The Dodgers should not formally playoff-bound, in any case.
Although Main League Baseball had initially acknowledged the Dodgers as clinching a playoff spot with their 11-2 rout of the San Diego Padres on Sunday — with playoff hats being handed out within the clubhouse, a congratulatory tweet from MLB’s official account and an “X” being briefly positioned subsequent to their title within the official on-line standings — the league needed to backtrack on Monday as a result of there are nonetheless three- and four-way tiebreakers that also exist.
The Dodgers now want yet another win (or yet another Milwaukee Brewers loss) to formally punch their ticket. They will nonetheless clinch the NL West as quickly as Tuesday.
Both manner, it gained’t dampen the membership’s temper after leaving San Diego with one other collection win over the Padres.
“There’s nonetheless a number of work to be achieved,” supervisor Dave Roberts mentioned Sunday. “I really feel our greatest baseball is but to be performed.”
Because the workforce closes in on a drama-free stretch run with a division lead of 20 video games and an eight-game edge for the Nationwide League’s high seed, listed below are 4 takeaways on the place they stand.
Justin Turner’s sizzling streak continues
A notoriously gradual starter, Justin Turner’s season-opening droop was beginning to appear to be one thing extra after a dismal first three months of the season.
From the beginning of April to June 28, the 37-year-old was batting simply .217. He had a dismal OPS of .634 and simply 4 dwelling runs. And although he had 38 RBIs, there was hypothesis his finest years had lastly handed him by.
Since then, he’s been probably the greatest hitters in baseball — and possibly the most effective within the Dodgers’ loaded lineup.
In his final 44 video games, the third baseman is batting .371. After a two-home-run sport on Sunday, which included his second profession grand slam, his OPS in that stretch is 1.057, third-best within the majors amongst hitters with a minimum of 150 plate appearances throughout that point.
“He’s very in tune together with his physique, his mechanics and the way his swing works,” Roberts mentioned. “They cleaned some issues up and from that time he’s been on hearth.”
When pressed for specifics about these adjustments, Turner didn’t reveal a lot.
He mentioned for him, tweaks to his swing won't look very apparent, however he’s discovered a really feel on the plate that has enabled him to cease “lacking pitches that I shouldn’t miss.” An instance was the down-the-middle cutter from Craig Stammen that he launched for his grand slam Sunday.
“There’s a number of stuff that goes into hitting, so it’s onerous to place your finger on one factor,” he mentioned. “However simply at-bats, confidence and outcomes, type of helped feed that.”
Roberts mentioned it has all added as much as what he known as “nearly as good a stretch” as he’s ever seen out of Turner, whose season-long batting common (.277) and OPS (.798) each rank fifth on the workforce.
“Even when he was struggling, he was nonetheless one among our leaders in driving runs in, and he takes his walks,” Roberts mentioned. “So now you’re type of including on the slug, it’s fairly particular.”
Joe Musgrove clarifies feedback
There was one thing else that occurred to Turner on the final day of June when Padres ace Joe Musgrove made some seemingly direct feedback about Turner’s then-slump on the plate.
“When he’s within the field, I don’t really feel like he’s an enormous menace,” Musgrove mentioned following a June 30 begin towards the Dodgers, a day Turner had three hits, together with two dwelling runs.
“He’s a very good hitter,” Musgrove continued. “He’s achieved a number of injury to the groups I’ve been on prior to now. However out of all the fellows in that lineup, I didn’t really feel like he was an enormous menace.”
As Turner has since heated up, the primary a part of Musgrove’s quote has been extensively circulated amongst Dodger followers on social media.
And through Turner’s offensive explosion Sunday — which included a 3rd profession dwelling run off Musgrove, one thing Turner has achieved to only 4 different pitchers — on-field cameras appeared to seize a number of of his teammates yelling out “not a menace” from the dugout.
Postgame, the three-month-old feedback turned a subject of dialog.
Turner brushed these questions apart and joked that, had they been any authentic motivator for his current efficiency, “I’d ask folks to say stuff about me quite a bit sooner within the yr.”
Musgrove mentioned: “I don’t know why everyone seems to be making such a giant deal out of it.” He tried to make clear that he solely meant he didn’t view Turner as the most important menace in a Dodgers lineup affected by different All-Stars and former MVPs.
“Once I mentioned that, it was not [with] intentions that I believe he’s a ... [bad] baseball participant. That’s not it in any respect,” Musgrove mentioned. “I’ve performed towards him for a very long time now and he’s at all times been a very good hitter. … [It’s just] there have been different guys that I used to be just a little extra involved about. And he obtained me that day, and once more, he obtained me [Sunday]. So yeah, it's what it's.”
Roberts hadn’t been conscious of the state of affairs earlier than Sunday. However when he was knowledgeable of Musgrove’s feedback, he appeared shocked.
“Oh gosh,” Roberts mentioned. “I believe he may need to retract that.”
Chris Taylor, Cody Bellinger bounce again
One of many coldest Dodgers hitters getting into this weekend was Chris Taylor, who snapped out of his droop by going 4 for 12 within the collection towards the Padres, together with a house run on Sunday.
Maybe extra importantly, the outfielder solely struck out twice in three video games, a optimistic signal coming off a 13 for 83 stretch that had 38 strikeouts in his earlier 25 video games.
“I believed he was taking higher swings, making higher contact,” Roberts mentioned. “He elevated the ball pull facet a pair instances [Sunday]. Even his outs yesterday had been onerous outs. It’s good to see.”
Cody Bellinger was mired in a 0 for 22 rut earlier than getting two hits on Sunday, pushing his season-long batting common again over .200.
Like with Taylor, it will likely be necessary for the Dodgers to attempt to get Bellinger taking place the stretch as nicely.
The workforce remains to be hopeful each could be key to their postseason plans, as they had been final yr with clutch October performances.
For that to occur, they’ll want extra days like Sunday out of each.
Max Muncy to maintain stepping again
Whereas there hasn’t been only one factor behind Max Muncy’s mid-season turnaround, there could also be no greater issue than the brand new back-foot plant step he takes earlier than every swing.
The one downside is the new transfer led to some knee irritation this week that necessitated a pain-relief injection and sidelined him for 2 days.
Nevertheless, when Muncy returned to the lineup for a three-RBI efficiency on Sunday, his again step was nonetheless a part of his mechanics, one thing he and Roberts consider he'll have the ability to proceed with out difficulty for the remainder of the season.
“[There is] no concern long run,” Roberts mentioned. “It’s extra going to be a nuisance.”
Would Muncy, who's batting .274 with 10 dwelling runs since including the again step in late July, think about eliminating it?
“I don’t suppose he’s going to alter that,” Roberts mentioned with a sly smile, “due to the efficiency.”
Post a Comment