The Los Angeles Dodgers had a good weekend at Angel Stadium, completing a three-game Freeway Series sweep that was capped off with an 8-3 win on Sunday afternoon.
Despite cruising to victory, things actually didn’t get off to a good start for the Dodgers as they squandered an opportunity to score in the second inning.
Edwin Rios put a good at-bat together and hit a two-out double off the center-field wall. He appeared to injure his hamstring sliding into second base, however, forcing the team trainer and Dodgers manager to come out and take a look at him.
Rios didn’t look like his usual self running on his left leg, but he was able to coax his way into remaining in the game. Matt Beaty then followed with a ball hit off the wall in center field that should have scored Rios easily.
He jogged home due to the leg issue though, and Beaty tried to stretch it into a double. He was thrown out at second to end the inning before Rios was able to cross home plate. The way Rios was running, it was clear that the hamstring was bothering him, so Kiké Hernandez took over in the bottom half of the inning.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts indicated after the win he doesn’t believe Rios’ potential injury is serious.
“It’s going to be day-to-day. He said he didn’t hurt it when he was running, it was more the slide,” Roberts explained. “So we don’t know if it’s a cramp because of the slide or if it’s a slight strain. Feels better now.”
The injury comes at an unfortunate time for Rios as he was making the most of his opportunities to begin the season, hitting .276/.323/.690 with three home runs in limited at-bats.
The Dodgers have a ton of depth though with prospects like Gavin Lux and Zack McKinstry not currently on the Major League roster, so if Rios does end up requiring a short stint on the injured list, they shouldn’t have any issues replacing him.
Rios benefitted from offseason boxing workouts with Barry Larkin
Rios was the talk of Summer Camp this year after reporting in great shape and swing the bat well from the jump. When discussing reasons for his success, Rios recently credited offseason boxing workouts with MLB Hall of Famer Barry Larkin.
“I did a lot of boxing with Barry Larkin during quarantine. I feel like that’s cardio in itself and that’s where I saw my body transform and cut up a little more. It was great. My conditioning feels great,” Rios said.
Hopefully the hamstring injury is just a minor issue, as Roberts believes it is, and Rios is back in the lineup sooner rather than later.
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