Dodgers’ hopes for 2018 dim with Corey Seager out for season
Today, the Dodgers announced that Corey Seager will undergo Tommy John surgery and will miss the remainder of the season.
The Dodgers are seven games back. They lost two out of three to the rebuilding Marlins, and three out of four to the Giants. The bullpen is falling apart. Can things get any worse?
Yes. Yes, they can. And they just did.
Today, the club announced that star shortstop and 2016 Rookie of the Year, Corey Seager, will miss the remainder of the season and will have Tommy John surgery on his right elbow.
This doesn’t come as a shock, as Seager was experiencing elbow issues as far back as last summer, but Seager elected not to have surgery after the World Series, probably in the hope that his right UCL would heal.
It’s okay, Mr. Seager, we were all hoping the same.
This game, however, can be radically unforgiving, and the Dodgers know that now more than anybody.
In an article from Bleacher Report written a few years ago about Twins Slugger Miguel Sano, author Will Carroll wrote that recovery from TJ Surgery for position players can take about eight months.
In other words, Dodgers fans won’t be seeing Seager until Spring Training 2019.
If you want to look on the bright side, it may help to remember that Kyle Schwarber had season-ending ACL surgery in 2016, but miraculously returned for the World Series, played extremely well, and helped the Cubs to victory.
That probably won’t happen with Seager; Just guessing, but I’d say the probability of it is about five percent, if even. First off, they had different injuries, and secondly, not to sound like a Debbie downer, but this injury could be one of the reasons the Dodgers don’t even make it to the World Series in the first place.
If I were to write a list of Dodger players that are the heart and soul of this team, it would look like this;
The Dodgers have lost Seager for the season, they’ve lost Puig for now. Justin Turner is on his way back, and Jansen is still finding his record-breaking mechanics. The Dodgers can’t afford to lose anyone else. Not Cody Bellinger, or Ross Stripling. Not Yasmani Grandal or Chris Taylor.
Next: Dodgers Beat the Streak Selections - April 30
It’s okay to be worried about the Dodgers. Be worried, be nervous, be upset. Then, if we’re lucky, we’ll get to see them prove us wrong.