The Dodgers’ roster took a hit on Monday after it was revealed that outfielder Chris Taylor suffered a broken left forearm.
While the Dodgers are cruising in first place in the NL West with a 15-game division lead, there is a bit of concern as to whether or not the utility man will be ready to go come playoff time.
Taylor was hit in the left forearm by a fastball during the Dodgers’ extra-inning win over the Boston Red Sox on Sunday. He underwent x-rays to confirm the severity of his injury, which looked nasty when it happened.
The part-time player was hot recently, turning in a .443 OBP and a 1.073 OPS over the past month. The Dodgers will certainly miss his versatility over the next four to six weeks, which is the amount of time that he is expected to miss with the forearm fracture.
To cover his absence in the meantime, the division leaders have called up outfielder Matt Beaty from triple-A. It remains to be seen if the Dodgers could attempt to address his roster absence with a trade before the July 31st trade deadline.
If there’s any team in baseball that can withstand the absence of an important player like Taylor, it’s the Dodgers, but they still hope that he will be back and healthy come playoff time.
