To combat facing Colorado Rockies left-handed starter Tyler Anderson, Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts stacked his lineup Saturday night with right-handed batters. Corey Seager and Cody Bellinger were the lone starters who hit left-handed.
The strategy was nothing new for Roberts and the Dodgers. Their depth and versatility allows the team to mix and match whenever necessary. One notable change, however, in the third of a four-game series at Coors Field was the absence of Yasiel Puig.
He was replaced in right field by Brett Eibner, who’s in his third stint with the Dodgers this season. Roberts said prior to the game he wanted to see more of Eibner.
Entering Saturday, the 28-year-old had only appeared in four games (two starts). One of Eibner’s starts game April 19 against Anderson and the Rockies. He went 0-for-2 with two strikeouts.
Eibner got some revenge the second time around. With the Dodgers holding a 2-0 lead, he opened the fifth inning with a booming home run.
The solo shot, which was Eibner’s first home run this season, cleared the trees in center field. It traveled 465 feet, per MLB Statcast, good for the eight-longest this season. Eibner’s towering drive is the Dodgers’ third-longest home run in the Statcast era.
Joc Pederson has slugged the top-two on that list, at 477 and 472 feet, with both coming June 2, 2015, in a doubleheader at Coors Field.
