Dodgers News: Corey Seager Thankful To Have Jimmy Rollins As Mentor
Corey Seager was making headlines long before making his Major-League debut on Sept. 4. In the weeks since joining the Los Angeles Dodgers from Triple-A Oklahoma City, Seager has more than added to the reputation and expectations that that preceded him.
Heading into play Wednesday, Seager had reached safely in all 21 starts of his career — setting a new Los Angeles franchise record for reaching safely in consecutive starts to begin a career. His consistency and patience at the plate is evident through his impressive .333/.423/.560 slash line, along with three home runs, eight doubles and 14 RBIs.
Seager started Tuesday night despite the left-handed Madison Bumgarner taking the mound for the San Francisco Giants. Dodgers manager Don Mattingly was evasive in his pregame remarks, but implied Seager is now the club’s everyday shortstop.
While that relegates 36-year-old World Series champion and MVP Jimmy Rollins to a role off the bench, Seager it hasn’t led to any animosity, according to Dylan Hernandez of the LA Times:
Seager said there is no awkwardness between him and Rollins, whom he has come to regard as a mentor. Seager said the veteran not only welcomed him to the team, but has also frequently offered him advice. Seager said that when he made an error Saturday in the Dodgers’ loss to the Colorado Rockies, Rollins provided him with tips on footwork and positioning. “He’s been amazing,” Seager said. “I couldn’t ask for anything better than that. He’s a veteran. He doesn’t need to do that. For him to go out there and still help is pretty awesome.”
Both Rollins and Seager are in Wednesday’s post-clinch lineup, with the understudy spelling Justin Turner at third base. Seager’s window of opportunity opened when Rollins jammed his right index finger, which evolved from a jam to a sprained finger.
Throughout the stretch of games Rollins missed, Mattingly pointed to his veteran leadership and second-half improvement as reason to keep him in the lineup.
