The Los Angeles Dodgers have another injury to monitor, as Yasiel Puig was scratched from Saturday's lineup with a tight hamstring. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said that the decision was precautionary and indicated that Puig is still likely to be in the Opening Day lineup.
Puig's hamstrings were an issue for him throughout last season, causing him to miss significant time and post career lows in batting average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage. He showed up to camp this spring having lost weight, as requested by the Dodgers to help him be more durable this season.
Roberts said that Puig wanted to play Saturday and stressed that his hamstring was not the reason that the outfielder came out of Friday night's game. Puig only played three innings Friday because he was scheduled to play Saturday afternoon.
Today's Dodger lineup at SEA:
Utley 2B
Thompson CF
Van Slyke RF
Ellis C
Segedin 1B
Hicks 3B
Culberson SS
Scavuzzo LF
Kazmir P— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) March 26, 2016
"So, Yasiel woke up with a tight hamstring; he doesn't know when he did it," Roberts said. "He wants to play, but I'm going to scratch him, just for the sake of being ready for Opening Day. He's swinging the bat well and playing great, so any hint [of injury] for me right now, I'm going to err on the side of caution."
Puig is hitting for a .344/.351/.914 AVG/OBP/SLG line in 32 at-bats this spring and, while it may a small sample size, he certainly seems to be playing like the outfielder who accumulated more than nine wins above replacement in 2013 and 2014.
The Dodgers hope to have Puig in its Opening Day lineup and are also hoping the same for second baseman Howie Kendrick and shortstop Corey Seager. The team is already going to start the season with pitchers Brett Anderson and Hyun-Jin Ryu, catcher Yasmani Grandal and outfielder Andre Ethier on the disabled list.
"You've got to almost, not prepare for the worst, but expect the unexpected - whatever trite statement you want to say," Roberts said. "I just think for us, we're just looking forward and trying not to let any of these distractions take away from our focus.
"It's better now vs. May, or during the season, absolutely."
