Freddie Freeman (ankle) out of Dodgers lineup for NLCS Game 4

Freddie Freeman is out of the Los Angeles Dodgers‘ lineup for Game 4 of the National League Championship Series against the New York Mets on Thursday as he continues to nurse a badly sprained and swollen right ankle throughout the postseason.

Freeman suffered the injury during a Sept. 26 regular season game against the San Diego Padres, when he rolled on his right ankle while attempting to beat out a throw to first base. He returned, albeit in a limited, hobbled fashion, for Game 1 of the NLDS against the Padres nine days later.

Freeman has started seven of the Dodgers’ eight playoff games but left early for defensive reasons in five of those games due to his limited range of motion at first base. He also missed Game 4 of the Division Series at San Diego, with the Dodgers facing elimination.

“He’s in a lot of pain out there. You can see it when he’s running and all that,” teammate Will Smith said.

Despite his visible limitations, Freeman has still been a useful part of the Dodgers’ lineup behind fellow former MVPs Shohei Ohtani and Mookie Betts. He’s 7-for-27 this postseason with a run scored and an RBI, both of which came in the Dodgers’ NLCS Game 1 win over the Mets.

Max Muncy, who was the Dodgers‘ primary first baseman before moving to third base when the Dodgers signed Freeman in 2022, will move back over to first base on Thursday. Kiké Hernandez will start at third base with Andy Pages in center field. Chris Taylor also starts over Gavin Lux at second base against left-handed Mets starter Carlos Quintana.

Teoscar Hernández moved up to Freeman’s regular No. 3 spot in the batting order.

The Dodgers enter Game 4 of the series against the Mets with a 2-1 series lead after an 8-0 victory on Wednesday. The first pitch is at 5 p.m. on FOX and the FOX Sports App.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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