Dodgers need to be patient with Andre Ethier’s injury

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The best hitter in baseball holds the bat funky.

And now has a broken finger at the knuckle.

The Dodgers survived injuries to Manny Ramirez and Rafael Furcal, but Andre Ethier going down could prove to be a much different challenge.

Ethier was only off to the start of a lifetime, leading the National League in all triple crown categories -- average (.392), home runs (11) and RBIs (38) -- when he broke his right pinkie finger during batting practice before Saturday’s game.

Apparently, he uses the pinkie of his right hand as a kind of leverage point on his swing. Ethier said the finger contorted under the knob of his bat and the pressure fractured the finger at the first knuckle.

The Dodgers are currently on their best roll of the season, having won seven consecutive games. They won their first two games without him . . . well, they survived Sunday, anyway, winning, 1-0.

How long Ethier will be out and whether he’ll need to go on the disabled list remain unknown. Maybe they decide Monday, maybe Tuesday. All the Dodgers know for certain is, it’s bad news. How bad remains to be seen.

I’d tell ’em to cross their fingers but …

There’s not much you can do about these small fractures, other than wait. He could try to man up and play through the pain, but how wise is it to take a chance he’ll unconsciously alter his swing in the process? The way he’s going, it would be idiotic to take that chance.

So what the Dodgers are probably going to have to do is put him on the disabled list and be patient. Very patient.

The others will have to step up, much as Ethier did with Manny and Furcal out. And the Dodgers will need to remind themselves it’s a very long season. It’s better to have a healthy Ethier for the long haul, than to rush a damaged one back into action too soon.

--Steve Dilbeck