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Andy Pages Not Injured; Dodgers Valued Chris Taylor’s Baserunning In Extra Innings Vs. Giants

Matthew Moreno
3 Min Read
Ed Szczepanski/USA TODAY Sports

Andy Pages reached base twice on Saturday but was not in the game as the Los Angeles Dodgers finished off an extra-innings win against the San Francisco Giants.

Chris Taylor replaced Pages to start the 10th inning as the automatic runner placed on second base. Given Pages’ contributions, there was some reason to worry such a decision was based on a potential injury.

However, that was not the impetus behind the Dodgers having Taylor enter as a pinch-runner for Pages, who grades out more favorably in terms of sprint speed.

According to Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Pages did not suffer an injury and the team merely believed Taylor was a better option if a need for stealing third base arose:

That wound up being somewhat of a moot point, though Taylor did tag on Jason Heyward’s fly out to begin the inning. Miguel Rojas then put the Dodgers ahead with an RBI single. Taylor later contributed with the bat as well on an RBI base hit in the 11th inning.

Chris Taylor better baserunner than Andy Pages?

For all of the success Pages has enjoyed his rookie season, there have been multiple lapses on the bases. He hasn’t always made the best reads or decisions, and most recently ran into a game-ending out at home plate. Pages’ baserunning mistake was a result of not picking up the stop sign from third base coach Dino Ebel.

“I saw the center fielder bobble the ball and then I just kept going,” Pages explained through an interpreter at the time. “I knew I was going to get to third base easily but when I saw him bobble the ball, I knew I was going to try to score no matter what because I knew I was the tying run.”

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Matthew Moreno is a journalist from Whittier, Calif., who is a credentialed reporter and is currently the Managing Editor of DodgerBlue.com and LakersNation.com. In addition to covering Los Angeles Dodgers and Los Angels Lakers, Matthew has a strong passion for keeping up to date with the sneakerhead culture. It began with Michael Jordan and Air Jordan shoes, and has carried over to Kobe Bryant's signature line with Nike. Matthew previously was the lead editor and digital strategist at Dodgers Nation, and the co-editor and lead writer at Reign of Troy, where he covered USC Trojans Football. Matthew graduated from California State Long Beach University with a major in journalism and minor in communications. Contact: matt@mediumlargela.com