In his third season with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Freddie Freeman has enjoyed another good year in 2024.
Freeman played in every game for the Dodgers this season until last week as he continues to be an extremely valuable member of the organization, especially with Mookie Betts still on the injured list with a fractured left hand.
Freeman missed his first game of the season after being a late scratch before the Dodgers’ game against the Houston Astros on July 26. He left the team to fly back home be with his family in Los Angeles as his son Maximus continued to battle an illness that occurred during the All-Star break and was hospitalized.
Since then, the situation has escalated rapidly, as well as its severity. Maximus was hospitalized once again with what the doctors diagnosed as Guillain-Barré syndrome, a rare neurological disorder.
Freeman missed his sixth game on Friday as the Dodgers took on the Oakland Athletics, and that total will likely increase as the team does not expect Freeman to join them for the series in Oakland, according to Bill Plunkett of the Southern California News Group:
“I was texting with Freddie yesterday. He says they’re encouraged,” Roberts said.
“I do know Freddie is moving around, taking swings, moving his body around. But I don’t expect him this series.”
Thankfully there has been some positive developments in Maximus’ condition with the Freeman family being “blown away by his improvements in the last 48 hours.” Even so, the Dodgers have remained firm in their stance that they will not pressure Freeman to return before he is ready to do so.
They have also maintained constant communication with Freeman, giving their full support and as much time as he needs away from the team.
Dodgers without Freddie Freeman
The Dodgers’ offense has been very Jekyll and Hyde in the six games without Freeman in the lineup.
They have managed to score at least five runs in half of them, but they have scored three runs combined in the other half. This included a shutout in the series opener against the Astros and only two runs in their loss to the Oakland Athletics.
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