On paper the Los Angeles Dodgers lineup is one of the deepest collections of talent in MLB history. But through the first month of the regular season they have yet to collectively hit their stride.
Trea Turner is in the midst of a 39-game on-base streak, and the Dodgers developed an early reputation for putting together a big inning in the blink of an eye. Yet, the offense has hit the skids of late, resulting in a 1-3 stretch entering Sunday’s series finale against the Detroit Tigers.
“[Saturday] I saw us missing the fastball,” manager Dave Roberts said after the Dodgers’ 5-1 home loss. “I don’t have a direct answer why we’re having trouble putting innings together and finishing innings. I know the preparation is there, I understand it’s baseball, but we have to be better.
“Bottom line is every game matters and results matter. Our guys are continuing to work, but I don’t have an answer why we’ve sort of stalled the last four games offensively.”
The Dodgers have scored a combined 10 runs in their past four games and batted .200 (24-for-120) with 26 strikeouts and 15 walks during that span.
Mookie Betts opened the bottom of the first inning Saturday night with a 30th career leadoff home run (10th with the Dodgers) and later added a single to finish with half of the team’s hits in the loss.
“Leadoff man homers, and then we really didn’t threaten much. I don’t have an answer,” Roberts said.
Dodgers lineup slumping
Roberts acknowledged the likes of Gavin Lux, Max Muncy and Justin Turner going through slumps likely has contributed to the inconsistent offense. Though, Turner worked a 14-pitch at-bat on Saturday, and Cody Bellinger saw 12 pitches.
“Justin’s at-bat didn’t end well, but I thought it was a great at-bat. I thought Cody put a really good at-bat together where he fought,” Roberts said.
“It just comes down to when you’re not swinging the bat well, you’ve still got to really fight, scratch, claw to find a way to get on base and move the ball forward. It’s part of it. We’ve got an opportunity to win the series.
“We’ve got Walker going, and he’ll be ready to go. We’ve got to do whatever it takes to win a ballgame.”
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