J.D. Martinez has been marvelous for the Los Angeles Dodgers this season.
The team signed him as a free agent after losing Trea Turner and Cody Bellinger before the start of the season.
He has done nothing but mash in Dodger blue, with a .258/.312/.554 line, 23 doubles, 25 home runs, 78 RBI, and a .865 OPS in just 384 plate appearances.
However, he didn’t play on Thursday and, according to Dodgers insider Fabian Ardaya, was scratched from the lineup late.
“It was due to groin tightness, the Dodgers say. So that continues to be an issue,” Ardaya tweeted.
It was due to groin tightness, the Dodgers say. So that continues to be an issue.
— Fabian Ardaya (@FabianArdaya) August 18, 2023
The Dodgers lineup is potent and deep enough to afford being without Martinez until he is fully healthy.
The problem, for them, would be if he aggravates the injury and ends up needing a long injured-list stint that would jeopardize his season.
That’s probably why they are proceeding with caution.
He has been affected by a troublesome groin/hamstring injury on his left leg since mid-July, in fact.
He has undergone an MRI and other tests, too.
Perhaps it would be better if the team sent him to the 10-day injured list to give him a few days off to get healthy.
They have a 10.5-game lead in the NL West and can afford to wait for him for a few days.
It’s certainly better than risking his health and having him in and out of the lineup intermittently.
The Dodgers are a better team with Martinez fully healthy and in the lineup.
By the look of things, both things can’t be true at the same time as of now.
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