June 12th, 2019 at 10:00 am 
by Ron Cervenka There is a saying that is as old as the game of baseball itself; one that, when spoken, is usually done so at the loss of a good – or perhaps even exceptional – player due to an injury:
“One man’s misfortune is another man’s opportunity.”
And while this may sound a bit cold or harsh, it is the very nature of the game of baseball and the very reason why the minor leagues exist; and the very reason why there is an annual MLB draft.
(Video capture courtesy of SportsNet LA)
There is no disputing that the loss of shortstop Corey Seager to a potentially serious hamstring injury suffered during Tuesday night’s 5-3 loss to the Angels was a devastating blow to the Dodgers offense and perhaps even more so to their defense. But Seager’s misfortune, as noted above, creates an opportunity for someone else; at least for the duration of his absence.
During his postgame media scrum on Tuesday night, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts gave a very preliminary diagnosis as to the extent of the injury to his 25-year-old / two-time All-Star shortstop’s left hamstring.
“I hesitate to put a number on it, but two-plus,” Roberts said. “Obviously, very unfortunate, the way that he’s playing and what he means to our ballclub. With what he’s done to overcome two surgeries and get into good playing shape. He’ll get back on the rehab trail and we’ll get him back as soon as we can.”
Unfortunately, this is probably more fluff that Roberts is famous for than fact. Former MLB manager and longtime Dodgers baseball analyst Kevin Kennedy posted a more believable (and realistic) description / time frame on Twitter late Tuesday night:
The knee-jerk reaction (no pun intended) is to simply say that utility infielders / outfielders Kiké Hernandez and Chris Taylor can alternate as Seager’s replacement for the (likely) three months that the extremely popular Charlotte, NC native will miss as he recovers from his injury. And while both of these guys have had their (good) moments at the position during Seager’s previous injury-related absences, Hernandez is currently hitting .215 and Taylor .218 as compared to Seager’s current (and increasing) .278.
The shortstop position at Triple-A Oklahoma City has been split almost evenly between 25-year-old Drew Jackson, 26-year-old Daniel Castro, and 24-year-old Errol Robinson. Unfortunately, they are currently hitting .242, .242 (not a typo), and .228 respectively.
However, if the Dodgers were willing to look one more level down to Double-A Tulsa, they will find a very capable shortstop – 21-year-old Gavin Lux – who is currently hitting .303 with 11 home runs and 31 RBI for the Drillers.
Lux, as you may recall, was selected by the Dodgers in the first round of the 2016 MLB First-Year Player Draft out of Indian Trail High School in his hometown of Kenosha, WI. He received an invitation to major league spring training camp this past March, where he appeared in 10 games as a pinch-hitter, going 3-for-20 (.150). However, in the 53 games that he has played with the Drillers thus far this season (46 at shortstop, five at second base, and two as a DH), and in addition to his current .303 batting average, he has committed only 10 errors in 162 total chances at shortstop for a respectable .938 fielding percentage, and zero errors in 21 total chances at second base for a perfect 1.000 FPCT.
(Photo credit – Rich-Crimi)
Although it is unlikely that Roberts and even more so Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman will look past Kiké or CT3 as Seager’s (potential long term) replacement – especially with infielder Matt Beaty expected to return from the 10-day injured list on Friday (for a minor left hip flexor strain), should they look a little deeper within their own farm system, they will find a potentially much better replacement on the infield at ONEOK Field in downtown Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Play Ball!
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Posted in 
Go get Starlin Castro.
I totally agree. Bring up Lux and give him a shot. He is an excellent hitter with power. He can work on his defense with coach Ebel everyday while up here with the Dodgers.Transfer Cingrani to the 60 Day IL and add Lux to the 40 man roster.There is no need to go looking for retread garage rentals that rarely pan out and giving up future prospects.Just look at the Alvarez deal to Houston for Josh Fields.Also Will Smith needs to be the everyday catcher. Package Barnes, Taylor or Hernandez for some higher grade right handed hitters. Mr. Friedman has a lot of work to do including the bullpen before July 31 or we won’t get out the National League playoffs.
This was the very reason why Lux needed to be at AAA OKC this season already! He’s basically “stat-padding” for AA Tulsa right now and that’s NOT what you should have one of your top prospects doing down there, especially when that prospect’s bat is darn near MLB-ready for that matter. As it stands, management will most likely get creative and just let either Taylor or Hernandez get reacquainted with their former position in the likelihood that one of them at least will finally start playing up to form for a change. What they really need to do is bring back rookie C Will Smith and bump current starting C Barnes back down to his more familiar backup role as the latter just isn’t consistent enough to be a lineup regular. Beaty will be returning shortly from his rehab assignment and not a moment too soon as his bat’s been among the more reliable ones for the Dodgers so far this season. That will push Muncy to 2B where he’s expected to get most of his playing time with Seager set to miss a full month at the very least with his left hamstring strain.
Hate to say this, but I think Seager’s days of moonlighting at SS are quickly drawing to a close. If they don’t move him to a corner infield spot within the next year or so, could wind up having another “Tulowitzki” situation on their hands with that ever-annoying injury bug cropping up with each following season…
It looks like we lost Seager just as he began to hit his stride with his BA rising into the high .270s. Needless to say it’s tough to lose him anytime. Well, here’s hoping somebody will come along and fill the slot, as the NL Champs try to maintain their lead in the division..
Shortstop is a more pressing issue right now. Lux our first rounder hit two bombs for Tulsa at AA and now has 13 and an above 300 average.He should be at Oklahoma City or a replacement for Seager. No garbage retread rentals while Seager is on the IL, Mr Friedman.
Drew Jackson has won at every level. His last 4 weeks have him over 300. He broke out in Orioles camp and made the MLB team. This is the guy
I’d really like to see Lux on the big club but it ain’t gonna happen. Management doesn’t want to take the chance of messing with a strong prospect’s self confidence just when he’s showing promise at the lower levels. To throw him into the Show where he’d undoubtedly do fine…for awhile….then the league would catch top to him and reveal the weaknesses he hasn’t yet worked out.
This isn’t a season ending injury like last year, so a knee jerk trade right now doesn’t make sense, particularly with the lead in the division. Kike and Taylor will hopefully both pick it up a bit at the plate to help cover Seager’s absence. The positional flexibility of the roster means they could call up practically any position player to help. I’d vote for Drew Jackson (same name and all notwithstanding). If Taylor can’t cut it as an every day guy, DJ would be worth giving a cameo to. The “lightening in a bottle” guys (Turner, Toles, Taylor, Muncy) don’t always turn into perpetual sparkplugs, but you only find them by panning the dirt for gold nuggets!