The Los Angeles Dodgers bolstered their lineup and looked to upgrade at the second base position before the non-waiver trade deadline by acquiring Brian Dozier from the Minnesota Twins in exchange for Logan Forsythe and Minor League prospects.
Dozier got off to a good start in Los Angeles, hitting a home run in each of his first two games with the club. However, he has struggled since, including an 0-for-21 stretch in his last seven games entering Sunday’s series finale with the Colorado Rockies.
The 31-year-old recently revealed a potential reason for his struggles as Dozier said that he has been dealing with a knee injury for a majority of the season, via Bill Shaikin of the L.A. Times:
“It’s been a struggle,” Dozier said. “I’ve had a knee issue since the beginning of the year.”
The former All-Star and Gold Glove Award winner is in the midst of one of his worst career seasons in the big leagues, and it comes at a bad time with him set to hit free agency at the end of the year.
Through 137 games between the Twins and Dodgers, Dozier is batting .219/.308/.392 with 20 home runs and 68 RBI. In 33 games with Los Angeles, he is hitting just .191/.309/.348 with four home runs and 16 RBI.
Dozier has never spent time on the disabled list in his eight-year Major League career, and he will continue to play through this injury as well considering the Dodgers don’t have many options behind him at second base.
Furthermore, the club is in the thick of a National League West race and need to field the best lineup possible. Even though he’s mired in a slump, Dozier notoriously is a second-half hitter and could just as well break out of the skid.
