The Los Angeles Dodgers went through a mid-April slump that saw them lose nine of their 15 games, but they have since turned it around, winning 10 of their previous 12 games.
Both the pitching and offense has been firing on all cylinders, despite a few injuries, and the hot streak from Andy Pages has helped the bottom of the lineup increase their production significantly.
During their struggles, the Dodgers passed the eye test when looking at their offensive rankings as a team, but the numbers were inflated from the monstrous production from Mookie Betts, Shohei Ohtani, and Will Smith. While only receiving production from a handful of players, the Dodgers struggled to hit with runners in scoring position and were striking out at a high rate.
During the 15 game stretch that encompassed the worst of their offensive troubles, the Dodgers averaged 9.6 strikeouts per game in that time.
However, since beginning their road trip the Dodgers have cut that number down almost in half as the Dodgers have been doing a better job of staying within themselves at the plate, Max Muncy said via Bill Plunkett of the Southern California News Group:
“We’re sticking to our approach,” Max Muncy said. “It’s part of baseball, you know? When you’re going bad, teams are doing a good job of getting you out of your approach. That’s their job. Our job is to find a way to stay within it.
“It’s just one of those things where it’s their job to get us out of it. It’s our job to stay in it. This past week, we’ve been staying in it.”
The Dodgers concluded their nice run to finish off April by opening May with four straight wins, including a sweep of the Atlanta Braves.
They now hold the largest division lead in MLB as they are 5.5 games ahead of the San Diego Padres entering May 6.
Max Muncy downplayed significance of Diamondbacks series
The Dodgers suffered another postseason heartbreaker after a shocking sweep in last year’s National League Division Series at the hands of the Arizona Diamondbacks, and this most recent series is the first time the two teams have met since then.
Despite all the outside intrigue for this series Muncy explained the team’s mindset was not forced on any revenge going into the series.
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