Baseball
Dodgers have suffered an early blow after their third baseman has sidelined following a wrist injury. The 2017 All-star Justin Turner was hit by a pitch during a Cactus League match against the Oakland Athletics.
As per the X-ray report, there is a small, non-displaced fracture. He was replaced by Donovan Solano in the match. Turner was soon visited by the trainer after the injury.
.@redturn2 on his broken left wrist suffered in tonight's #DodgersST game. pic.twitter.com/uOC2dZ0YJQ
— SportsNet LA (@SportsNetLA) March 20, 2018
Following the diagnosis, Turner said, "I was hoping obviously the X-rays would be negative, but there's a small non-displaced fracture. We'll just play it by ear, see how it goes."
General manager Farhan Zaidi reported to the media that it is not yet clear how long the third baseman will be out. He further told that Turner will visit the doctor on Tuesday again for more details. A similar type of injury kept Freddie Freeman out of the pitch for six weeks last year and Astros outfielder George Springer also missed nine weeks in 2015. So, Turner is also expected to be out for around 6-7 weeks and won't be available until May.
During his absence, Dodgers are likely to use Logan Forsythe as the third baseman and Chase Utley on the second base.
"We're not as good of a team without J.T. We do feel good about our internal options. There are guys who can move around." GM Zaidi added.
Turner made to the All-Star team for the first time last year batting .322/.415/.530 with 21 home runs and 71 RBI in 543 plate appearances. He also helped the team reach the World Series.
