Dodgers $162 million superstar's untimely injury puts playoffs in jeopardy

All of Southern California momentarily came to a halt in the middle of Thursday night's game.

As the Los Angeles Dodgers were battling for the National League West title that they would eventually clinch, they endured one of the scariest moments of their season.

First baseman Freddie Freeman was running to first base on a ground ball when he awkwardly had to dodge the tag from San Diego Padres first baseman Luis Arraez. He rolled his right ankle badly on the play, and was helped off the field by trainers.

Freeman was on crutches after the game, with a walking boot covering the injured ankle. Fortunately, X-rays were negative, providing the Dodgers with at least an initial glimmer of hope that Freeman will be ready to go by their Division Series opener next weekend.

“It’s swollen,” Freeman said, per Juan Toribio of MLB.com. “But they’re pretty optimistic that I should be able to go by Saturday in the playoffs. That’s what I’m banking on. I’ve never rolled an ankle, so I don’t know. It’s pretty large right now.”

Freeman, manager Dave Roberts, and president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman all expressed their confidence that the star first baseman would be able to return for the playoffs. But it's still too early to know for sure if that's a safe bet.

The Dodgers also were quick to rule Freeman out for their weekend series against the Colorado Rockies, which can only matter for seeding purposes. He will stay at home and focus on kickstarting a speedy recovery.

The injury puts the finishing touch on another excellent regular season for Freeman, who ranks ninth among qualified hitters in on-base percentage (.378) and 17th in OPS (.854). He also racked up 22 home runs, 89 RBI, and 4.7 wins above replacement.

The saving grace for the Dodgers is the first-round bye. This is why it's ridiculous for teams and their fans to whine about the supposed disadvantage of skipping the Wild Card round. Now, the Dodgers can rest and let Freeman heal instead of risking elimination, potentially without their three-hitter.

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