While the Los Angeles Dodgers’ starting rotation has absorbed the majority of injuries this season, their group of outfielders isn’t too far behind. For Yasiel Puig, reoccurring trouble hamstring trouble forced him to miss 17 games in June.
The 25-year-old landed on the DL with a left hamstring strain despite Dodgers manager Dave Roberts initially voicing some optimism Puig would remain active. Los Angeles now finds themselves in a similar position after Puig was removed from Thursday’s game against the Washington Nationals with right hamstring tightness.
He entered in the bottom of the sixth inning with two outs and came up lame in the seventh as he tried to leg out a leadoff infield single.
While Puig wasn’t in the lineup for the series opener with the St. Louis Cardinals, Roberts explained prior to the game why he believes a DL stint will not be necessary, via Time Warner Cable SportsNet LA:
“I think Yasiel was honest with me and the training staff. As he said when he went on the disabled list, it was at 40 percent or something. Now, he says it’s 85 percent. The training staff saw him run and I think in another situation, it’s playable. There’s a chance he may be in there [Saturday], but I’m really looking at starting him Sunday.”
Puig wound up being used as a pinch-hitter in the 13th inning with the go-ahead run on second base. He popped out to Matt Adams in foul territory, and the Dodgers went on to lose in 16 innings on an Adams walk-off solo home run.
Although Puig managed to appear in Friday’s game seemingly without issue, that shouldn’t necessarily be viewed as a sure-fire sign he’ll avoid the DL. After being scratched from the lineup on May 31, Puig pinch-hit against the Chicago Cubs on June 1 and 2.
He was then placed on the disabled list June 3 and Scott Van Slyke was activated. Whether Puig is indeed healthy could impact the Dodgers’ trade plans as he’s been the subject of recent rumors with the club in search of starting pitching and a bat.
Others in the outfield to sustain injuries include Joc Pederson missing time with a right AC joint sprain and Trayce Thompson is currently sidelined by lower back irritation.
Then of course there’s Andre Ethier whose recovery from a fractured right tibia suffered late in Spring Training has progressed slower than expected. Ethier is hopeful to return in August or September.
