Dodgers Reinstate Justin Turner From DL; Jose Peraza Optioned
Going into the season, Juan Uribe was the Los Angeles Dodgers everyday third baseman and Justin Turner was penciled in to be the utility man that he was last season.
That didn’t last long though as Uribe got off to a bit of a slow start and Turner came out just as hot as he was last season, leading to the Dodgers front office trading Uribe to the Atlanta Braves and giving Turner a chance to be an everyday starter.
He thrived in that role, coming up with big hit after big hit and eventually became the number three hitter in the Dodgers line-up. At the end of July he suffered an infection in his leg that landed him a stint on the 15-day disabled list though.
On Thursday, the Dodgers reinstated Turner from the DL and optioned Jose Peraza to the OKC Dodgers.
Peraza was acquired from the Braves before the trade deadline and made two starts at second base in his short stint with the Dodgers.
The Dodgers have struggled a bit without him, recently losing four straight games for the first time since September 2013. What they are getting back in their lineup is a guy batting .323/.387/.563 with 13 homers and 44 RBIs on the season. Additionally, his 3.7 WAR ranks second among National League third baseman behind only Nolan Arenado of the Colorado Rockies.
While Alberto Callaspo has done a nice job at third base in Turner’s absence, it is nice to a get a middle of the order presence back in the Dodgers lineup.
