When Dodgers manager Dave Roberts announced that shortstop Gavin Lux is out for the season with a torn ACL in his right knee, he said newly re-acquired Miguel Rojas will get the bulk of the starts for Los Angeles at short. He also said Chris Taylor, another natural shortstop, would get some time at short and other infield positions, but that he’d need to get on a throwing program to prepare for that.
That was Tuesday morning. As it turns out, Taylor was a step ahead of Roberts, as he told the media on Tuesday afternoon.
“I’ve been doing a throwing program, I’m not sure if Doc knows. But I’ve been doing stuff and taking groundballs and throwing from the infield and the outfield. So, I was trying to anticipate something happening so I was prepared.”
Taylor said he’s been mostly taking grounders at second base but thinks it shouldn’t take too long to get the feel back at shortstop. He didn’t necessarily anticipate Lux getting hurt, but he wanted to keep himself ready in case something did happen. Now, he’ll be playing the infield more than he or the team anticipated.
“Yeah, I think the plan was mainly left and center so now I’ll be playing some short and third too, I believe.”
The news about Lux is obviously bad for him and the Dodgers, but it’s nice that LA has two other natural shortstops they can plug in to fill the hole. Taylor was likely to get a lot of playing time anyway and Rojas probably won’t hit nearly as well as Lux, but defensively, they shouldn’t miss a beat.
Have you signed up for the Dodgers Nation newsletter yet? Get the latest news, rumors, highlights and more right in your inbox every day! Keep up to date on every single thing involving your boys in blue!
