Howie Kendrick‘s second game of the season will take him a long way from the right side of the infield. He is the Dodgers’ starting left fielder for Tuesday night’s game against the Arizona Diamondbacks. The last time Kendrick started a game in left field was Aug. 13, 2011 for the Angels.
“Hopefully,” Kendrick said after finishing Monday night’s game in left field, “it’ll help us win some ballgames.”
Kendrick has started 1,062 games at second base in his career, including Tuesday’s. This will be his 21st start in left.
The position has become a sore spot for the Dodgers. Andre Ethier, Carl Crawford and Scott Van Slyke are all on the disabled list. So is Alex Guerrero, who’s dabbled in left in the past. Trayce Thompson, Kiké Hernandez and Charlie Culberson are the others on the roster who have experience at the position, but manager Dave Roberts said he wanted Kendrick’s bat in the lineup against Arizona Diamondbacks right-hander Rubby De La Rosa.
“In a perfect world we would’ve gotten him more repetitions (in left field) this spring,” Roberts said. “The way Chase (Utley) is playing, I want to keep him in the lineup.”
Utley has nine hits in his first 30 at-bats this season, a .300 average. He’s driven in two runs, scored five, and owns a 2-for-6 mark in his career against De La Rosa.
Roberts believes that left field might actually be a lower impact position than second base physically. Kendrick missed the first week of the season while rehabbing a strained left calf muscle, and also battled a groin issue in spring.
“There is a little bit of recent history,” Roberts said, “but there’s an argument to be made it could be a little easier with the cuts you make, you have to be a little more dynamic in the middle of the infield.”