Wow. This is shocking, extremely-impactful, awful news for the Dodgers, who were already struggling out of the gate in the NL West.
Corey Seager will undergo Tommy John surgery. He is done for 2018.
— Andy McCullough (@McCulloughTimes) April 30, 2018
Today, the Dodgers recalled Breyvic Valera from Triple-A Oklahoma City and placed Corey Seager on the 10-day DL with a right UCL sprain. Seager will undergo Tommy John surgery and will miss the remainder of the season.
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) April 30, 2018
Seager, 24, has already been worth a whopping 14.9 WAR since he made his big league debut late in 2015, and replacing him internally is not something any team – even one as deep as the Dodgers – can plausibly do. This stings. A lot.
On the bright side, Tommy John surgery for a position player is such that he should be able to come back normally (if rusty) for the 2019 season. But the Dodgers’ playoff chances (still strong, I reckon), just took a hit.
If only there were a studly young shortstop available in a rental trade who is one of the few players in the big leagues that could replicate Seager’s production (and then some). Yes, I think Manny Machado just landed squarely on the Dodgers’ trade radar. They certainly have the chips to get it done, and if the Orioles decide to him Machado much earlier than you usually see, the Dodgers could be aggressive.
I tend to think they’ll do the thing where they say they’ll be fine and will cover internally for a while, and eventually, when the second half of June hits, they’ll get more serious about putting together a trade.
Michael Cerami contributed to this post.