The 2014 season is already underway for the Los Angeles Dodgers, and their balancing act between nurturing and scolding young outfielder Yasiel Puig has begun as well.
See highlights, plus Puig's blunders here
In the season opening series in Australia, Puig had a weekend that became somewhat typical of him during his startling 2013 rookie campaign. Through two games Puig is batting .300 with two RBI and a run scored, but also made two brutal baserunning blunders, one of which could've contributed to a back injury.
Puig's overaggressive and sometimes downright silly play has gotten under the skin of Dodgers shot-callers since he came up, as has some off-the-field mishaps involving speeding. Only two games in, and before any other teams besides the Arizona Diamondbacks have played, Puig's drawing sarcastic remarks from manager Don Mattingly.
Puig quits driving after multiple speeding stops?
When asked by reporters about Puig's injury, Mattingly gave a response that raised eyebrows. "I guess his back," Mattingly said. "Shoulder yesterday, back today, so I'm not sure if they're going to get him tests or get him to the MRI Monday or a bone scan on Tuesday, maybe. I'm not quite sure what we'll do. We may not do anything. I'm not sure."
Speculation is out there that one of Puig's hard slides caused his back to flare up, and leads to continued questions as the bedrock of a franchise with his inability to fuse his talents with a level head and intelligent play.
Puig was also drilled on the elbow by a pitch from Trevor Cahill, something that his frequent post-home run antics will likely generate from time to time. Overall, Puig's talent is undeniable as he showed in Spring Training when he gunned down Mike Trout at home plate after diving after a fly ball in the outfield and whiffing.
Further proof? While batting .300 over the first two games in 10 at-bats, he also struck out four times. Wish Mattingly luck...it could be a long season full of highs and lows.
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