Yasiel Puig returns to Dodgers lineup to face Cubs

PHOENIX – A day after taking 10 at-bats in a minor-league intrasquad game, Yasiel Puig will return to the Dodgers lineup to face the Chicago Cubs in Mesa.

“We’ll see if those at-bats helped,” Puig said.

Puig, who is batting .172 in the exhibition season, said his timing has been off this spring.

On a positive note, he said he feels fine physically.

“I feel great,” he said. “My shoulders feel a little tired, but that’s the result of the work I’ve been doing to prepare for the season.”

Josh Beckett has a sprained thumb on his pitching hand but will still start against the Chicago Cubs. Top prospect Corey Seager, who is only 19, will be part of the traveling squad to Mesa.

The Dodgers lineup:

Dee Gordon 2B
Carl Crawford LF
Yasiel Puig RF
Adrian Gonzalez 1B
Andre Ethier CF
Justin Turner 3B
A.J. Ellis C
Miguel Rojas SS
Josh Beckett P

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