LOS ANGELES — Max Muncy has had his fill of watching baseball.
“I’m beyond ready (to get back on the field),” he said this week. “It is just frustrating.”
The Dodgers third baseman suffered a bone bruise in his left knee on July 2, missed a month and then went down with another injury – a strained oblique muscle – after returning for just eight games.
“That was a devastating blow to me mentally,” Muncy said. “It’s a real gut punch. It’s almost one where you have to come back mentally as much as physically and that’s what I’m trying to stay on top of.”
The oblique injury was “similar” to the injury that sidelined Muncy for three months last season. That involved a displaced rib which was not initially diagnosed. In this case, that was part of the exams Muncy underwent after feeling the discomfort in his side.
“That was the first thing we started testing. Let’s make sure everything is in place,” Muncy said. “The one thing it did show was there was a lot of scar tissue from last year. We don’t know if this is a side effect of that.”
The second year in a row with similar injuries has made Muncy more aware of his anatomy.
“For me personally, you dive into ‘Why does this keep happening?’ and you realize that sometimes your anatomy just sucks,” he said. “I have a very short torso so everything is compressed so my bottom rib basically sits on my hip bone. And then my swing is a compressed swing. You’re just creating a lot of stress in one particular area. Genetically, there’s not a lot you can do about that.”
Muncy was not at the stadium for Friday’s game. He was feeling ill with congestion and cold symptoms. He is still scheduled to face velocity from the pitching machine on the field Sunday and then go on a brief minor-league rehabilitation assignment next week.
“It pushes it back a little bit but I’m still holding out hope that Baltimore (next weekend) is still alive (for Muncy to be activated) but we’ll see,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said.
COMING SOON
Hyeseong Kim went 2 for 4 with a triple, a walk and an RBI as the DH for Triple-A Oklahoma City Friday. It was his eighth game — and possibly his last — on a rehab assignment with OKC. Kim is expected to rejoin the Dodgers when rosters expand to 28 on Monday.
In eight games with OKC, Kim has gone 9 for 30 while playing second base, shortstop, left field (for the first time since 2020) and center field.
Meanwhile, Tommy Edman took live at-bats on the field Friday afternoon. It was his first time facing a pitcher since going on the injured list with his recurring ankle issues on Aug. 4.
“I thought right-handed was better than left-handed, but I’m not trying to read too much into it today,” Roberts said, adding that he was “encouraged” by how Edman has handled the increased activity this week.
“That’s kind of the only thing with any injury where you’re kind of afraid to let him go completely because you want to make sure that all the boxes are checked,” Roberts said. “I guess the last box is you go hard and come back and you’re not sore anymore. A couple days, maybe three days ago, he went pretty hard and was a little bit sore. That’s saying that we’re not quite there yet.”
If Edman handles the increased work this weekend, he could go on a rehab assignment soon. He won’t be activated from the IL until the Dodgers are satisfied his ankle can handle playing the outfield.
ALSO
Former Dodgers outfielder Jason Heyward received his 2024 World Series championship ring and jersey on the field before Friday night’s game against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Heyward played 34 games for the San Diego Padres this season before being released in June. He has not signed with a team since then.
UP NEXT
Diamondbacks (LHP Eduardo Rodriguez, 5-8, 5.67 ERA) at Dodgers (RHP Tyler Glasnow, 1-2, 3.36 ERA), Saturday, 6:10 p.m., SportsNet LA, 570 AM