KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Hanley Ramirez missed a second straight start because of irritation in his right shoulder Wednesday, but Dodgers manager Don Mattingly said Ramirez did not receive a cortisone injection and could be available to pinch hit.
Ramirez will meet with team orthopedist Neal ElAttrache at Dodger Stadium before Thursday's game against the St. Louis Cardinals. Mattingly said he didn't know if an MRI exam was ordered on Ramirez's shoulder, which has bothered him off and on since June 10.
Third baseman Juan Uribe is expected to be activated Thursday, Mattingly said. He has been out since May 21 because of a strained right hamstring and finished his minor-league rehab assignment Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the Dodgers brought in a fresh pinch hitter and reserve first baseman, Clint Robinson, purchasing his contract from Triple-A Albuquerque and designating Jamie Romak for assignment.
"Clint can hit. We like the way he swung the bat in spring training," Mattingly said.
Robinson, 29, was batting .309 with 14 home runs for Albuquerque. Romak went just 1-for-21 with the Dodgers. A 6-foot-5, 225-pound left-handed hitter, Robinson played four games for the Kansas City Royals in 2012, so he knew his way to Kauffman Stadium. Albuquerque manager Damon Berryhill told Robinson he was being called up after a game at Iowa, about 200 miles north of here.
Robinson said he was on deck when the fight between prospect Alex Guerrero and veteran catcher Miguel Olivo broke out in the Isotopes dugout last month. During the melee, Olivo bit off part of Guerrero's ear. Guerrero has just resumed baseball activities at the Dodgers' facility in Arizona.
"I was trying to hit with all that going on. It was crazy," Robinson said. "That's definitely the most intense thing I've ever seen on a baseball field, that’s for sure."
