Advertisement

Shortstop Dee Gordon will be joining Dodgers in San Francisco

Share via

SAN DIEGO -- The Dodgers appear to be once again turning to Dee Gordon at shortstop.

Gordon, whose future with the Dodgers became murky since they acquired Hanley Ramirez last July, is expected to replace the injured Ramirez in the lineup.

Gordon was en route to San Francisco on Saturday afternoon, according to a person familiar with the situation but not authorized to discuss it because the Dodgers had yet to make an announcement.

Gordon, 25, was batting .314 with a .397 on-base percentage at triple-A Albuquerque. He has 14 stolen bases in 16 tries. He also has eight errors in 25 games.

Advertisement

The Dodgers cited defense as the primary reason they turned to Justin Sellers and not Gordon to open the season when Ramirez was on the disabled list after thumb surgery. However, Sellers is batting .194, and the Dodgers have scored fewer runs than any team in the major leagues except the Miami Marlins.

Gordon opened last season as the Dodgers’ shortstop. He batted .228 with a .280 on-base percentage and stole 32 bases in 42 tries. He also made 18 errors, the second-highest total of any shortstop in the National League, even though he played only 79 games.

The Dodgers had worked him out at second base at Albuquerque in recent days, but he never has played that position in a game. Although the Dodgers declined trade inquiries on Gordon last winter, several other teams considered acquiring Gordon and moving him to center field.

Advertisement

Ramirez was put on the disabled list after injuring his left hamstring in Friday’s 2-1 loss to the Giants. The Dodgers are expected to announce a more definitive diagnosis and timetable for his recovery, but Manager Don Mattingly compared the hamstring injury to the one that sidelined outfielder Matt Kemp last season. Kemp sat out a total of 51 games -- coming back after the minimum 15 days on the disabled list, then immediately aggravating the injury and returning to the disabled list.

Advertisement