Former Dodger Gavin Lux gets bad news amid comeback attempt with Rays

The Gavin Lux era may not have gone as the Los Angeles Dodgers had planned. Once the No. 2 prospect in all of baseball, Lux withered in the shadows of bigger stars like Corey Seager and Trea Turner and became a relatively nondescript utility man. Perhaps the greatest gift he gave the Dodgers was the return they got from the Cincinnati Reds, exciting outfield prospect Mike Sirota.

With Cincinnati, Lux somewhat surprisingly became mostly a left fielder and designated hitter, but yet again, his bat was average at best. After last season, the 28-year-old found himself on the move again, this time winding up with the Tampa Bay Rays as they tried to set the record for three-team trades.

The 2016 first-round pick has had a terrible time in Tampa, first going on the IL with a right shoulder impingement during spring training, then suffering an ankle injury in April while trying to rehab, and now he's been pulled from his latest rehab assignment indefinitely with an injury to his other shoulder.

The Dodgers have to feel sorry for Gavin Lux as his injuries pile up

No matter how disappointing Lux's tenure was in LA relative to his hype, there were times when he proved to be a valuable piece. The pinnacle of his time with the Dodgers was his 2022 campaign, when he slashed .276/.346/.399 with a 113 wRC+ and produced 2.7 fWAR while bouncing between second base, shortstop, and left field.

That sort of sums up the Lux experience. He handled the fall from top prospect to utility man with grace and never complained or tried to cause disruptions. He only really showed his frustration until he was already out the door.

Still, he was a player who was held in high regard by his teammates and did his part to help Los Angeles win two World Series titles. That has value, and proves that despite the complicated relationship with the fans due to the sky-high expectations, he is a player who is certainly missed.

That's why it's so hard to watch what he's going through from afar. We don't yet know the extent of this new injury to his left shoulder. The Rays are sending him for imaging, but have made it clear that he'll be out of action for the foreseeable future.

It's hard not to see this as his body breaking down, though. Injuries to both shoulders and his ankle in such a short period of time are either terrible luck or a sign of some physical decline. We're hoping it's the former and that he heals up and resumes his career soon, because despite everything, Lux is still a useful player and deserves better. Get well soon, Gavin.

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