Jordan

Lawlar

Lawlar is expected to miss at least two months after fracturing his right wrist, and the placement on the 60-day list opens up a spot on the 40-man roster for Luken Baker. The earliest Lawlar could return to the Arizona lineup is now June 3.

Even though the fracture wasn’t big enough to show up on X-rays, Lawlar is out 6-8 weeks as a result of Thursday’s HBP. The Diamondbacks have Tim Tawa starting in left field tonight. Jorge Barrosa will also see time there until Lourdes Gurriel Jr. is deemed ready to play the field as he makes his way back from a torn ACL.

X-rays were negative last night, but a CT scan found the fracture, and he’s expected to miss 6-8 weeks. Adrian Del Castillo is set to come off the IL and replace him on the active roster. Jorge Barrosa and Tim Tawa will get some extra at-bats, and Jose Fernandez will keep playing fairly regularly for now. Lourdes Gurriel Jr. will likely beat Lawlar back from the IL, which might result in some playing time questions when Lawlar returns.

Lawlar ambushed a first-pitch fastball from Reynaldo López in the third inning, crushing a 424-foot (105.5 mph EV) solo shot that pulled the Diamondbacks to within a run at 2-1. That would be as close as they would get. Lawlar was also hit by a pitch in the contest, finishing the night 1-for-2. He’s now hitting an impressive .333/.400/.556 with a homer, two RBI and a stolen base through his first 19 plate appearances on the season.

Lawlar’s steal was the first of the season. The 23-year-old singled twice and also drew a walk to improve his young slash to .300/.364/.400. Lawlar isn’t long removed from being one of the upper-echelon prospects in baseball, and while there’s some significant risk in his profile, it just might lead to a substantial reward, too.

Moreno will take a break Saturday with James McMann getting the start behind the plate to catch Eduardo Rodriguez. Jordan Lawlar is also out of the lineup for Saturday’s contest with Jorge Barrosa starting in left.

The Diamondbacks do not believe the injury to be serious and he’s considered day-to-day. Tim Tawa will take his place in the lineup as the Diamondbacks’ designated hitter and will bat ninth while Carlos Santana moves up to sixth and Jordan Lawlar moves up to seventh.

While Lourdes Gurriel is sidelined, the 23-year-old will have a chance to see regular at-bats for the Diamondbacks — essentially battling Alek Thomas to see who sticks in the lineup upon Gurriel’s return. Here’s the full lineup that the Diamondbacks will use against Yoshinobu Yamamoto and the Dodgers on Friday evening in Los Angeles: Ketel Marte (2B), Corbin Carroll (RF), Geraldo Perdomo (SS), Gabriel Moreno (C), Pavin Smith (DH), Nolan Arenado (3B), Carlos Santana (1B), Alex Thomas (CF) and Jordan Lawlar (LF).

Interestingly, the Diamondbacks had Thomas in center and played Jordan Lawlar in left field for the first time today. Thomas is definitely Arizona’s safer option in center, but it has sounded like Lawlar was going get a chance to start there in the regular season. It has ramifications down the line, since the D-backs seem confident Lourdes Gurriel Jr. is going to make an earlier return from a torn ACL than originally expected. Of course, the D-backs could just use Gurriel primarily as a DH and keep playing both Lawlar and Thomas in the outfield.

Lawlar and Ryan Waldschmidt collided in the outfield during the game, with Lawlar’s inexperience in the outfield and center, in particular, likely the cause, but both were fine afterwards. It’s not official yet, but all indications are that Lawlar has locked up center field in Arizona while hitting .333/.455/.815 in 33 plate appearances this spring.