The Los Angeles Dodgers hosting the Cincinnati Reds in the National League Wild Card Series gives Gavin Lux another opportunity to face his former team this year.
The 27-year-old returned to Dodger Stadium last month for the first time since being traded to the Reds during the offseason and was presented his 2024 World Series ring.
Lux enjoyed catching up with his longtime teammates but will now try to help the Reds eliminate the Dodgers in a ballpark he knows very well.
“I think I got that out of the way on the first trip here,” Lux answered when asked if it was strange being back at Dodger Stadium in the playoffs.
“But being here, playing a lot of playoff games here, I’m excited. It’s a great environment. This place is going to be rocking. So I think it will be a good experience. A lot of fun for a lot of guys who haven’t experienced this yet. And I’m just excited to kind of go to war here with the guys we’ve got.”
Lux and the Reds are looking for better results at Dodger Stadium this time around after being swept by the Dodgers last month.
“I think the last time we played them, I think they caught us at a bad time,” Lux explained. “We were struggling, we didn’t score a lot of runs. We kind of struggled offensively. I think we’re a totally different team now. The last six weeks, I think. So I think obviously they’re really good. They’re really talented, they’re not going to beat themselves.
“We’ve got to play clean baseball and show up ready to rock from the first pitch. But I think we’re a totally different team now than we saw them about six weeks ago, whatever it was. So I think we’re a totally different team now. And I think we’ve got some momentum going over the last couple of weeks.”
The Dodgers took five of their six head-to-head meetings against the Reds this season. Lux went 3-for-17 with two doubles, one RBI and four walks in those games.
The former first-round draft pick hit an overall .269/.350/.374 with 28 doubles, two triples, five home runs and 53 RBI in 140 games for the Reds this season.
Gavin Lux believes Reds can be successful in postseason
Despite only winning 83 games this season and sneaking into the playoffs as the third NL Wild Card on the final day, Lux believes the Reds can produce a similar run as the 2023 Arizona Diamondbacks, who made it all the way to the World Series.
“I was hurt that whole year. But just seeing it, I think we were kind of playing do-or-die, survival games pretty much every game leading up, like you said, into the last game of the year,” Lux began.
“So we were kind of already in playoff mode the last two, three weeks where every game we felt like we needed to win. It’s whoever gets hot, and the playoffs are a crapshoot. So I think you just never know. Anyone can beat anyone on any given night.
“And, like I said, we’ve been playing do-or-die baseball now for what feels like the last month or two. I think we can use that to our advantage.”
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