Yasiel Puig late again, but it’s an excused tardy.

Dodgers outfielder Yasiel Puig was the last position player on the field Wednesday, arriving a few minutes after his teammates for the pregame routine.

That is nothing new; today’s tardy, however, was excused. Puig informed team officials in advance that he would be late because he had to take his mother to a hospital.

Puig is batting leadoff tonight against the San Diego Padres.

“It’s time to get him going,” Dodgers manager Don Mattingly said. “The biggest thing is that we need him. Everything we’ve tried to so so far has been trying to get him going, trying to take pressure off him in different spots. When he’s going good were a better team.”

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About J.P. Hoornstra

J.P. Hoornstra covers the Dodgers, Angels and Major League Baseball for the Orange County Register, Los Angeles Daily News, Long Beach Press-Telegram, Torrance Daily Breeze, San Gabriel Valley Tribune, Pasadena Star-News, San Bernardino Sun, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin, Whittier Daily News and Redlands Daily Facts. Before taking the beat in 2012, J.P. covered the NHL for four years. UCLA gave him a degree once upon a time; when he graduated on schedule, he missed getting Arnold Schwarzenegger's autograph on his diploma by five months.