original diagnosis of a dislocated elbow and some other damage. He will keep his elbow immobilized for a couple weeks, but he will not need surgery as “everything is where it should be.”
— Robert Murray (@ByRobertMurray) October 7, 2021
While he is out, Muncy will continue to travel with the team and help them in whatever way he can, according to Dodgers manager Dave Roberts.
“Biggest thing is just trying to work as hard as I can to get back to help the team win,” Muncy said. “I’m here to support these guys. They’re an extremely good team, I’m going to be cheering as loud as anybody from the dugout and doing my best to help them out any way I can.
“Whether it’s pick something up to tell them what’s coming, really just doing anything I can to help the guys out.”
Dodgers remain confident despite losing Muncy
Although the Dodgers lost one of their most productive hitters, they remain confident they can repeat because of the talent on their team and the depth they have.
“Obviously, he’s the cornerstone of our offense. The at-bat quality, we’re certainly going to miss,” Justin Turner said earlier this week.
“But we still have a pretty dynamic lineup, and I think the best way to look at it is an opportunity for someone else to step up and take it. I feel terrible for him and what happened. Obviously he was prepared to be a big part of this postseason run we were going to have, but he’s already texted all the guys.
“He’s going to be right there doing everything he can to help us win, whether it’s cheerleading or hanging around the cage or whatever. He’s still in it with us, and that won’t be lost on us.”
Muncy hit .249/.368/.528 with 36 home runs, a 140 wRC+ and produced 4.9 WAR in 144 games this season.
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