Dodgers activate Jerry Hairston Jr.; Justin Sellers goes on DL

By Steve Dilbeck

May 25, 2012 12 AM PT

Pure, good-health news will have to wait another day.

The Dodgers will have to take what they get for now, and on Friday that meant getting a healthy Jerry Hairston Jr. off the disabled list.

Unfortunately, to add him back to the 25-man roster the Dodgers placed infielder Justin Sellers on the 15-day disabled list because of a bulging disk in his lower back.

Hairston was immediately placed in the lineup at third base against the Astros, batting fifth behind Andre Ethier.

Sellers said he apparently had a pre-existing back condition that was aggravated when he went diving into the stands chasing down a foul ball Saturday against the Cardinals.

“You could really say that the aftershock of that play -- going in and getting beat up in the stands -- I guess put more of a toll on my body than I expected, because probably a couple days after that I started feeling some light back symptoms,” Sellers said. “And then I gradually got worse.”

Dodgers Manager Don Mattingly, who had his own back issues as a player, was confident Sellers could return after his stint on the DL.

“He was having leg pain and foot pain,” Mattingly said. “I’ve been through that. When it gets to that area, you just can’t do anything. It’s hard to really compete. The nerve has to calm down.”

Hairston has been out since May 6 when he strained his hamstring running out an infield hit in Chicago.

In other health news:

-- Mark Ellis is home from the hospital and recovering from his emergency leg surgery. Ellis also has a sprained medial collateral ligament and bone bruise in his knee.

“It sounds like there’s been a number of different little things,” Mattingly said. “I’m still hearing six to eight weeks. That’s pretty much stayed the same.”

-- Juan Uribe (sore wrist) was taking ground balls during the three games in Phoenix and is scheduled to begin light hitting on Friday.

-- Matt Guerrier (right elbow tendinitis) is not improving and trainer Sue Falsone doesn’t expect him to return until after the All-Star break.

“We’re back to PRP (platelet rich plasma) injections and slow-down time, then we’ll see where we’re at,” Mattingly said. “He’s been frustrated through this process since it first happened. At first it was supposed to be a couple of weeks and he’d be ready to go.”

-- Matt Kemp and Juan Rivera, both coming back from hamstring injuries, worked out in the field before Friday’s game and will begin a rehab assignment Sunday with triple-A Albuquerque.

Kemp is expected to return Tuesday when he’s eligible to come off the DL, but Mattingly said Rivera -- already eligible -- could stay with the Isotopes an additional period because he’s been out longer. Rivera ruptured his hamstring May 8 sliding into third base, but has made rapid progress.

“His is really a best-case scenario,” Mattingly said.

Matt Kemp, Juan Rivera prepare for return as Dodger kids hold on

Dodgers making bid to reenter signings of international players?

Dodgers activate Jerry Hairston Jr.; Justin Sellers goes on DL