Amid the utterly furious action in front of the trade deadline on Friday, one could be forgiven to missing the Dodgers announcing another big move: Shortstop Corey Seager was activated from the injured list. He's been out since May 15 as he's been recovering from a fractured right hand.
Newly-acquired Trea Turner is currently on the COVID-19 IL, but he's also an All-Star shortstop so it'll be interesting to see how the Dodgers proceed. Dodgers president Andrew Friedman told reporters (via Bill Plunkett of the OC Register) that he considers both players elite shortstops and they'll have conversations about where to play them once Turner returns. Seager is the tallest shortstop in MLB history and is a free agent after the year. Turner is probably the better defender at this point and is under team control through next season.
Then again, Seager is the incumbent on the defending World Series champions. Turner did see 30 games of action at second base back in 2016, too. That seems like the position that should be open. Chris Taylor has been playing shortstop with Seager out and bumps over to second base until Turner returns, but Taylor can shift back to outfield once Turner is there. He'd then play out there with Cody Bellinger and A.J. Pollock until Mookie Betts returns, at which time it's likely Pollock moves to the bench.
All the while, manager Dave Roberts has tons of roster flexibility to mix and match based upon the opposing pitcher and on what players might need a day off.
The Dodgers enter play Friday night 62-42, three games back of the Giants in the NL West. In adding Turner and Max Scherzer via trade along with getting Seager back and soon getting Betts back, they have gotten a lot stronger.
