What happened to Freddie Freeman? All you need to know about his ankle injury and Game 6 status

Freddie Freeman will not be featured in the Dodgers' lineup for Game 6 of their NLCS encounter against the New York Mets. The first baseman has been ailing with an ankle strain for almost a month and has already missed two postseason games.

Freeman returned to the lineup on Friday after missing Game 4 of the championship series. He went 0-5 at the plate with two strikeouts in the No. 4 hole. Freeman had turned in a strong outing in the opening game of the series with two singles and driving home a run. But since then, he has gone 1-for-15 with no walks in the three games.

The decision to rest Freeman was on the cards.

"I'm going to have a conversation with him [Saturday]," Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. "But I do think that his swing is not right. I'm certain it's the ankle. We'll have that conversation, but it's certainly an option to not have him in there for Game 6."

Freeman's injury is a Grade 2 lower ankle strain. He suffered the injury on Sept. 26. Typically, Grade 2 strains require at least 12 weeks to fully recover. However, surgery isn't required for it.

The former NL MVP has also undergone 4-5 hours of treatment each day to keep himself fit to start. However, Freeman and the team know they wouldn't want to risk an extra load on his ankle that could result in a ligament tear.

Dodgers set to continue with Game 4 arrangement

With Freeman out of the lineup, the Dodgers will move Max Muncy from the hot corner to first base. Taking his place at 3B will be Kike Hernandez moving inside the diamond from the outfield. This will make way for Andy Pages, who can start in the center field, after his two-homer game in Game 5.

One less left-handed batter would mean Sean Manaea would have one less batter to dominate. The Mets LHP will be expected to be hot on the mound as he starts against Michael Kopech and the rest of the bullpen in a relievers game for LA, a repeat of the Game 2 encounter that the Mets won.