Anthony Arroyo
Camelback Ranch, Arizona— Early Thursday morning, Dodgers First baseman Freddie Freeman spoke with the media about the current update on his right ankle and his probability of starting Spring Training with the team.
Freeman addressed the media by saying he had begun running on an anti-gravity treadmill, Per Fabian Ardaya. Although he is expected to miss most of Spring Training, Freeman assured fans that he will be available for the Dodgers Opening Day series in Tokyo.
Freeman mentioned that he has been running at 80% capacity and hopes to participate in Spring games later this month. Freeman stated that he is “perfectly on track” and will continue to monitor the extent of his injury as his recovery timeline progresses.
“I am perfectly on track for that,” Freeman said. “We’ll get a better sense when I’m not in an inflated bubble helping me run, but probably middle of next week by the end of the next week I’ll have a really good sense of how I’m feeling.” Freeman has another target should everything progress. He’s considering getting into Cactus League games in late February.
However, the veteran left-handed-hitting first baseman also has his sights on a much healthier 2024 season and, God willing, some better circumstances surrounding his family after the traumatic situation they experienced last summer.
“The goal is 162 (games),” he said. “Hopefully, it’s 161 because I always take the game off after we win the division. … I’m doing everything I can to make sure I’m ready for 162.”
Freeman, 35, has had minor injuries throughout his Major League career, and last season was arguably the worst of it. As entering October, Freeman endured a fractured finger, an undisclosed fractured rib, and the infamous ankle injury after getting tripped up during the Dodgers National League West clinching game.
However, as we know, the rest is history. After a problematic National League Division Series and National League Championship Series, the first baseman would win World Series MVP after belting four home runs, including a walk-off grand slam in Game One.
The next step for Freeman is to get healthy, and the Dodgers roster, with the talent around them, is more than capable of surviving with or without Freeman.
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