We’ve reached the point in the Dodgers’ six-week malaise where an injury that isn’t quite season-ending is somehow good news. That’s where we are with Max Muncy, who was placed on the 10-day injured list with an oblique strain.
Muncy, who missed 80 games in the middle of last season with a strained right oblique
, was scratched from Wednesday’s lineup against the Angels after feeling something in his right side while hitting in the batting cage.Muncy this season has been one of the bright spots in a lineup that has been plagued by underperformance and injuries, hitting .258/.389/.491 with a 146 wRC+, 17 home runs, 64 RBI, and 60 walks in 89 games. The third baseman was only eight games into a return from a month-long IL stint with a bone bruise in his left knee, and Muncy’s four home runs since his return matched the total for Dodgers third basemen in the 25 games he missed.
Weirdly enough, that first injury to Muncy was feared to be season-ending when it happened, then thought to cost him six weeks but he was back in just over four weeks.
The injury to Muncy coincided with when the Dodgers started their slide, first losing seven in a row and 10 out of 12. Now the losing streak is four games after getting swept by the middling Angels, which dropped the Dodgers to 12-21 since July 4 to erase a nine-game lead that is now a one-game deficit heading into this weekend’s series against the now-first-place Padres at Dodger Stadium.
Switch-hitting rookie Alex Freeland starts at third base on Friday night, but taking Muncy’s place on the roster will be infielder Buddy Kennedy, who was claimed off waivers from the Blue Jays three days after getting designated for assignment by Toronto.
Kennedy has played parts of four seasons in the majors for the Diamondbacks, Tigers, Phillies, and Blue Jays. He played for two teams last season and the Dodgers are his third team in 2025, playing third base, second base, and some first base.
This season Kennedy has one double in 12 major league at-bats plus two walks, and in four seasons is hitting .193/.288/.300 with a 67 wRC+ in 163 plate appearances. The 26-year-old right-handed batter hit .268/.372/.408 with a 112 wRC+ in 77 games between Lehigh Valley and Buffalo in Triple-A this season. He is out of options, having used them each year from 2022-24.
To make room on the 40-man roster for Kennedy, pitcher Julian Fernández was designated for assignment. The 29-year-old right-hander allowed two runs in two innings in his one appearance for the Dodgers on July 7, the 35th pitcher to appear for the team this season, a list that has since grown to 38 pitchers.
Fernández, who was a non-roster invitee in spring training, had a 3.05 ERA and four saves in 35 games for Triple-A Oklahoma City this season, with 49 strikeouts and 15 walks in 41 1/3 innings.
