The Los Angeles Dodgers placed Hanser Alberto on paternity leave and selected the contract of Stefan Romero from Triple-A Oklahoma City. To make room for Romero on the 40-man roster, the Dodgers transferred Edwin Ríos to the 60-day injured list.
On paternity leave, Alberto will be away from the club for at least one day and a maximum of three. The veteran infielder has appeared in 34 games this season and hit .242/.254/.333 with one home run, seven runs scored and four RBI across 67 plate appearances.
Although his offense has been limited, Alberto has been a versatile bench piece for the Dodgers, making appearances at second base and third base. He has also seen some limited time in right field and on the mound.
Romero is back in the Major Leagues for the first time since 2016. He previously spent parts of three seasons with the Seattle Mariners from 2014-2016, batting .195/.242/.307 with four home runs, 26 runs scored, 17 RBI and a 56 wRC+ in 94 games.
After his stint in the Majors, Romero began playing overseas, doing so with the Orix Buffaloes of the Japan Pacific League from 2017-2019 and again in 2021, and the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles in the Japan Western League in 2020.
Romero hit .265/.332/.498 with 70 doubles, 99 home runs and 272 RBI over 445 games in Japan.
The 33-year-old signed a Minor League contract with the Dodgers this past offseason. Romero is primarily a corner outfielder, but he also has some experience at first base and center field.
With the OKC Dodgers this season, Romero was hitting .270/.337/.461 with three home runs, 15 runs scored and 21 RBI. He also appeared in six Cactus League games, going 2-for-13 with one double, one RBI and one walk.
It’s likely Romero will only be with the club while Alberto is away, which is why they chose to promote him rather than someone who might make a bigger impact, such as prospects Miguel Vargas and James Outman, or veterans Jake Lamb and Jason Martin.
Ríos transaction doesn’t change his timeline
The Dodgers placed Ríos on the 10-day injured list due to what the team officially deemed a right hamstring strain on June 3.
“Part of the tendon or the muscle came off the bone, so it’s not the belly of the hamstring,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts revealed at the time. “So it is not going to require surgery, but it’s going to be a handful of weeks until we even consider having him back.”
Roberts went on to add Ríos’ strained hamstring was a “Grade 3 or Grade 4 tear.”
That prognosis, along with Roberts’ estimation, suggested the 28-year-old may not return until some time in July or potentially after the All-Star break. With his IL stint retroactive until early June, transferring Ríos to the 60-day doesn’t change his timeline.
While primarily starting as the designated hitter in the Dodgers lineup, Ríos batted .244/.293/.500 with seven home runs, a .341 wOBA and 121 wRC+ over 27 games before landing on the IL.
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