Goldschmidt has been dealing with right elbow soreness during the early stages of camp, which will lead to the slugger slotting in as the designated hitter over the first pair of Grapefruit League contests, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.

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Goldschmidt has eased into both fielding drills and throwing during the first week of camp due to the soreness, and manager Mike Shildt will take the extra precaution of keeping the veteran out of the field altogether over the first two exhibitions, at minimum. "He started playing catch, little soreness in there," Shildt said. "Nothing uncommon. It's pretty much gone, but we just want to make sure we're ramping up his throwing to where it's smart, to where it doesn't come back."