Dodgers News: LA Set to Officially Get a Big Bat Back in the Lineup

The Dodgers lineup finally gets back to full strength with the return of Gavin Lux.

Dodgers second baseman Gavin Lux, sidelined most of the last four weeks with a neck issue, stayed behind in Arizona on Thursday when his teammates flew from Phoenix to San Francisco so he could take some live at-bats at Camelback Ranch.

It was the last box Lux needed to check before returning to the starting lineup, and Dodgers manager Dave Roberts gave a positive update prior to Friday's game.

#Dodgers Gavin Lux got 5 ABs and played defense in Instructional League game at CBR Thursday. Said his neck/back problem has cleared up. Expect him to play this weekend

— Bill Plunkett (@billplunkettocr) September 16, 2022

The manager also confirmed that Gavin will be back in the lineup tomorrow against the Giants.

It will be a big boost for Los Angeles to get Lux back, as the young star has broken out this year, beginning to reach the potential he showed as the Dodgers' top prospect a few years ago. He's batting .293 with a .797 OPS this year, a 118 OPS+ after coming into the season with a career mark of 82.

In Lux's absence from the lineup, Chris Taylor has gotten the bulk of the starts at second base, with Mookie Betts and Hanser Alberto also getting time. Lux's return will give him about three weeks of game action to get ready for the postseason, where he'll be expected to start at second base nearly every day. That moves Taylor back to the outfield, where the real postseason battle is raging, as Taylor, Cody Bellinger, Trayce Thompson, and Joey Gallo will be battling for playing time at two spots.

With Max Muncy's recent return to form, getting Lux back in the lineup gives the Dodgers the closest thing they've had to a full-strength lineup this year. Bellinger and Taylor are still trying to find their swings in time for October, but Lux potentially gives them seven All-Star-caliber hitters, something no other team in baseball can match.