Freddie Freeman News: Huge Injury Update on Dodgers Star Ahead of NLDS
The Los Angeles Dodgers have provided a huge update on Freddie Freeman three days before the National League Division Series.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said on Wednesday that Freeman has been taking swings in the batting cage and will likely face live pitching either Thursday or Friday. He’s confident Freeman will be in the starting lineup for Game 1 of the NLDS, but admitted that the ankle injury could be “limiting” both defensively and on the bases.
They’ll use these next few days to see what type of impact he’ll be able to make in the postseason.
Freeman suffered a sprained ankle in last Thursday’s win over the San Diego Padres. In the bottom of the seventh inning, Freeman tried to avoid a bad throw by Jake Cronenworth to first base. While attempting to avoid the tag, Freeman took a weird step and turned his ankle. Here’s a video of the play:
Freeman didn’t travel with the team to Colorado, but was confident he would be back for Game 1 of the NLDS. As of now, all signs point toward Freeman making that a reality. However, these next two days will be crucial to ensure Freeman can get close to full health.
Freeman appeared in 147 games this season, slashing .282/.378/.476 with 22 home runs and 89 runs batted in.
read more:
Dodgers GM Brandon Gomes Clarifies Chances of Shohei Ohtani Pitching in Playoffs
As the Los Angeles Dodgers prepare to begin their journey in the 2024 MLB playoffs, don’t expect to see Shohei Ohtani taking the mound this fall. Back in September, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts left the door open for Ohtani to toe the rubber in the playoffs. But Dodgers general manager Brandon Gomes shot down that possibility on Wednesday.
Ohtani hasn’t pitched in an MLB game since undergoing elbow surgery last September. He has been on a throwing program for most of the summer and worked off a mound for the first time in August. “I just think like anything-you should always leave some margin, a crack in the door for any possibility,” Roberts said in September on MLB Network Radio. “If things line up and there’s a need, and the game, his body, everything is telling us that it makes sense in that situation, great. It would be storybook.
A return to the mound would be storybook, indeed, but it appears Ohtani will have to save his playoff heroics for the batter’s box. He is coming off one of the best offensive seasons in baseball history as he became the first player to tally at least 50 homers and 50 stolen bases in a single season.
