For the second time this month and third time in his career, Yasiel Puig started in left field for the Los Angeles Dodgers. The decision Tuesday night, just as it was over the weekend in Miami, was to give the Dodgers another right-handed bat against a southpaw starter.
It made little difference in the Bronx, as New York Yankees veteran lefty CC Sabathia kept the Dodgers off balance throughout his 6.1 scoreless innings. The Yankees went on for a 3-0 victory.
Puig finished the night 0-for-2 with four strikeouts. Included in that was a sequence where Puig seemingly inflicted pain on himself.
During a first-inning at-bat, Puig swung and miss at one of Sabathia’s offerings, and hit his back with his with backswing.
Puig was checked on by Dodgers head athletic trainer Nate Lucero and manager Dave Roberts, and assured both he was fine to continue.
The 25-year-old struck out in the at-bat and proceeded to play the remainder of the game. After the loss, Roberts revealed Puig has been dealing with some trouble in his left shoulder, per Bill Plunkett of the OC Register:
Roberts said Yasiel Puig bothered by "something behind his left shoulder" since OKC and swing in 1st AB triggered it. But says he's fine
— Bill Plunkett (@billplunkettocr) September 14, 2016
Despite the injury Puig has played well since being recalled from Triple-A Oklahoma City. He’s batting .278/.391/.778 with three home runs and six RBIs in eight games, and has been praised for his work ethic.
Over a 19-game stint with Oklahoma City, Puig batted .348/.400/.594 with four home runs and 12 RBIs. His play seemingly forced the Dodgers’ hand in recalling him the first weekend of September.
For as well as Puig has played, his future with the Dodgers may be unclear. The club reportedly was close to trading the mercurial outfielder to the Milwaukee Brewers for Ryan Braun last month.
