SAN DIEGO -- Dodgers center fielder A.J. Pollock was on the mend at home Friday, one day after he had surgery to remove hardware from his right elbow.

“Now, we just sit and wait,” manager Dave Roberts said. “The bone structure is still in place, which is very important. The timeline to return, that’s going to be contingent on the healing. … For the foreseeable future, he’s in recovery mode.”

With Pollock sidelined indefinitely, Roberts intends to rotate Chris Taylor, Enrique Hernández and Alex Verdugo in center field. Slugger Cody Bellinger, who has 53 Major League starts in center, will not be in the mix, Roberts said. Bellinger started at first base Friday night against the Padres, but he’s going to be in right field as often as possible.

“Right now, we’re going to stick with Cody in right field,” Roberts said. “Obviously, he has the ability to play center field. But talking with him, he feels very comfortable in right field right now. He has Gold Glove potential in right field. We like him out there.”

The operation, performed by Dr. John Itamura, was the third on Pollock’s elbow since 2010. He broke the elbow that year and had a plate inserted to help it heal. A new plate was inserted in 2016. The previous fractures have been deemed fully healed, so the hardware was removed Thursday.

Pollock was placed on the injured list Tuesday because of a bacterial infection in the elbow. Roberts said earlier this week that is not related to the hardware. Pollock is on antibiotics as he recovers from the surgery.

In his first season with the Dodgers after signing as a free agent, Pollock is off to a .223/.287/.330 start in 28 games played. He appeared in more than 113 games in only two of his seven previous big league seasons.

Lineup adjustments

The Dodgers’ lineup Friday had a couple of new wrinkles.

First, Joc Pederson started against a left-handed pitcher for the first time this season. Padres lefty Eric Lauer’s somewhat neutral splits played into the decision, Roberts said, but the schedule was the primary factor. Friday marked the halfway point of a stretch of six straight games against left-handed starters.

“I want him in there to play,” Roberts said, adding that Max Muncy will go against the platoon Saturday, when the Padres send out Joey Lucchesi.

The second wrinkle was that Bellinger batted second for the third time this season, with Corey Seager dropping to the cleanup spot. Bellinger carried a Bondsian .500 on-base percentage into Friday. Having him on base could spark Seager, who is batting .228 with a .674 OPS.

Injury updates

• First baseman David Freese (ankle) was available off the bench Friday, and Roberts said he will start Saturday.

• Right-handed reliever Scott Alexander (hamstring) was available after being unable to pitch Wednesday at San Francisco.