The Los Angeles Dodgers rallied behind their offense for a third straight game on Thursday in a 10-2 win to complete the series and season sweep of the Cincinnati Reds.
With Mookie Betts on the 10-day injured list due to a fractured rib, Trea Turner has been slotted in the leadoff spot with Freddie Freeman and Will Smith behind him. The trio combined for 20 hits over the three-game stretch at Great American Ball Park.
The Dodgers’ offense has been suffering their own June gloom prior to this series with an 82 wRC+ when at least one runner is on base. But facing the worst team in the National League served as the perfect wakeup call as they tallied 26 runs off of 42 hits in the sweep of the Reds, their most in a three-game series since September.
Trea Turner, Justin Turner, Max Muncy, and Cody Bellinger put up three hits apiece, in what Roberts said was as complete of a series the Dodgers lineup has had thus far in 2022, via SportsNet LA:
“I thought this was the best offensive series we’ve had all year. We built on the first night here and we ran into some really good arms. Those three guys at the top of the rotation can compete with any three arms in baseball. It just shows what we’re capable of when we play team baseball. Up and down the line, I just thought we had the right intentions of playing team baseball. A lot of good things came from it. … We got some base hits, we moved runners, we were situational hitting and the slug came as well.”
The Dodgers sit at 43-25 and hold a one-game lead on the San Diego Padres in the NL West, and after the sweep, their offense ranks second in MLB in on-base plus slugging percentage, and is tied for fourth in slugging percentage.
Roberts has continued to shuffle around parts of the Dodgers lineup and dropped Bellinger to the eight-hole, and his continued patience with Muncy in the cleanup spot paid off with three hits, including a 434-foot home run in the fifth inning.
Freeman’s hot streak is welcomed with the offense needing an RBI man to lead that charge and ensure they don’t continue to waste opportunities with runners in scoring position.
Freeman comfortable with Dodgers relying on him while Betts is out
With Betts out, the Dodgers’ lineup still features a ton of top talent that includes Trea Turner, Smith, and Freeman who can all carry the load for the club.
But for Freeman specifically, this is the second season in a row he’s become more important to his lineup as he was also expected to step up when Ronald Acuña Jr. tore his ACL with the Atlanta Braves in 2021.
Thankfully for the Dodgers, Betts is still expected to return this season, unlike Acuña last year, and with that experience under his belt, Freeman said he is comfortable being relied upon more.
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