Yasmani Grandal was the unquestioned starting catcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers for the entirety of the 2018 regular season, but the postseason brought about a different story for a second consecutive year.
Grandal began the postseason as the starter, but he faltered both offensively and defensively in the National League Championship Series.
In the first two games against the Milwaukee Brewers, Grandal had a couple key passed balls and drops that cost the Dodgers. He also continued to not produce at the plate, which has become a theme with him in his career with the Dodgers.
Because of those falters, he was replaced by Austin Barnes as the starter. When asked if losing his starting job was difficult to accept, Grandal responded that he willing to do anything for the betterment of the team, via Bill Plunkett of the Southern California News Group:
“Difficult?” Grandal responded to that suggestion. “I’ll say it just like I said it at the beginning of the year – if it ends up I have to sit on the bench and we get a World Series ring, then that’s what it takes. I’m going into free agency with a World Series ring.”
It is no secret that Grandal has not had success during the postseason for the Dodgers. Over 32 such games, he’s just 8-for-75 (.107 batting average) with a .264 on-base percentage, .200 slugging, one double, two home runs and six RBI.
Grandal had a productive 2018 regular season, hitting 24 home runs with an .815 on-base plus slugging percentage. Despite their struggles at the plate throughout the World Series, Grandal made just one start while appearing in all five games.
Barnes did not have the defensive issues that Grandal experienced during the postseason, but at the plate, he too failed to provide much of anything with the bat.
The Dodgers may look to address the position this offseason, as Grandal officially became a free agent Monday morning.
