While Clayton Kershaw took the mound Monday for the Los Angeles Dodgers in his seventh straight Opening Day start, his batterymate was on the opposite end of the spectrum. Yasmani Grandal, now in his third season with the Dodgers, was behind the plate on Opening Day for the first time in his career.
Not that it amounted to any noticeable jitters, however. Grandal followed Joc Pederson’s grand slam in the third inning with a solo home run hit to nearly the same location down the right-field line.
Then in the eighth inning, batting right-handed, Grandal further added to the San Diego Padres’ abysmal afternoon by sending a two-run home run into the Dodgers bullpen. He became the team’s first player to hit two home runs on Opening Day since Raul Mondesi in 1999.
“I was very excited to have my first start on Opening Day,” Grandal said after the Dodgers’ rout of his former club. “It was very exciting to do it here at Dodger Stadium. The atmosphere was like a postseason game.”
The Dodgers set a record with four home runs on Opening Day. Grandal is the first player in franchise history to homer from both sides of the plate in a season opener.
In addition to going on a new diet, Grandal spent the offseason focused on improving his swing from the right side of the plate. A previous shoulder injury had robbed the 28-year-old of the ability to lift the ball while batting right-handed.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts noted improvement in that area during the spring, and said Monday it was nice to see Grandal rewarded for his work.
Whereas Grandal spent the past two seasons sharing time with A.J. Ellis and Carlos Ruiz behind the plate, he’s expected to receive more opportunities against left-handed starters in 2017. Of course, health will factor into that, and Grandal has battled injuries in each of the past two years.
