Corey Seager’s Return First Step In Dodgers’ Revival

Corey Seager will return to the lineup tonight against the Colorado Rockies, and it couldn’t have come at a more critical moment in the season.

Seager is arguably the most valuable player on the team, besides Clayton Kershaw. He’s one of the most talented skill position players in the MLB, and is statistically on pace to be one of the greatest shortstops the game has ever seen. His presence on the field cannot be duplicated, and that remained evident during his absence.

In fact, a lot of premier players spent time on the DL and it cost the team momentum. No one can control injuries, but Dave Roberts has consistently been trying to experiment with the lineups and relief pitchers lately. September’s weird because 40-man rosters tend to give managers problems, trying to give everybody a chance to play and prove themselves for October.

In 53 games the Dodgers have had Chris Taylor, Corey Seager, Justin Turner, and Cody Bellinger in the lineup, they avg 5.68 runs & are 45-8

— Eric Stephen (@ericstephen) September 6, 2017

The Dodgers have a lot of talented prospects, but most of them won’t be playing in the playoffs. Activated players are also trying to get their groove back, but it’s only clogging holes in the lineup and disrupting the rhythm.

However, it’s safe to say that the Dodgers will need Joc Pederson back in the lineup if he can be the Pederson of years past. Don’t forget, the Dodgers might not have won the 2016 NLDS against the Washington Nationals without his services. He looked good in the game against Detroit before he was sent to Triple-A, and has played well in his first couple of games back in the majors.

The 116 game record is out of reach. It’s time to lock-in, and focus on winning the first World Series title since 1988. The team acquired more talent at the deadline, but the staff needs to go ahead and invest in a lineup that looks like this one back in the glory days of just over two weeks ago:

Today's Dodger lineup vs. Padres:
Taylor LF
Seager SS
Turner 3B
Bellinger 1B
Utley 2B
Grandal C
Pederson CF
Puig RF
Maeda P pic.twitter.com/NRn5L0m3Q8

— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) August 13, 2017

Internal factors produced the slump, and it doesn’t help that the external environment outside of the clubhouse is freaking out about the current “cause for concern.” The Dodgers must get back to basics; that’s the only rational solution at this point. Everyone needs to just relax, and the Dodgers need to keep fighting through this tumultuous point in the season.

The time is now, and they can’t sit back and wait for a solution to fall in their gloves while National League opponents catch them slipping. Seager’s back, Joc’s back, and the pieces are in place once again. Unfortunately, Chris Taylor has a scheduled day off on Friday, so he will be out of the lineup.