The Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the Oakland Athletics 3-1 Monday night at Camelback Ranch, but the entire clubhouse was somber after the game as third baseman Justin Turner was hit by a pitch in the first inning that resulted in a fractured left wrist.
A timetable for Turner’s return will not be made public, but he is expected to miss an extended period to begin the season. Not only will the Dodgers be without their All-Star third baseman, but their No. 3 batter in the lineup as well.
After news of Turner’s injury was provided, Dodgers general manager Farhan Zaidi discussed how tough of a blow losing Turner is, although it’s not lending to a belief within the organization that a trade is now necessary, via Bill Plunkett of the Southern California News Group:
“You feel for the player and we’re not as good a team without JT. There’s no doubt about that,” Zaidi said. “You feel for the player. You feel for us as a group. The rest of the guys are going to have to do even more for us to play at the same level.
“But your next thought kind of starts thinking practically about what this means for the team. As far as that goes, we have some very capable guys who will have their chance to seize this opportunity and get more playing time than they would have otherwise.”
Zaidi said a trade to fill the void is not likely.
Zaidi is right that the Dodgers have plenty of depth to get by without Turner for the time being, which is a luxury that not many other teams can afford.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts gave some insight on what they plan to do to replace him, as starting second baseman Logan Forsythe will likely shift over to third base.
Replacing Forsythe at second base will be a combination of Chase Utley, Kiké Hernandez and Austin Barnes, as Roberts would like to keep Chris Taylor primarily in center field and backing up Corey Seager at shortstop.
