While the Los Angeles Dodgers have been without Cody Bellinger for the past eight games, they lost the services of their other young slugger, Corey Seager, because of a sore right elbow. Though, he did make a pinch-hit appearance in the each of the past two games against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts classified Seager’s trouble as minor, and said it was an issue the 22-year-old had dealt with for a couple weeks. Roberts added Seager will not play the field for a few days but the club expected him to avoid the disabled list.
During the past two weeks, Seager has been provided with two days off and also spent one game against the Detroit Tigers as the designated hitter. He’s also benefitted from the team having two off days in their schedule.
While the Dodgers intend to limit Seager so as to nurse him back to full health, he proclaimed his elbow to be 100 percent, according to Andy McCullough of the L.A. Times:
Corey Seager on his elbow: "It's fine. It's 100-percent fine." Said the team is being cautious with him.
— Andy McCullough (@McCulloughTimes) August 30, 2017
Seager grounded out in the ninth inning on Tuesday, snapping a season-high 15-game hitting streak. He also grounded out Wednesday, leaving the bases loaded in the eighth. Overall, he’s batting .310/.391/.500 with 30 doubles, 19 home runs, 65 RBI, a .380 wOBA and 137 wRC+.
Seager has appeared in 120 games this season and will finish shy of matching or surpassing last year’s 157 games played, even if he were to appear in each of the Dodgers’ remaining 31 games over the next six weeks.
Seager has avoided the fatigue that set in 2016, his first full season in the Majors, but now twice has been dogged by a minor injury. He missed five consecutive games in June due to hamstring tightness.