Dodgers Injury Update: Hanley Ramirez May Have More Than Calf Soreness

[new_royalslider id=”5″] Hanley Ramirez was out of the Los Angeles Dodgers’ lineup on Sunday for the third consecutive day in the finale of the team’s nine game road trip.

Ramirez was reportedly given the night off Friday simply as part of an opportunity to get the shortstop normal rest, however he was then a late scratch on Saturday with calf soreness that has him sidelined again.

According to the OC Register’s Bill Plunkett, what exactly is causing the pain isn’t known:

There is apparently some question whether Ramirez's issue is calf muscle, achilles tendon or something else with pain showing up in calf

— Bill Plunkett (@billplunkettocr) May 25, 2014

Ramirez is expected to undergo an MRI when the team returns to Los Angeles and manager Don Mattingly didn’t want to speculate whether or not Ramirez would wind up on the disabled list:

Asked Mattingly if DL likely/possible for Ramirez: "I don’t want to go there yet. Let’s take our time. We’ll just see where we’re at."

— Bill Plunkett (@billplunkettocr) May 25, 2014

The Dodgers took a similar approach with Juan Uribe when he strained his hamstring on May 8. Uribe was not placed on the DL and he instead completed individual pre-game workouts before returning to the lineup on May 16 only to re-injure the hamstring four days later.

Ramirez’s 2014 season has been provided mixed results with the 30-year-old at times appearing to be turning the corner at the plate before falling back into a slump. Including Sunday, the shortstop has now missed three games, four if you disregard a pinch-hit appearance on Friday.

In a contract year, the value of a new deal would likely decrease heavily if Ramirez is to miss significant time or continue to struggle as he’s hampered by an injury. Should the Dodgers need to place Ramirez on the DL, it may result in significantly more playing time than expected for Erisbel Arruebarrena and leave the team thin on infielders.

The recent call up from double-A is regarded as having an impressive glove, but an issue that may arise with Arruebarrena are his struggles at the plate. Chone Figgins and Justin Turner are platooning at third base in Uribe’s absence and while both have career experience at shortstop, neither is an ideal candidate to play the position on a daily basis.

What’s next for Ramirez should become more clear once an MRI is conducted, but the manner in which Uribe’s injury situation played itself out makes it difficult to believe the Dodgers would opt against placing Ramirez on the DL.
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