The Dodgers made a pair of roster moves on their off day Monday, bringing Andy Pages back from the 10-day injured list and sending Eliezer Alfonzo to Triple-A Oklahoma City.
Roki Sasaki was also activated, while Emmet Sheehan was optioned.
Alfonzo’s latest stay with the big-league club was short. The Dodgers brought him up when Dalton Rushing went on the injured list on Sept. 6, and during that second stint he got just one at-bat. That came against the Cincinnati Reds on Sept. 9, when he struck out.
He had been serving as the third catcher, a setup Dave Roberts said gave the Dodgers more flexibility to use Will Smith and Hunter Feduccia as pinch-hitters when they weren’t in the starting lineup. The club also avoided needing a 40-man roster move to add Alfonzo, which appears to have factored into the decision.
The 26-year-old has played in 13 games this season, making his MLB debut along the way. He has hit .179/.179/.250 with four RBI and three runs scored in 28 plate appearances. At Oklahoma City, he was batting .302/.378/.409 in 256 plate appearances.
Pages is back for the first time since landing on the IL on Aug. 22 with a left hand fracture. He was hit by a pitch from Pittsburgh Pirates starter Bubba Chandler, then underwent surgery soon after to insert a compression screw in his hand and speed up the healing process.
He did not go out on a rehab assignment, but he did work out at Dodger Stadium, including hitting on the field, running the bases and taking part in outfield drills.
Now the Dodgers have six straight games to work him back in, and that means live pitching and as many at-bats as they can squeeze in. At the same time, they have to be careful not to push him too hard after a month away from game action.
“So we have obviously, assuming he gets back on Tuesday, then there’s six in a row, and that seems pretty aggressive,” Roberts explained.
“So I think that we do want to get him as many at-bats as possible, but we have to make sure that his legs are under him, feeling good, so we don’t go backward or get injured in that respect. So it is going to be a balancing act, and just keeping a keen eye on Andy for sure.”
Pages has put together a strong season at the plate, batting .272/.338/.458 with 25 doubles, 21 home runs, 80 RBI and 72 runs scored. He’s also been one of the top defensive players in MLB.
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