NFL
By: George Lopez
After dropping 2 out of 3 games to the Atlanta Braves over the weekend, the Los Angeles Dodgers are currently tied for first in the NL West with the San Diego Padres with a 24-16 record. The Dodgers have the 3rd best run differential in MLB at +69. Still, the team struggles with consistency both with their offense and pitching. The Dodgers will look to get their offense on track as they host their heated rivals, the San Francisco Giants. They face them in a 4-game series at Dodger Stadium.
The top of the Dodgers’ lineup has not produced as the team envisioned. As of this writing, the top of the Dodgers’ lineup has produced the following numbers:
Shohei Ohtani: .241, 6 homeruns, 16 RBIs
Freedie Freeman: .267, 4 homeruns, 20 RBIs
Will Smith: .261, 3 homeruns, 16 RBIs
Kyle Tucker: .248, 4 homeruns, 20 RBIs
Teoscar Hernandez: .238, 4 homeruns, 17 RBIs
The bottom of the lineup has been productive all season, led by Andy Pages. On the season, Pages is batting .333 with 9 homeruns and 35 RBIs. 3rd baseman Max Muncy is showing a resurgence in his power swing as he leads the Dodgers with 10 home runs. Back-up catcher Dalton Rushing provides a spark off the bench for the Dodgers. He is batting .302 with 7 home runs in limited playing time. Rushing was one of the top Dodger prospects when he was called up last season. Rushing knows his playing time behind Will Smith at catcher is limited. He’s restricted to days when the team wants to give Smith a day off. Yet, Rushing has excelled in this role.
Rushing’s mindset for this role is not to accept it, but to embrace it. Mookie Betts has been limited to only 8 games this season with an oblique injury. He makes his return to the Dodgers lineup against the Giants. Betts is looking to provide a spark to the Los Angeles Dodgers lineup. Look for the Dodgers to be cautious in how many consecutive games Betts will play. The team wants Betts as healthy as possible for the playoffs.
In terms of pitching, the Los Angeles Dodgers have a team ERA of 3.72. However, looking more closely at the numbers, do fans see any areas of concern? Roki Sasaki, who gave the team a huge boost out of the bullpen during last season’s playoff run, has struggled in his return to the starting rotation. Going into his next start, Sasaki sits with a 1-3 record with an E.R.A. of 5.97. Control has been an issue for Sasaki, as he has allowed 15 walks in 28 innings. Sasaki did look better in his last start, going 6 innings while allowing 3 runs.
The Dodgers are looking for Sasaki to build on his last start. Tyler Glasnow was off to a good start for the Dodgers, with a 3-0 record and 2.72 E.R.A. Unfortunately for the team, Glasnow was forced to leave his last start after only 1 inning due to lower back spasms, which have placed him on the IL. The Dodgers are hopeful the injury will not hamper Glasnow throughout the season. The team did get a boost in the rotation as Blake Snell made his season debut over the weekend. Snell had been out all season as he dealt with shoulder fatigue. Though rust was evident in his first start of the season, the Dodgers and their fans were thrilled to see Snell back on the mound.
On the mound, Shohei Ohtani has had a tremendous start to the season. Though he currently has a record of 2-2, Ohtani has posted an E.R.A of 0.97, allowing only 4 runs in 37 innings pitched. Going forward, the Dodgers will weigh the option of not having Ohtani bat on the days he pitches. If the Dodgers do go with that option, look for Dalton Rushing to fill in as the DH. Justin Wrobleski has made the most of his opportunity in the starting rotation. Wrobleski currently sits with a 5-1 record and an E.R.A of 2.42.
When Glasnow returns from the IL, the team plans on using a 6-man starting rotation that will consist of Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Shohei Ohtani, Tyler Glasnow, and Blake Snell as guaranteed starters. The team will decide among Roki Sasaki, Justin Wrobleski, and Emmet Sheehan to fill the other 2 spots. Wrobleski figures to be a strong choice to garner one of the two remaining spots in the rotation. With the experience of last season’s playoffs, it would be a logical choice to move Sasaki to the bullpen.
The Dodgers went into the past off-season looking to shore up their late-inning bullpen and made a splash by signing the biggest free agent relief pitcher, Edwin Diaz. Unfortunately, Diaz’s career with the Dodgers has not gotten off to the start the team envisioned, as he was placed on the IL and underwent surgery to remove loose bodies in his pitching elbow. Diaz is expected to miss up to 3 months of the season and will return later this summer. In the meantime, manager Dave Roberts will use a closer-by-committee with Alex Vesia, Blake Treinen, and Tanner Scott as options to close out games. If the Dodgers decide to move Sasaki to the bullpen, he would give Roberts another strong option for the 9th inning.
The Los Angeles Dodgers are looking to find consistency with their offense as the team has struggled in recent games. Mookie Betts looks to provide a boost to the lineup as he returns from an oblique injury. The Dodgers are focused on getting into the playoffs as healthy as possible. That being said, if the team is not producing, it could be a short playoff run for the Dodgers.
