While the Los Angeles Dodgers picked up their first shutout of 2020 Spring Training on Wednesday, it came with an injury scare when Justin Turner was hit by a pitch in the first inning.
Turner clutched at his left hand and was checked on by a trainer before taking his base. He additionally played the field in the second inning and hit a two-run homer in the third before calling it a night.
Turner later explained the ball went off a knuckle on his left hand, not the wrist that was fractured during Spring Training in 2018 and one he has since protected with an EvoShield pad. X-rays were negative and Turner anticipated being fine moving forward.
That appears to be the case as Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Turner should be in Friday’s lineup and he may be joined by Chris Taylor as well, according to Ken Gurnick of MLB.com:
Dave Roberts said Justin Turner’s hand is ok and he’ll play tomorrow. Chris Taylor might return tomorrow.
— Ken Gurnick (@kengurnick) March 5, 2020
Turner was not in Thursday’s lineup against the Oakland Athletics, though that was to be expected as he remains on a pre-planned every-other-day schedule. That will be interrupted in some regard when Turner serves as the official race starter and supports his wife, Kourtney, at the L.A. Marathon on Sunday.
Turner is batting .417/.563/.750 with one double, one home run, four RBI and three walks over six Cactus League games.
Meanwhile, the update on Taylor is slightly more surprising than that for Turner. Taylor was just said to be shut down until his left shoulder — sore after being hit by a pitch last Saturday — had fully healed.
Taylor previously missed a stretch of days because of forearm and biceps irritation that surfaced after a check swing. He’s appeared in four games this spring and is 2-for-8 with one one home run, one RBI and two walks.
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