The Los Angeles Dodgers’ offense has hit a lull as of late, scoring less than five runs in six of their last nine games.
Offensive peaks and valleys are to be expected over the course of a long season, but manager Dave Roberts said his offense hasn’t been in sync.
“I don’t think we’re collectively swinging the bats the way we were early. Sort of started in Colorado, I think,” he said. “It’s one of those things where baseball, hitting is definitely cyclical. In total, we’re at the top or near the top. But the last 10 days, it just hasn’t been synced up. We just haven’t got those hits when we needed.”
Over their last nine games, the Dodgers’ offense has gone 21-for-77 with runners in scoring position, and that drops to 14-for-59 when excluding their offensive outburst on Aug. 25.
“Yeah, I mean, we’re going to go through that during the course of the season,” Freddie Freeman said. “Stretches like that happen. So just keep getting guys on base, and ultimately we’ll get them in.”
The lack of typical production from the most important hitters has been highlighted during this recent stretch. Prized free agent signing Kyle Tucker has not lived up to expectations so far this season, Will Smith’s on-base plus slugging percentage this season is 115 points lower than his career mark, and the ultra-reliable Freeman has struggled mightily in his last nine games with a .171 batting average.
Shohei Ohtani is one of the few who have been hitting the ball well, but he has only just broken out of his slump in the last five games.
“It’s a long season, as we all know. You’d like everyone to get off to a good start, but a lot of guys are not performing to the back of their baseball cards,” Roberts said. “So you just hope that the work and the consistency of work will show benefits and it will balance out at some point.”
“We’ve kind of been going through it, I would say, as a group…. We were good to begin the season offensively, just kind of going through it right now,” Freeman said. “And our pitching has been amazing, I don’t want to not give them praise, because they’re the reason why we have a chance to win every single game. But as an offense, the last few games haven’t been where we want it to be. So hopefully with the day off, we’ll kick back into it.”
Poor swing mechanics and a lack of a cohesive plan at the plate are the two biggest issues Roberts sees his players struggling with.
“I think it’s a combo. I think some guys in a particular situation, I don’t think have a plan, a clear plan on what they’re trying to accomplish,” he said. “And in other senses, guys are just not where they want to be mechanically. And a lot of times it’s a combo of both.”
The Dodgers have a couple of things working in their favor heading into their next series against the St. Louis Cardinals. Not only does L.A. have an off-day in between, but they should have a favorable matchup against the Cardinals’ bottom-10 pitching staff.
Dave Roberts frustrated by Dodgers’ lack of situational hitting
The Dodgers had multiple chances to score in Tuesday’s 2-1 loss to the Miami Marlins, which would have either tied the game or given them the lead, but they failed to capitalize. That has been a recent trend for the offense, leaving Roberts somewhat frustrated.
