The Los Angeles Dodgers continue to deal with the injury bug. They entered Sunday without Justin Turner, Logan Forsythe, Rich Hill, Tom Koehler, and Julio Urias. Yet somehow the state of their roster got worse before they took the field for the series finale against the San Francisco Giants.
That's because outfielder Yasiel Puig is headed to the disabled list with a bruised hip. What's more is that Hill, originally slated to come off the DL and rejoin the rotation tomorrow, won't be back due to an infection he developed in his injured finger:
Yasiel Puig to DL, Brock Stewart activated. He may start tomorrow in place of Rich Hill as he is not ready to return from DL
— DodgersBeat (@DodgersBeat) April 29, 2018
Infection on same finger for Rich Hill. He won’t start tomorrow. Could be Stewart.
— Alanna Rizzo (@alannarizzo) April 29, 2018
In time, the Puig injury might be seen as a blessing in disguise. He's struggled at the plate, hitting just .193/.250/.250 over his first 96 plate appearances. All five of his extra-base hits have been doubles. The Dodgers are trotting out unfamiliar names elsewhere on the diamond -- who had Max Muncy and Kyle Farmer getting significant reps? -- but their answer to replacing Puig figures to be some combination of prospect Alex Verdugo and Matt Kemp.
As for the rotation, Hill's infection comes at a bad time for a few reasons, including the fact it wasn't discovered until after the Dodgers had farmed out top prospect Walker Buehler. With both Hill and Buehler unavailable, Los Angeles seems likely to turn to Brock Stewart. Though Stewart is thought of as a back-end guy -- and possibly a future reliever -- he has pitched well in Triple-A this season, managing a 2.41 ERA and 3.33 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
The Dodgers entered Sunday with a disappointing 12-14 record, good for fourth in the National League West. Eventually, everyone expects, the Dodgers will get healthy and make a run. "Eventually" will just won't be anytime soon.