Before the opener of their four-game series with the Mets, the Dodgers optioned speedy shortstop Dee Gordon to Triple A Albuquerque, and promoted Eugenio Velez from Triple A to take his roster spot. The Gordon move was expected to happen Sunday in Anaheim, when Rafael Furcal was activated from the disabled list, but Casey Blake's neck problems worsened so the club decided to place Blake on the DL to make room for Furcal. With Furcal back at shortstop, Gordon would be mostly on the bench with the Dodgers, and the organization wants Gordon to play everyday to continue his development.
General manager Ned Colletti praised Gordon's work ethic, and was impressed with Gordon's performance even though his advancement was accelerated. "He was able to slow it down more times than not," Colletti said. "He's got a great mind to him, and the desire to really become a great player." Gordon hit .232/.250/.280 in 22 games with eight stolen bases in 11 attempts. Gordon said his favorite game so far was last Friday in Anaheim when he stole second, third, and home in the seventh inning (though he wasn't credited with a steal of third).
Velez, 29, was signed to a minor league deal on December 14, 2010. He injured his ankle near the end of spring training, an injury from which Velez said took him about a month and a half to recover. Velez hit .339/.371/.463 in Triple A, and played second base, third base, left field, and right field for the Isotopes. Both Colletti and manager Don Mattingly said Velez would play all over, both the infield and outfield, as needed.
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