Max Muncy injury status hanging in the balance as Dodgers hold their breath

The Los Angeles Dodgers had to endure yet another brutal injury development this week when third baseman Max Muncy was scratched from Wednesday's lineup against the Los Angeles Angels due to side soreness.

Muncy, who experienced the soreness during pregame cage work on Wednesday, has a history of side injuries. He missed an extended period of time last season with a right oblique strain, but manager Dave Roberts told reporters on Wednesday that this latest issue is "not the same" as what Muncy dealt with that year.

That being said, Roberts has a lengthy track record of sugarcoating his players' injuries, so perhaps we'll just wait for the results from Muncy's Thursday tests to come back before we get too optimistic about the prognosis.

In the meantime, Muncy is considered day-to-day, and the timing could not be worse. He had just returned to the Dodgers last week after missing more than a month with a knee injury, and the club is heading into a three-game series against the San Diego Padres beginning Friday. Following San Diego's sweep of the San Francisco Giants this week, the Padres have a one-game lead over the Dodgers in the National League West.

Max Muncy injury status hanging in the balance as Dodgers hold their breath

As Muncy undergoes testing on Thursday's off day, the Dodgers will simply have to hope for the best case scenario. The 34-year-old immediately jumpstarted Los Angeles' offense upon his return last week, slashing .348/.531/.870 in eight games with four home runs and an OPS of 1.401.

If MRI results determine that Muncy does need to go back on the injured list, the bulk of the starts at third base will likely go to Alex Freeland, who jumped in at the last minute when Muncy was unable to go on Wednesday. In an admittedly small sample size of just 12 games this season, Freeland is hitting just .176/.333/.176 with 12 walks against 13 strikeouts and a pair of RBI.

In the meantime, the Dodgers have nothing to do but hold their breath until they get results back on Muncy.

More Dodgers content from Dodgers Way