Dodgers’ Corey Seager is making a smooth transition to major leagues

Corey Seager is finding that things happen a little faster in the big leagues than he expected, and he never anticipated how much adrenaline would surge through his body when he steps up to the plate.

“It was a little more difficult than I thought to kind of calm myself down,” he said. “It has been a whirlwind, yeah. It’s still kind of surreal. It hasn’t sunk in quite yet.”

His heart might be fluttering but the 21-year-old Dodgers infielder has handled his promotion with the same serene confidence that made him one of the most hyped prospects in baseball.

“He’s so even-keeled,” left fielder Scott Schebler said of his minor league roommate, “and that’s really impressive for a young kid to do when a lot of people are expecting the world from him.”

Seager has delivered so far, though it’s certainly a small sample size. The 2012 first-round pick started at shortstop Monday in the Dodgers’ 7-5 victory over the Angels at Anaheim and was in the thick of things offensively and defensively. He doubled and scored in the second inning, drew a walk and scored in the seventh after falling behind in the count 0 and 2, and walked in the eighth.

He also pulled off a fine play in the first inning, running onto the grass in short left field and unleashing a throw to get Albert Pujols. In five games, Seager is six for 18 (.333) with three doubles, five walks, four runs scored and three runs batted in.

“The day I got called up we actually clinched in the minor leagues, so it’s fun to get back in the pennant race and the grind of it and every day counts,” Seager said before the game.

The question hasn’t been whether he can make it here, but where he will fit in.

He’s projected to be the shortstop of the Dodgers’ future but he has started twice at third base and twice at shortstop, and said that Manager Don Mattingly told him he will play a mix of both positions. If his 6-foot-4, 210-pound build is bigger than most shortstops — Cal Ripken comes to mind as the exception, but let’s not go there for a comparison yet — Seager isn’t fazed.

“The smaller you are the more quickness you might have, but the taller, you can have length. You have to play lower to the ground. It has its ups and downs,” Seager said. “I’m pretty comfortable with short or third. I got to play quite a few games in the minor leagues at third so there’s a little more comfort there.”

That’s because he prepared for this.

“One of the things we talked about in spring training is that late in the year if he came up it could be at third, playing some,” Mattingly said. “So his preference was to make sure he got to play a little bit at third so he didn’t come up here and the first time he ever plays it is here. I don’t think he had any reservations. The fact that he’s been able to play a number of games down there has made it an easier transition.”

Pitcher Joe Wieland, another of Seager’s roomies with triple-A Oklahoma City, said he can see Seager succeeding in either role.

“I think he plays short better than he plays third. Probably more just because he’s getting comfortable with it,” Wieland said. “Wherever you throw him, he’s going to do a great job.”

That apparently extends off the field, too. Dodgers broadcaster Charley Steiner recalled watching Seager get a walk-off hit in a spring-training game and linger on the field for probably 20 minutes to sign autographs for each of the 300 or so fans who waited.

“Those kids were almost as old as he is but he held himself with such grace,” Steiner said.

“There’s something about him above and beyond his skills that you get the sense he’s going to be more than just another player in a Dodger uniform. How it plays out, we don’t know. May he stay that way.”

His path likely won’t always be smooth, but Seager seems able to adapt.

“He’ll have his trials and tribulations like everyone else,” Mattingly said, “but he seems to be doing fine.”

For Seager, “fine” could be the starting point for something special.