The Los Angeles Dodgers have capped off a dominating finish to the month of May, winning all three series on their recent 10-game homestand, including a sweep of the reigning World Series champion Chicago Cubs.
Over the last two weeks the club has posted a 10-4 record; outscoring their opponents 70-43 during the span and trimming the Colorado Rockies’ lead in the National League West to a half-game entering play Tuesday.
Let’s look back at the second half of the month and recap the Dodgers trends that took place.
Trending Down
Yasiel Puig: It was a disappointing end to the month for Puig, who mustered up a .179/.256/.359 slash line in 44 plate appearances. He struck out nine times and collected seven hits.
Puig, however, homered in Sunday’s finale against the Cubs and made a terrific catch at the wall in foul territory to take the bat out of Anthony Rizzo’s hands.
Joc Pederson: It’s been a rough stretch for Pederson, who continued slumping in the latter half of May.
In 29 trips to the plate, he hit .120/.241/.280 with nine strikeouts — amounting to a meager 47 wRC+.
To make matters worse for Pederson, he suffered a concussion after colliding with Puig in the outfield and currently resides on the seven-day disabled list. When Pederson may return is uncertain, as he’s still suffering from concussion symptoms.
Logan Forsythe: Since returning from the disabled list Forsythe has struggled to find his rhythm offensively.
In six games, the 30-year old is batting .105/.227/.316 with two hits in 22 plate appearances.
Both of Forsythe’s base knocks went for extra-bases: He delivered a walk-off double against the St. Louis Cardinals in the 13th inning of last Tuesday’s contest at Dodger Stadium, and homered on Monday at Busch Stadium.
CONTINUE READING: Players trending in the right direction, plus honorable mentions
Trending Up
Chris Taylor: Making the most of his increased playing time, Taylor continues to tear the cover off the ball.
In his last 14 games (51 plate appearances), Taylor is batting .333/.412/.622 with three homers and a team-leading 0.8 WAR (FanGraphs) among positional players.
Yasmani Grandal: It was a terrific two-week period for Grandal, who slashed .286/.333/.500 with six doubles and a home run in 45 plate appearances.
Grandal’s 10 doubles in the month of May is tied for the National League lead with the Atlanta Braves’ Matt Kemp.
Corey Seager: After a brief slump in the first half of the month, Seager is back to his usual self.
The young shortstop is hitting .292/.424/.417 with four extra-base hits (three doubles, one home run) over his last 59 plate appearances.
Chase Utley: The veteran has made the most of his opportunities in May, batting .306/.409/.556 with a trio of home runs in his last 45 trips to the plate.
Utley also drew more walks (five) than strikeouts (four), and was one of three qualified Dodgers to sport an on-base percentage of .400 during the span.
Alex Wood: The 26-year-old continues to make a case for his first NL All-Star selection with each dominating start in May.
In his last two outings, Wood yielded just eight hits while striking out 12 batters in 12.1 innings. The southpaw hasn’t allowed a run since May 2 and his 25.1 scoreless innings streak tops all of Major League Baseball.
Wood was placed on the 10-day disabled list on Monday with left SC joint inflammation, but is only expected to miss one start.
Honorable Mentions
Clayton Kershaw: Despite an uncharacteristic outing against the Cubs, Kershaw still owns a 2.21 ERA, 3.17 FIP and 2.85 xFIP over his last three starts (20.1 innings pitched).
Kiké Hernandez: In his last 40 plate appearances, Hernandez has tallied three walks and 10 hits — with six of them going for extra-bases (.866 on-base plus slugging).
Brandon McCarthy: The right-hander has pitched to a solid 3.57 ERA and 1.89 FIP in his most recent 17.2 innings of work (past three starts) — leading the Dodgers with a collective 0.8 fWAR during that timeframe.
Cody Bellinger: Bellinger clobbered his ninth home run in May on Monday, joining James Loney and Pederson as the only rookies in franchise history to reach that total in a single month.
The bullpen: Headlined by All-Star closer Kenley Jansen, the Dodgers bullpen has allowed just one run over the last 28.2 innings (0.31 ERA), striking out 20 batters while issuing a mere five free passes.
What’s more, the group is in the midst of a 21.2 scoreless innings streak.