The Los Angeles Dodgers’ offensive struggles continued against the San Diego Padres, but they made the most of their limited success and earned a 3-0 win to snap a two-game losing streak while keeping pace with the San Francisco Giants in the National League West standings.
The Dodgers tallied only four hits for a second consecutive game, with Max Muncy’s two-run homer in the bottom of the third being the difference maker.
The 31-year-old has been one of the few bright spots in the lineup over the last week of play. His home run on Friday was his second in the past three games, and he also has three extra-base hits during the span as well.
“It’s coming back,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said of Muncy’s power stroke. “I think mechanically sometimes he gets a little too out on his front side, but he and the hitting guys cleaned that up.
“He’s able to stop on the baseball down below, and when he gets his pitch he’s not missing it now. All hitters go through a little funk once in a while. Max is right where he needs to be for the finish.”
Prior to his home run against the St. Louis Cardinals on Wednesday, Muncy had gone five consecutive games without an extra-base hit. “It’s definitely been inconsistent,” he said of the team’s recent woes on offense.
“Pitchers come out and they gave us their best, and we really haven’t been giving our best back at them. It’s just one of those things where we have the talent and we’re just not putting it together. We haven’t really been able to do it all year.
“I think if you ask anyone on this team they’ll tell you we’ve really sucked on the offensive side.”
Muncy confident Dodgers will break out of slump
After their comeback attempt fell just short in Wednesday’s matchup against the Cardinals, Muncy reiterated his confidence that the Dodgers will eventually snap out of their funk.
“We’ve got a lot of guys that have been here for a lot of years. We’ve been able to come back a lot of times in the past,” Muncy said. “It’s still in there. There’s a lot of fight in this team. We know who we are and we’re not going to give up on any lead.”
Have you subscribed to the Dodger Blue YouTube channel? Be sure to ring the notification bell to watch player interviews, participate in shows and giveaways, and more!
