Coming off Tommy John and hip surgeries, the Los Angeles Dodgers have been extra cautious with shortstop Corey Seager this spring to ensure he is 100 percent healthy.
Because they have taken things slowly, Seager has not suffered any setbacks in his recovery, and he has progressed to the point where Dodgers manager Dave Roberts confirmed that he is expected to be in the lineup on Opening Day.
Getting their All-Star shortstop back in time for the start of the season is obviously positive news for Los Angeles. To this point, Seager has yet to play in a Major League Spring Training game though, as all of his work has been done in Minor League games on the back fields.
After getting through seven innings of defense on Monday, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said the next step for Seager is to make his 2019 Cactus League debut on Wednesday against the Chicago Cubs, via Ken Gurnick of MLB.com:
Corey Seager will play seven innings Wednesday night in his first big-league game of the Spring.
— Ken Gurnick (@kengurnick) March 18, 2019
The Dodgers conclude Cactus League play on Saturday afternoon before heading back to Southern California for the annual exhibition Freeway Series against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.
If Seager plays in two or three Major League games in Arizona and then all three games against the Angels, that should definitely be enough at-bats for him to be ready for Opening Day on Thursday, March 28.
Considering how much depth the Dodgers have, Seager will likely get a handful of days off during the first month of the season to ensure that the remains healthy and able to perform at a high level.
