Seager still out of lineup
SAN DIEGO — Corey Seager stood on the edge of the infield grass as his teammates fielded grounders Friday afternoon. He wore a glove on his left hand but did not stoop to retrieve any of the balls. He held a baseball in his right hand but did not throw.
Seager, a two-time AllStar shortstop, sat out Friday’s game against the San Diego Padres, his fourth consecutive day on the bench. He is nursing a sore right elbow, and recently underwent an MRI exam that revealed “problems” that included inflammation and swelling, he said.
“It wasn’t an ideal one, but I’ve dealt with it,” Seager said. “It wasn’t anything new. The usual.”
Manager Dave Roberts has said Seager will not play the field until next weekend, at the earliest. He is scheduled to begin a throwing program Monday.
Seager downplayed the severity of his injury. He suggested he could play through the discomfort, but the team’s medical staff advised him to rest. “That was them, not me,” Seager said.
Seager is not on the disabled list and could be used as a pinch-hitter. Ethier, Verdugo among call-ups
The Dodgers welcomed their first wave of September call-ups Friday afternoon, with veteran Andre Ethier leading a group of position players that included top hitting prospect Alex Verdugo, utility man Rob Segedin and 27-year-old outfielder O’Koyea Dickson, along with pitcher Fabio Castillo. The team was also expected to activate pitcher Wilmer Font.
Verdugo made his major league debut Friday night, starting in center field and batting eighth. Dickson big league debut. Vergudo, a 21year-old center fielder, will compete for a spot on the playoff roster, and his role could be significant, Roberts said. He hit .314 with an .825 on-base-plus-slugging percentage for triple-A Oklahoma City.
“With Alex, there’s an opportunity,” Roberts said. “He can defend at all three [outfield positions]. He’s a tough out. He can run the bases. We want to see what he looks like up here.”
Ethier has not played in 2017 after suffering a herniated disk in his back during spring training. He is expected to aid the team off the bench. He declined to speak with reporters before Friday’s game.
Segedin, a right-handed hitter, has missed most of the season after undergoing wrist surgery. Dickson, a left-handed hitter, will be used mostly off the bench, Roberts said.
To make room on the roster, the team transferred Grant Dayton, who underwent elbow ligament replacement surgery, to the 60day disabled list. The Dodgers also designated outfielder Brett Eibner and pitcher Luis Ysla for assignment. Eibner required surgery to his elbow after trying to convert to pitching with Oklahoma City.