Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman walks to the field for the presentation of his World Series championship ring, before the team's baseball game against the Atlanta Braves on Friday, June 24, 2022 in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Butch Dill)
Dodgers Manager Hopes Freddie Freeman Can Return Soon After Being Placed on IL
Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts provided an update on injured first baseman Freddie Freeman.
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The Dodgers placed Freeman on the 10-day injured list with a right sprained ankle; however, Roberts shared the superstar could have played, but the team did not want to risk worsening the injury.
Additionally, Freeman’s ankle was swollen and likely would have been aggravated by the cross-country flight.
Roberts is hopeful that Freeman will return to the lineup when the Dodgers return from their road trip. Freeman tweaked the ankle that hampered him throughout the postseason, which is why the Dodgers are taking extra precautions.
The Dodgers superstar spoke about the freak accident that led to his injury.
“Halfway through my (Sunday) morning coffee, I was like, ‘Oh, I’ll just shower to get ready for the day,’” Freeman said. “And next thing you know, I’m down in the bathtub. It’s a great mental picture, if you guys want to think about it, big guy falling all over the place. … Freak accident, you can’t really make it up, crazy.
“But it was just one of those things. You slip in bathtub showers all the time. And when you’re healthy, you just catch yourself. And when you’re not, when you’ve got a little surgically repaired ankle, mostly I think it just flared everything kind of back up. I was a little sore. Sore on the inside still. But I’m feeling much better.”
Mookie Betts, Shohei Ohtani, and Freeman have all been in the Dodgers lineup together just once this season. Betts dealt with an ongoing stomach virus that prevented him from playing in the Tokyo Series. He also missed the series finale against the Detroit Tigers.
Freeman has missed a total of six games this season. The first baseman was not in the Opening Day lineup in Japan due to left rib discomfort. He also missed all three games against the Atlanta Braves earlier this week, and Friday night’s series opener against the Phillies, L.A.’s first loss of the year.
Freeman (ankle) lands on 10-day injured list
LOS ANGELES — After missing all three of the Dodgers’ games against the Braves due to a “little mishap” where he slipped entering the shower at home, Freddie Freeman was placed on the 10-day injured list with a right ankle sprain on Thursday night, retroactive to Monday.
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Manager Dave Roberts is optimistic that Freeman will miss the minimum time possible with this IL stint, which is his first since 2020. That would line up Freeman to potentially be activated when the Dodgers return to Los Angeles for their six-game homestand vs. the Cubs and Rockies, which begins next Friday with Freeman’s bobblehead night.
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Freeman will stay back during the road trip through Philadelphia and D.C. He got an MRI on his ankle that “came back the way we wanted it to,” Roberts said.
“The thought was he could have played, but we just felt that — even in talking to Freddie and the training staff — there was potential downside, if we played him, to make it worse,” Roberts said before Friday’s opener against the Phillies. “And given the time of year, the off-days that we’ve had … [it] just made sense for him to stay back, not travel, fly, increase swelling, and then be ready to go, hopefully, when we get home.”
While Freeman is out, Kiké Hernández is expected to get most of the starts at first base. Catcher Hunter Feduccia was recalled from Triple-A Oklahoma City as the corresponding move for Freeman’s IL placement. The 27-year-old Feduccia, who received his 2024 World Series ring upon rejoining the team, will primarily be used as a left-handed pinch-hit option off the bench.
Roberts noted earlier this week that Freeman thought he would be able to play through this latest ailment, but the star first baseman rarely wants to miss a game, regardless of how he’s feeling. The only time Roberts could remember Freeman feeling that he couldn’t play was during last year’s NL Championship Series, when he was managing the same ankle — which was badly injured at the time and eventually required surgery.
That Freeman took the three rest days before being placed on the IL indicated to his manager that he’s taking a bigger-picture view of this season.
“I think that understanding the cost and what it would mean going forward for the rest of the season,” Roberts said. “I think that just really opened up his mind of what’s the best way to handle whatever injury. So, this is a lot easier than we expected.”
