Some Dodger fans were worried about Corey Seager’s elbow after last season when he missed the NLCS. Many felt that he needed surgery… but there was no surgery. Some fans even blamed FAZ for not forcing him to have surgery (yeah, that would work out well). However, yesterday Corey Seager saw his first action in the field and (according to him) made two throws without any issues.
But, the truth finally does come out. Ken Gurnick of Dodgers.com wrote this:
He [Seager] added that he trusts the elbow — which he chose to rehab instead of having surgically repaired — will hold up.
Now, if one has a modicum of intellect, it is easy to discern that at least one doctor advised Corey to have surgery, but he opted to do otherwise. Not the Dodgers – Corey decided that! Maybe the Dodgers should have been able to overrule Corey and demand that he have surgery instead of opting for rehabilitation… after all, it’s their life, not his! I AM BEING SARCASTIC!
So, we really don’t know what was wrong with Corey’s elbow, but he do know that someone evidently advised surgery and Corey decided against it. Was that the right decision? I guess we will find out soon enough. Hopefully, he knows his body better than the doctor who advised it.
However, the Dodgers are more prepared than most teams should their All-Star Shortstop go down with an injury. The options are endless. Kike Hernandez can play SS and so can Chris Taylor (Toles goes to CF). Donovan Solano is another long-shot option but he has hit well this spring. With the addition of Matt Kemps’ bat the damage will be lessened if Corey goes down. You always have to have contingencies.
That said, let’s hope it doesn’t happen. I’m sure Corey doesn’t want to miss time either. We don’t know the extent of the injury, whether it was just irritation or a possible TJ. All we can do is speculate and call them morons if Seager goes down!
Dodger News
- According to Ken Gurnick of mlb.com, the Dodgers took all the pressure off Walker Buehler by optioning top pitching prospect Walker Buehler to the Minor Leagues. They also optioned Edward Paredes and Rob Segedin and reassigned infielder Max Muncy, catcher Will Smith and pitcher Manny Banuelos to Minor League camp and released reliever Mark Lowe.
- I am sure Walker will start a game for the Dodgers this week. This is just procedural as they have about 10 or 11 more cuts to make.
- I think maybe Walker Buehler should change his first name to something that is more appropriate for a pitcher, such as “Striker.” Yeah, that’s the ticket!
- The D-Bags are worried about Greinke… and so is Zack! Boy, those $206 million dollar contracts don’t buy what they used to.
- Joey Vottto won’t agree with this:
Discussion (23)
Disagree, not disagreeable
Here’s Tommy Lasorda on pitch counts:
“I don’t like the pitch count! How are you gonna develop your arm? If you’re a track man, you don’t say, ‘Hey, you can’t run too much.’ Or if you’re a boxer, you don’t say, ‘Hey, you can only box three rounds.’ It’s not right!”
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(quoted by Houston Mitchell of the LA Times)
Watford my Man… I agree and make sure to lift a Guiness to the sky for me Saturday…
How did you like Dubai???
Just my opinion, but i think Corey should have taken the advice.
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Elbows rarely heal, especially if you are using them every day to do your job.
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We will see.
News from around:
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Willie Calhoun was sent to the minors by the Rangers. I still think he’s in a great position (pun!), with a good team, to do well.
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Longenhagen…
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On Yadier Alvarez’s Spring:
Big year for him. I’m still in and have heard his camp has been good, he was in early and is in shape and working on the right things.
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On Keibert Ruiz and Will Smith
Question: Keibert Ruiz is 19, true catcher, tore up Low A, after holding his own as a 18 year-old in a tough hitting league. Just finished his first major league camp with six hits in ten at bats. Like or love?
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Longenhagen: Like. Love Will Smith.
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Nice article by an author I don’t know at Dodgersdigest about Buehler adding a change:
http://dodgersdigest.com/2018/03/13/walker-buehler-is-adding-to-his-arsenal/
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Old friend Grant Holmes was sent down by the A’s.
I haven’t been following this spring too closely but so far I am pleased with Farmer’s apparent progress as a legitimate roster candidate. If Seager is held back to begin the season, I could see Farmer at least with a possibility of landing a spot, with Keekay potentially manning SS and Barnes being available to cover some IF positions as well.
I think the plan is for guys like stripling and font to throw as many innings as they are effective for. we’re going to have a postseason hangover in the pitching department, so young, strong, durable innings-eaters will be in high demand.
Utley has a spot. done deal. as he goes, so goes peter. maybe next year?
as for joc, I agree it’s hard for me to see them sending him to AAA even though they’ve done it before. with Verdugo in the wings, i’d almost rather they trade him than demote him.
to me the bullpen is a question mark right now. it’s one thing to piece together a unit that can rotate in an out fresh arms, but it’s another thing when the only one of your starters who’s expected to go 7 innings is Kershaw.
multi-inning relievers are the key to this season.
Kershaw, Hill, Wood and Maeda look ready to go, and the 5th spot will not be needed much early. I’m a bit surprised they are going so slow with Ryu, not concerned (yet). Stripling and Font can combine for 1 start if needed. Someone will step up, they always do.
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The last few spots in the bullpen are up in the air, not sure that Fields make the opening day roster. Chargois and Liberatore may have earned spots at the outset.
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Toles has played well but has an alarming amount of K’s and few walks. He and Verdugo have made a lot of noise but there is only so much playing time. Thompson scares me on defense. Joc has not played that well but do they really send him to AAA?
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I think Utley makes the squad and forces tough decisions on Farmer and Peter. What’s wrong with Barnes? He is struggling with his hit tool and Grandal has grabbed the starting job for now.
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Seager has played sparingly every spring but was ready on opening day. There are options to give him, JT and Logan regular rest. It would really hurt to have him go down for an extended period but I trust him to know his body. Maybe he eats a few throws deep in the hole that are always bang bang plays, that will be the true test. You know he will hit, he always does.
I’m sure a smart guy like Seager isn’t trying to diagnose himself. Probably following a consensus of expert specialists. Hey, there’s always the right side of the infield right. Unless it gets so serious he can’t swing the bat or throw at all. But that probably won’t happen, will it? Hope not.
off day. will there be any news?
Mark, I like the ringlets of hair you have in the picture, or are they simply designer horns? 🙂
I certainly do not wish Greinke any ill, and we shall see how it goes fo him, but more and more the brilliance of FAZ seems to shine by the deals they make and those they don’t.
I am glad you included Donovan Solano. Kike’ and CT3 can both play SS, but it should be on a short term basis. Kike’ is far too valuable as the super utility player (arguably the best in MLB), and CT3 should not be moved from CF. Donovan Solano is more than qualified to play SS if Corey goes down for an extended period. He is competent defensively, and while he obviously is not going to hit .333/.414/.458/.872 over a long term, he should also hit better than Zoilo Versalles did for LAD in 1968. If Corey needs a 10 day DL stint sometime during the year, Solano should get the call.
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The #5 to start the year will come down to Stripling or Ryu. Stripling is a legit back of the rotation starter, and Ryu is a question mark right now. Ryu is the FAZ preferred, so he will get the slot when he is ready. For a #5, there really is no downside. Buehler will be back when the Dodgers believe he will be able to finish the year in a LAD uni.
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Greinke has all of 1.2 IP this Spring, with nothing positive to show. At some point he is not going to recover from his decreasing velocity. Robbie Ray has not had a good Spring. 6 IP, 9.00 ERA, 1.833 WHIP, 3 HR. Walker and Corbin both have 6 IP each with so-so results. Zack Godley has had a good spring with 8.2 IP and no runs allowed.
I hope David C. is not reading today. He might try and hurt me for posting that headline… and he could! 😉