Carl Crawford is done rehabbing in the minors and will rejoin the Dodgers after being out since late April with a strained oblique muscle.
Crawford hit .353 with a 1.012 OPS in 10 games during his rehab stint, but Mark Saxon of ESPN Los Angeles writes that manager Don Mattingly’s “plan is to keep the starting outfield intact” and use Crawford sparingly while sticking with Andre Ethier, Joc Pederson, and Yasiel Puig as everyday players.
Early in the season Crawford was the Dodgers’ starting left fielder and Ethier was typically on the bench, but during Crawford’s absence Ethier has hit .282 with eight homers and an .828 OPS in 66 games. By comparison, the last time Crawford topped an .828 OPS in a season was 2010 and he’s posted a .745 OPS in 236 total games for the Dodgers.
We’ve already seen the Dodgers’ outfield plans change several times due to injuries and performances, but for now Crawford will be a $20 million bench player.