Yasmani Grandal returns to lineup, Howie Kendrick starts in LF for Dodgers

LOS ANGELES -- Yasmani Grandal is back behind the plate for the Dodgers on Wednesday night against the Diamondbacks, making his first start for the Dodgers after starting the year on the disabled list with a sore right forearm.

The switch-hitting Grandal was activated from the disabled list on Tuesday but did not start. With left-hander Patrick Corbin on the mound for Arizona, A.J. Ellis got the call behind the plate.

Grandal, who is batting sixth on Wednesday, did appear as a pinch-hitter in the ninth inning and delivered an RBI ground out.

Also off the DL on Tuesday was Howie Kendrick, who finds himself in a new position on Wednesday. Kendrick starts in left field for the first time since Aug. 13, 2011 with the Angels, a product of the Dodgers losing both Carl Crawford and Scott Van Slyke to back injuries in the opening week of the season.

Manager Dave Roberts mentioned left field as a possibility for Kendrick back in January when Kendrick re-signed with the Dodgers, and also was noted again on Tuesday when he played the final inning of the game in left.

Kendrick took fly balls in left field before batting practice on Wednesday.

Kendrick is 10-for-18 (.559) against Diamondbacks starter Rubby De La Rosa.

Seventh is also the lowest Kendrick has been in the batting order since April 6, 2014. He batted anywhere from second through fifth in the batting order in 2015 for the Dodgers, and batted fifth on Tuesday in his first game of 2016.

With the left-handed Alex Wood on the mound for the Dodgers, Arizona made a few switches to their lineup. Chris Owings starts in center field and Brandon Drury in right field, putting two right-handed batters in place of the left-handed Socrates Brito and David Peralta.