LOS ANGELES -- The Dodgers put right fielder Yasiel Puig on the 15-day disabled list because of a strained left hamstring before Friday's 4-2 win over the visiting Atlanta Braves. The team also activated outfielder Scott Van Slyke, who had been out since April 9 because of a lower-back injury.
"He's not the player he could be when he's not healthy," Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said of Puig.
Puig, 25, was limited to pinch-hit duties the previous two games while dealing with the sore hamstring. He missed 73 games last season because of injuries to both hamstrings.
In his rookie season in 2013, Puig hit .319, belted 19 home runs with a .391 on-base percentage in 104 games and finished second in the National League Rookie of the Year voting.
Puig's batting average dipped to .296 the following season, but he still made his first All-Star Game. His averaged declined again last season, to .255. His power numbers and on-base percentage also decreased each of the past two seasons.
Puig is currently hitting .237 after hitting .229 in May. He was benched last week during a game against the Cincinnati Reds after he failed to run hard out of the box on a ball that hit the right-field fence and was held to a single on the play. He has five home runs and 20 RBIs in 53 games this season.
Van Slyke had his best season in 2014, when he hit .297 with 11 home runs in 98 games for the Dodgers. He went 1-for-9 with a double in four games this season before going on the DL. He played in eight games with Single-A Rancho Cucamonga and Triple-A Oklahoma City during his rehab assignment, and he went 7-for-31 with a double, a homer and five RBIs.
He struck out swinging as a pinch hitter in the seventh inning Friday night and remained in the game in left field.
Trayce Thompson, Joc Pederson and Carl Crawford started in the outfield in the series opener against the Braves.
Puig is the 16th Dodger to go on the DL this season, which leads the majors. The Dodgers also lead the big leagues in player games missed while on the DL (553) and player days on the DL (604).
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.