With the exception of Tuesday’s win to complete a sweep of the Seattle Mariners, the Los Angeles Dodgers have been on a tear at the plate the past week. It’s been led by Mookie Betts and Corey Seager, with the likes of Austin Barnes and Justin Turner, among others, contributing as well.
Since returning to action last week, Seager has exclusively batted second in the Dodgers lineup. “It’s a product of that and getting him as many at-bats as possible,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts explained.
“It’s also a product of right now we have some other guys that just haven’t really got untracked yet. I like the way it looks and how it’s functioning. It’s hard to go wrong and have Corey in the No. 2.”
Now two years removed from Tommy John surgery, Seager looks considerably more comfortable on the field. “No. 1, he’s able to get consistent work with his body,” Roberts said.
“I think he’s in as good of shape as he’s ever been. He hasn’t been in that rehab mode for quite some time, so I think that’s one thing, and I think that lends itself to performance in the batter’s box and defensively.
“As far as hitting, I just think he’s been a little bit more selective over the years, which is going to make him an even better and more dangerous hitter.”
Seager’s success has not only been key in terms of win-loss, but in cementing himself in the two hole is also further incentivizing Roberts to keep Betts in the leadoff spot of the Dodgers lineup.
“It’s a very good possibility,” Roberts recently said. “Getting Corey Seager back certainly helps things. Just kind of looking at things and seeing how I want to construct the lineup, there’s a very good possibility of that.”
Up until this past week, Betts had mostly hit second for the Dodgers during the regular season, with the exception of batting leadoff against left-handed pitchers.
Entering the year, he made it clear that he was most comfortable hitting at the top of the lineup, having done so during his time with the Boston Red Sox.
“I’ve been doing it my whole life, so I think I’m just comfortable there,” Betts recently said. “You only lead off once, but I enjoy getting things started, creating havoc on the basepaths, trying to score one in the first. I definitely take pride in doing that. It’s just a comfort thing.”
Roberts: Seager return makes Dodgers lineup complete
After missing five consecutive games due to lower back trouble, Seager has picked up where he left off at the plate, further bolstering one of the best lineups in baseball. “That stability of a guy who’s confident at the plate, who’s a hit collector, hits all fields,” Roberts said of Seager’s presence.
“When guys are really trying to find their footing in the batter’s box, having Corey in there — you see I put him in the two hole — I just felt for him to get four or five at-bats, get traffic potentially, run some pitch counts up, it’ll just make everybody around him better.”
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