True Blue LA - Eliezer Alfonzo injury: Dodgers catcher still not in campWhere The Dodger Dogs Are Always Grilledhttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/49563/truebluela_fav.png2013-02-21T09:12:10-08:00http://www.truebluela.com/rss/stream/37835312013-02-21T09:12:10-08:002013-02-21T09:12:10-08:00Alfonzo has dengue virus, out of big league camp
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<figcaption>Kent Horner</figcaption>
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<p>Alfonzo will report to the minor league side once he reports to Camelback Ranch.</p> <p>The offseason for catcher <span>Eliezer Alfonzo</span> went from bad to worse, as the non-roster invitee has dengue virus, a disease caused by mosquito bites. The catcher is still in Venezuela and unable to fly for a period of five to seven days.</p>
<p>Alfonzo, one of four catchers to sign a minor league contract with the Dodgers this offseason, was already late in reporting to camp while dealing with a family illness, then was infected with the dengue virus. He played in the Mexican League last season and hit 15 home runs in 39 games. He last played in the major leagues in 2011 with the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.purplerow.com/">Rockies</a>.</p>
<p>In parts of six seasons, Alfonzo hit .240/.271/.377 in 193 games for the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/">Giants</a>, <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.gaslampball.com/">Padres</a>, <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.lookoutlanding.com/">Mariners</a>, and Rockies.</p>
<p>When Alfonzo gets to camp, he will report to the minor league side. With 28 pitchers in camp, the need for a sixth catcher was met as <span>Matt Wallach</span> was officially added to major league camp as a non-roster invitee.</p>
<p>Wallach was a non-roster invitee to <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.truebluela.com/">Dodgers</a> camp in 2012, and appeared in six spring training games. He was 0-for-9 with a hit by pitch and a walk. Wallach, who turned 27 on Sunday, hit .232/.340/.321 in 59 games for Double-A Chattanooga in 2012.</p>
https://www.truebluela.com/2013/2/21/4013538/eliezer-alfonzo-injury-dodgers-dengue-feverEric Stephen2013-02-19T11:00:10-08:002013-02-19T11:00:10-08:00Eliezer Alfonzo still not in Dodgers camp
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<figcaption>Denis Poroy</figcaption>
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<p>The 34-year-old Venezuelan catcher, a non-roster invitee to Dodgers camp, has not yet reported to Camelback Ranch, while dealing with a family issue.</p> <p>It has been a week since pitchers and catchers were scheduled to report to <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.truebluela.com/">Dodgers</a> spring training, and so far 58 of the 59 players invited to big league camp have shown up to Camelback Ranch. <span>Eliezer Alfonzo</span> is the only one who hasn't yet reported, and the team isn't quite sure when the catcher will show up.</p>
<p>"He was supposed to be here Monday," said manager Don Mattingly on Tuesday.</p>
<p>Alfonzo is dealing with a family issue, something the team knew about <a target="_blank" href="http://www.truebluela.com/nri/2013/1/9/3857962/eliezer-alfonzo-ramon-castro-dodgers-nri">when he was signed to a minor league contract and invited to spring training</a>. Given that Alfonzo is one of five catchers competing to backup <span>A.J. Ellis</span> on the major league roster, the Dodgers aren't exactly missing him.</p>
<p>"He's not on the roster, and it's a family issue. There are things he's dealing with, that we knew about from the beginning," Mattingly said. "There hasn't been anybody clamoring at what's going on."</p>
<p>With 28 pitchers in camp, there is always a need for catchers just during workouts, but Mattingly said things are working out with the five catchers in camp: Ellis, <span>Tim Federowicz</span>, <span>Jesus Flores</span>, Ramon Castro, and Wilkin Castillo. But if they do happen to need another catcher, Mattingly said they would call on director of player development De Jon Watson to send someone over from the minor league side. <span>Gorman Erickson</span> or <span>Matt Wallach</span>, who began 2012 in major league camp, could be two such options.</p>
<p>But Mattingly said he is not yet at the point of spring training that the backups are competing just yet.</p>
<p>"We're just working right now. We haven't got into games," Mattingly said. "We kind of know all these guys, we're starting to see what they can do, get them in shape. I don't know that we've started the competition yet."</p>
<p>No matter who wins the backup catcher job, they will likely catch a little more often than <span>Matt Treanor</span> did last season, as Mattingly plans to give Ellis more rest in 2013.</p>
<p>"We felt A.J. played a little too much last year. I probably should have given him a few more days. Depending on how the off days fall, is how we'll do it," Mattingly said. "He was kind of up and down. He'd have good months and struggling months. Just in general, he caught more games than he ever caught before. Just a little too much."</p>
<p>Ellis was fourth in the major leagues with 128 starts and 1,151 innings behind the plate in 2012. He went from an OPS of .843 in April and .975 in May to just .650 in June and .717 in July. Ellis rebounded with an .840 OPS in August, but had a .661 mark in September that included an 0-for-30 slump.</p>
<p>Mattingly said he didn't have an exact number of days off in mind for Ellis, but that he would mix more of them in throughout the year to keep him energized.</p>
<p>"It's not so much an exact number, but being able to use the other guy and keep him fresh. It works to keep both of them sharp," Mattingly said.</p>
<p>Mattingly said Alfonzo's absence will have him behind in the eventual race to backup Ellis. But he also understands Alfonzo's situation.</p>
<p>"It's hard to compete when you're not here," Mattingly said. "It sounds like something that's out of his control, and some things just kind of take precedence at some point."</p>
https://www.truebluela.com/2013/2/19/4005294/dodgers-spring-training-2013-eliezer-alfonzoEric Stephen