Dodgers shortstop Dee Gordon wasn't in the starting lineup Sunday against the Cubs for the first time since July 5. It was just the seventh time since April 24 he was not in the starting lineup.
"It wasn't really planned," manager Don Mattingly said of the day off, per MLB.com. "I was kind of trying to wait for a lefty. Different coaches were coming to me like, 'It looks like Dee needs a day.' Just, I think, leg-wise and things like that.
"I think Dee's at the point where he wants to play every day, and he's kind of probably a little bit nervous about saying he needs a day. We understand that. I think that's where coaches are important, the guys who are dealing with him every day, seeing him every day, maybe he has a little more confidence in saying that one little word that tells you, 'Yeah, I need a day.' We'll be careful with him. We'll see where is. He's pretty young. I think he'll keep up the pace."